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Steer a deer to you? How NOT to trigger deer senses! Make more acorns

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The Natl Deer Assn summarized a U of TN study (YT video) – interesting and to the point. Took a look at 2 things:

Can you fertilize oak trees for more acorns?

Researchers studied 4 things:

1. “Crown release” – Removing crowding trees around an oak to give it room to grow a bigger crown (more branches and leaves).

2. Fertilizing the tree after a soil test.

3. Both

4. Nothing (control group)

Results:

1. Acorn production increased a huge 50-65% in the “crown release” group.

2. Fetilize only = 0% increase in acorn production.

3. Similar increase to just the crown release.

Obvious what works! 2nd question they looked at was:

Does fertilizing make acorns “sweeter” or more attractive to whitetails?

They found no difference in acorn size, and no difference in carbs, protein, fats or minerals in acorns from fertilized vs non-fertilized trees.

Here’s one more benefit of more acorns:

HECK no. But that headline was so crazy we had to look at it:

> …according to a newly published study by a Texas A&M AgriLife researcher.

> Using survey data collected from 1,278 students at Texas A&M University…found that participants who viewed protection of natural resources a moral issue and empathized with wildlife showed higher level of support for conservation. …data also showed that groups within the study, such as animal activists and hunters, shared similar psychological mechanisms driving individual moral motivations for nature conservancy.

🤔

> Animal rights advocates made up 50% of respondents…hunters made up 30% of respondents….

> The study showed respondents from urban areas tended to be more empathetic toward wildlife. However, in reality, many urban respondents knew very little about wildlife….

After reading that whole deal we’re not convinced of anything except that too many A&M college students are animal rightists. 🙄

Anyone see any hunters here?

1. PA: New bill would remove all Sunday hunting restrictions.

2. ND: Fargo bowhunters want to hunt urban Red River deer.

3. MT hunters can sign up for “game damage hunts.”

Great idea:

> …to quickly respond to landowners who are eligible for game damage assistance in the prevention or reduction of property or crop damage primarily caused by deer, elk and/or antelope.

4. AL: Donald Trump Jr will speak at TN Valley Hunt/Fish Expo.

He’ll be there Sat, July 10, 1:00-4:00 pm. Can’t link it, it’s at: yellowhammernews com

5. MS: Ever hear of Cuffawa Creek Outfitters?

4,000-acre farm managed for deer and turkey, hunt cost is $350/day plus license and tags.

6. BC: Doe runs after, attacks, woman jogger.

She ended up in the hospital, glad she’s okay:

> “It just had those eyes and it just charged up.”

> …said she backed up and kept running – until she fell on the bank along Mark Creek and was caught by the animal. “I started kicking and I started punching her back and screaming.”

A whitetail attacked a runner in MN too….

7. First Sig Sauer “Hunter Games” complete.

Hadn’t heard about this, sounds fun:

> …overall competitive experience that challenged hunters’ shooting, glassing, and physical abilities, and was designed to showcase the full capabilities of Sig Sauer’s hunting products including the Cross bolt-action rifle…Electro-Optics and Sig Sauer ammunition….

8. Buck Knives kitchen knives are still on sale!

9. Smith & Wesson Q4 and full fiscal year results.

Crushed it:

> Quarterly net sales were $322.9 mil compared with $193.0 mil for the comparable quarter last year, an increase of 67.3%.

> Gross margin for the quarter was 45.1% compared with 32.2%….

> Full year net sales were $1.1 bil compared with $529.6 mil for the prior year, an increase of 100%.

> Gross margin of 42.4% compared with 31.3% for the prior year.

10. Winchester Super-X shells are 100 yrs old??

11. 2A stuff.

DC: 22 gun rights and hunting groups oppose Biden’s ATF pick.

DC: Biden wants to use “domestic terrorism” to ban/restrict guns.

DC: New DOJ “strike forces” will look for illegal guns…but the border mess is okay??

Anti-gun Brady group is getting $1.2 mil in gov’t covid funds.

CO: New “law” will allow cities to make their own gun bans??

12. England: Jays and squirrels plant more trees than people.

Didn’t know about the jays part but the squirrels deal is a no-brainer!

Deer Disease News

1. TX: CWD found in captive deer, lots of folks alarmed.

> Landowners, hunters, conservationists, scientists and other concerned citizens…are calling for immediate implementation of regulatory protocols in response to the recent outbreak of chronic wasting disease in captive deer facilities in Uvalde, Hunt, Mason and Matagorda counties, and associated release sites across the state.

The TPWD just acted on it:

> …issued an “emergency order” to impose additional movement and testing restrictions on deer breeding facilities that are affiliated with 6 deer breeding facilities where Chronic Wasting Disease has been positively detected.

