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Deer Science

Video: 19 Fascinating Deer Behaviors Explained

Oct 9, 2024 Kip Adams

White-tailed deer are fascinating animals. Wildlife enthusiasts pursue deer with rifles, bows, cameras and more. Their beauty and grace are well known, and much has been written about super cool deer facts like antler growth…

Hunting

How to Clean a Deer Skull for a European Mount

Oct 9, 2024 Cheyne Matzenbacher

Skull mounts, also known as a European mount or Euro mount, have long been a great way to preserve and display a memorable deer harvest. Back in a time when it was difficult to preserve…

NDA Podcasts

The October Lull and Why Summer Bucks Disappear With Kip Adams

Oct 9, 2024 NDA Staff

In this week’s episode of the Deer Season 365 podcast, Kip Adams and I dive into the fallacy of the October lull and how to get back in the game when that buck you’ve been…

Hunting

Using Data and Common Sense to Minimize Deer Hunting Pressure

Oct 2, 2024 Josh Honeycutt

Spooking deer happens in many ways. Seeing hunters walk in the field. Hearing hunters walk or talk. Ground scent left behind during the trek in or out. Direct wind scent straight up the nostrils. These…

Hunting

The Most Perplexing Question in All of Deer Hunting

Oct 2, 2024 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

What is the meaning of life? Why are we here? Are we alone in the universe? What is the greatest treestand snack of all time? You’ve pondered these and other great mysteries, but they all…

NDA Podcasts

How Birds Can Lead You to Bucks With Dan Gardoqui

Oct 2, 2024 NDA Staff

Seeing the forest for the trees. That can be a challenge in today’s busy world where simply finding time to be in the woods deer hunting is a welcome reprieve. Arguably, being in a hurry…

Hunting

Top 10 States in Archery Deer Harvest

Sep 25, 2024 Kip Adams

The average hunter today has much longer seasons and more weapon opportunities than he or she had in the past. To assess how hunters take advantage of these, for our 2024 Deer Report we surveyed…

NDA Podcasts

Managing Your Habitat and Deer Harvest for Maximum Results With Shawn Lumsden

Sep 25, 2024 NDA Staff

In this week’s Deer Season 365 podcast episode, we talk with Shawn Lumsden of the Flint River Plantation about how their intensive habitat management and deer harvest strategies are paying off big time. We dive…

Hunting

5 Mistakes New Saddle Hunters Make

Sep 24, 2024 Brian Grossman

Saddle hunting has taken the deer hunting community by storm, and it seems the influx of hunters giving it a try continues to grow. While most hunters who try saddle hunting seem to stick with…

Hunting

Deer Hunting Tips from a Master Naturalist: Listen to Other Wildlife

Sep 18, 2024 Elizabeth Kligge

Earlier this year, I sat down with professional naturalist and Maine guide Dan Gardoqui. He practices a technique, familiar to indigenous people worldwide, called bird language. This practice develops a deeper awareness of the environment…

NDA Podcasts

Early Season Whitetail Hunting Strategies with ALPS OutdoorZ

Sep 18, 2024 NDA Staff

It’s time to hunt deer! With hunting seasons in or about to start in most places in the country, it’s time to talk deer hunting. In this episode, we’re joined by Zach Scheidegger and Joe…

Hunting

“Age This!” Celebrates 10 Years. Why is Buck Age Still Important?

Sep 17, 2024 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

We’ve been featuring an “Age This!” buck survey in this organization’s weekly e-newsletter for 10 years now. September 17, 2014 was the first newsletter to include a reader-submitted trail-camera photo and age poll. That’s not…

Deer Science

Can You Tell Bucks From Does by Their Tracks?

Sep 11, 2024 Matt Ross

A lot can be learned from investigating deer tracks where you hunt. I’ll even go as far as saying that deer tracks could be the number one type of deer sign to look for when…

Hunting

4 Ideal Deer Stand Setups Boosted by Habitat Enhancements

Sep 11, 2024 Ryan Rothstein

Too often when I read articles about deer stand setups or strategies for picking stand sites, it’s usually surface-level information. We get it by now – hunt funnels, set up downwind of trails, yada yada….

