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Like cattle, whitetails are ruminants, or cud chewers. They gulp food without chewing and store it in the rumen, the first and largest chamber of their 4-part stomach. This feeding behavior is advantageous in severe weather or when hunting pressure is heavy. The deer can feed rapidly when the opportunity presents itself, easily consuming 5 pounds of food in a half-hour. Then they retreat to the safety of heavy cover.

Once bedded, the deer regurgitates food from its rumen, chews its cud (the term for regurgitated food) and swallows it. The food then passes through the other stomach chambers for further digestion.
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There’s no sure-fire indication of a deer’s sex in its tracks. But if you take a close look, you will find some clues.

It happens all the time: a hunter looks at a deer track that’s a little bigger than the ones around it and says, “Now, there’s a nice buck.” Well, not necessarily. The size of a deer’s track is not a very reliable indication of the animal’s sex. A deer’s hooves continue to grow throughout its life and are worn down by contact with the ground. An old doe may leave a larger track than a middle-age buck. And a doe that spends most of her time on soft soil may leave a larger track than a same age buck that lives over hard, rocky soil. Still, if you find a track that’s huge compared to others in the same area, it’s probably worth your attention. It may belong to an old doe, but if it belongs to a buck, it’s probably a good buck. Also, keep in mind that old tracks often appear misleadingly large. Fresh tracks have sharp, distinct edges, while old tracks show edges that are dull and vague.
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Author: James L. Bruner

Deer communicate through many actions which include scent, verbally, and visually. Here are a few of the most common visual signs encountered while in the woods. Realizing what these actions mean can help you understand what is taking place and possibly what to do next.

Flehmen Or Lip Curl
Although this behavior is normally correlated with deer, especially bucks, this action is not exclusive to deer or even the males of each species but its always related to detecting certain scents in urines and receptiveness. A buck will exhibit the lip curl after detecting certain scents. The reaction is caused due to an olfactory organ called the vomeronasal. The organ is located on the roof of the mouth near the nasal passage and acts to block off normal breathing and direct air, or scents, into the pouch where it is examined and consequently produces the infamous lip curl. If you experience a buck reacting in this manner, chances are he has picked up the trail of a hot doe and will soon leave the area unless you’re lucky and the direction of the trail is heading towards you.
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Author: Unknown

Deer researchers know just how elusive whitetails can be. A radio-tagged Wisconsin buck, for instance, was forced out of his home range by opening-day hunters, but returned the next day and spent the remaining 8 days of the season in a wooded ravine. Despite heavy hunting pressure (about 30 hunters per square mile), only a few hunters even saw the deer and they were unable to bag him.

Whitetails routinely evade hunters in much the same manner, and in most cases, hunters assume there are no deer in the area.
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Author: James L. Bruner

Myth:
A buck always defecates in it’s bed before leaving.

Fact:
This has been stated many times by young and old hunters alike. Think about this for a moment. You have seen literally hundreds of bedding areas and how many times have you seen any waste in those beds? Perhaps given the buck to doe ratio, and the sparse evidence, created the backbone to this myth. It has been noted that a buck urinates in the center of its bed while a doe urinates at the edges. If you feel full of adventure in deciding whether or not a buck slept there you cant take it from there and either feel for moisture or take a good whiff. Good luck.
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