Winter has arrived in Pennsylvania, bringing with it below-average temperatures and ample snowfall. The Pennsylvania rifle season opened over the weekend, attracting nearly a million hunters who are eager to take advantage of the ideal conditions for pursuing whitetail deer. Despite the increased hunting pressure, bucks continue to communicate at scrapes. This is the perfect time to set up cameras near scrapes to monitor bucks searching for estrus does, even as hunters pursue them.
Look At Me
The night before Thanksgiving, this beautiful 9-point buck came to work the BuckRope. The temperature dropped below freezing overnight, and snowflakes began to fall. This buck has visited the rope scrape multiple times this fall, but I believe this was his last. I am almost certain that a neighbor harvested him on the first day of rifle season. However, I am still holding out hope that this buck is alive and will return to the scrape.
Quiet Before the Storm
An 8-point buck came to the scrape the night before the “Orange Army” entered the woods. Both of my SpyPoint cameras captured footage of him interacting with the BuckBranch. He didn’t spend much time at the branch, but he made sure to leave his scent from his preorbital gland. Even during the “Boom Stick” season, bucks tend to work this scrape because it is located deep in a thicket near a bedding area. I’ve noticed that the greater the hunting pressure, the more often I see deer using this scrape.
Young and Proud
This young buck has the freedom to roam wherever he pleases at any time. He doesn’t have enough legal points to be harvested by an adult hunter, and there aren’t many youth hunters near my property. Once again, this buck chose to check the scrape deep in the cover while searching for does. One positive sign for the future is that we have plenty of young bucks around my property.
Future Booner
The BuckStik has become popular among the deer on my property. Last week, a mature 7-point buck aggressively worked the same stick. Not to be outdone, a button buck decided to leave his scent on the BuckStik as well. You can see how he uses his face and forehead to mark the stick with his scent. I enjoy watching young deer interact with scrapes because they are energetic and excited to communicate with the other deer around them.
Survivor
I am always amazed at how a buck can suddenly reappear after being gone for a while. Here is another young buck that has managed to survive the rifle season. A few weeks ago, I recorded several videos of this buck at my scrapes, but he vanished afterward. I know he was probably off chasing does, but I’m not sure how he managed to avoid all the hunters. Once again, the Buckstik in deep cover allows the bucks to work the scrapes to check out which other bucks are still alive and which does might be in estrus. You can tell that fresh snow has fallen because it all falls off the BuckBranch when the buck begins to interact with it.
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www.buckstick.com