NDA Podcasts

Don’t Become a Statistic This Season, With Justin Lanclos and Glen Mayhew

Sep 11, 2024 NDA Staff

Every year, around this same time, stories start showing up in my news feed about hunters who have fallen from a deer stand. Some only result in minor injuries, while others end with a family…

Hunting

The Risks and Rewards of Targeting a Single Deer

Sep 4, 2024 Nick Pinizzotto

The weather was brutal. After an unseasonably warm and rainy stretch to kick off the Pennsylvania firearms season, I was reminded how quickly Mother Nature’s mood can change in December. I don’t prefer hunting with…

NDA Podcasts

How Wildlife Conservation is Being Robbed, with Dan Forster of the Archery Trade Association

Sep 4, 2024 NDA Staff

In this episode, learn about how wildlife conservation is being robbed by Pittman-Roberson Act and Dingell-Johnson Act excise tax slippage due to foreign product production and international e-commerce. Dan Forster, Chief Conservation Officer at Archery…

Hunting

5 Reasons to Give Saddle Hunting a Try This Season

Aug 28, 2024 Brian Grossman

When I first tried saddle hunting in 2021, it was due to the promise of a lighter, more comfortable pack deep into the public lands I loved to hunt. But I quickly found the increased…

Hunting

Is There an Empty Space Between a Deer’s Lungs and Spine?

Aug 28, 2024 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

Some deer hunters call it a “dead zone” or “dead space.” Some call it “no man’s land.” Most say it is an empty space located below the spine and above the lungs of a deer,…

NDA Podcasts

Is the Venison I Get From the Processor My Deer? Insights From a Professional Meat Processor

Aug 28, 2024 NDA Staff

In this week’s Deer Season 365 podcast episode, we’re talking with Terry Kerns of Edgewood Meat Locker all about deer processing. Not so much how to process your deer, but more about how to handle…

Deer Science

12 Signs You Should Harvest More Does

Aug 21, 2024 Lindsay Thomas Jr.

How many does should you harvest? It’s a perennial question for our organization and many deer hunters. Here are 12 signs to look for that indicate you need to take more than you have been….

NDA Podcasts

2024 Deer Season Pre-Season Special With the NDA Team

Aug 21, 2024 NDA Staff

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and we’re celebrating by bringing you our 2024 deer season preview special. With a combined 200 years of deer hunting experience, our panel of Kip Adams, Brian…

Hunting

4 Strategies for Talking to Non-Hunters About Deer Hunting

Aug 14, 2024 Cory Gurman

I love cooking venison, and sharing it with my friends at school is always fun and incredibly gratifying. One time I was cooking for a group of friends, and I just assumed everyone knew they…

Hunting

15 Trail-Camera Lessons Learned From Thousands of Unique Bucks

Aug 14, 2024 Josh Honeycutt

Trail-cameras have been a big part of my life, even longer than my wife. You might say I’ve been married to the former for 20 years and the latter for nearly 10. And I love…

NDA Podcasts

Using Water Access to Improve Your Success on Mature Bucks With Jacob Emery

Aug 14, 2024 NDA Staff

In this week’s episode of the Deer Season 365 podcast, we’re talking with Jacob Emery of the DO3 Outdoors YouTube channel all about using water access to improve your odds on mature bucks. Jacob dives…

Habitat

A Beginner’s Guide to Deer Food Plots

Aug 7, 2024 Brian Grossman

I’m not sure what it is about us hunters — or maybe just humans in general — that drives us to overcomplicate things. I see it in all aspects of life, whether it’s losing weight,…

Hunting Land Liability Insurance Don't put yourself or your family at risk!

Whether you are a landowner, or a hunter who leases land or is a member of a hunting club, hunting land liability insurance is essential because both parties assume some legal risk while on a property.

Landowners have a duty to guests and those paying to hunt (leaseholders). Hunters need liability insurance to protect themselves, other members of their hunting group, and even guests against acts for which they could be held legally responsible.

It is simply not worth risking your personal assets or your family’s financial security for unfortunate accidents or acts of others on the property you hunt.

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Action Alert: Support SB 67 for Sunday Hunting in Pennsylvania!

Sep 26, 2024 Catherine Appling-Pooler

Attention Pennsylvania hunters! Our legislators are back in session, and it’s time to make our voices heard! Senate Bill 67 (SB 67), which seeks to allow hunting and trapping on Sundays, will be reviewed and…

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