2. WI: CWD-poz deer found dead in Green Lake County.

3. NY writer is blaming PA if CWD gets to his state?

Kinda sounds like it?

> Krysten Schuler, a wildlife disease ecologist with Cornell…stated that the infected deer that was found so close to the NY border will require a thorough investigation to make sure it did not infect wild deer inside NY.

Not sure how they could do that? 🤔

Highlights from an informative post at gunsandammo.com:

> The challenge for Savage in developing the Impulse was to design a rifle that would not only meet…expectations of the brand – accuracy, reliability, safety, price – it also had to compete against entrenched preconceptions of American shooters regarding straight-pulls, and improve upon the platform’s perceived shortcomings, be they real or imagined. Accomplishing this resulted in 13 patents filed to support the Impulse….

> …the most notable component developed for the Impulse is the bolt itself. It is a full-diameter design which is appropriate to ensure fast, smooth cycling within the aluminum receiver. The removeable bolt head features the Impulse’s headlining innovation: Hexlock. An alternative to traditional multi-lug designs, Hexlock is composed of 6 steel ball bearings that, when leveraged outward, function as lugs and secure the bolt into battery. As chamber pressure builds when a round is fired, the bearings actually strengthen their lockup. As pressure subsides, and the bolt is retracted, the bearings relax into recesses in the bolt head and roll smoothly within the receiver as the bolt is cycled.

> By depressing the pin and removing the cover, the handle can be withdrawn from the bolt and reinserted at the user’s desired angle: straight, raked forward or raked back. Each of those engagement lugs represents a different angle, and because the handle moves about an inch forward and back, and changes angle by about 30 degrees during operation, finding the right starting position can go a long way toward helping a shooter bond with the rifle.

> Even better, the handle can swap sides with the cover plate and an internal sleeve, allowing the same flexibility and configuration options to left-handed shooters. There’s no need to purchase a left-hand-only rifle; the Impulse is ready for all users from the box.

> …the Impulse actually uses the same barrels as the Model 10/110s, button-rifled and threaded (5⁄8-24) to accept suppressors or a muzzle device. The only difference is a barrel extension that accommodates the action’s design and ensures proper headspace.

> The barrel is connected to the receiver by way of the familiar Savage locknut, and a nice addition to the Impulse is the inclusion of an integrally machined 20-MOA rail at the top of the receiver for mounting optics. There’s no screws to come loose and throw off your zero.

> Not only did I hit the targets out to 700 yards, I was near-perfectly center-punching each – to include the challenge plates! Ultimately, I even put 3 consecutive shots on a 15″ target at 1,400 yards while holding off for wind. For reference, 1 MOA at that distance is equivalent to 14.658″. So right off the bat the Impulse proved to be a very accurate rifle, even at ranges and under conditions that most hunting rifles will never be subjected to.

Don’t think it’s available yet, and MSRP is $1,377. Will come in 6.5mm Creedmoor, .308 Win, .30-’06 Springfield and .300 Win Mag. We’re interested for sure!

How to NOT trigger a deer’s senses.

Pulled from an interesting post by Bill Winke:

> Once a game animal realizes it’s being hunted, it won’t move as naturally and definitely not as much in daylight. For the bowhunter, that change in behavior is the kiss of death.

> I set my stand on the backside of the tree; the side away from where I expect the deer to approach. Then I stand and face the tree, using the tree to hide me from nearby deer.

> You not only have to play the wind when on stand, you have to play it while going to the stand. And if you plan to hunt the spot again soon, you have to play the wind when leaving. This is a big part of the chess match of stand hunting – planning bulletproof entry and exit routes.

> The deer don’t smell where your boots actually touch the ground as much as they smell where your pants brush against low vegetation. For this reason, a mowed or cleared path gives the deer much less to smell than does a route through thick cover. When I hunt areas with ground cover I have to walk through, I wear long plastic booties that go nearly to my waist or I wear waders.

Waders aren’t just for duck hunting?? 🧐 Interesting stuff, worth a full read for sure.

What’s the DB and who does it?

The DeerBlaster is a weekly roundup of the best, funniest, newest and most important stuff about whitetail deer hunting – culled from around the interwebz for DIEHARD whitetail hunters and blasted into your inbox.

The DB is put together by some deer nerds 😁 – Ted, Jay, others – from around the country. We excerpt content (and credit EVERYONE!), comment on content, do some original content…because we can’t get enough deer hunting – bet you’re wired the same!

The DeerBlaster’s a work in progress, just like we are. 😂 Any issues, suggestions, whatever, just hit Reply to this email and we’ll get it. Thank you for reading!