shootingduckdog
Well-Known Member
Went out last night, myself and a mate and we set up in a 150 acre wood in 2 different high seats, some way apart.
We both saw a doe each but the thing of real note was the amount of barking from roe deer. We were the only 2 in the wood and I am pretty sure we remained undetected as there was no probelm with the does mentionned coming within 15 metres. Yet there was a real barking session early and then 2 more. I then could hear barking upwind of my seat, struggled to find the animal and just as I spotted it it shot off. Very shortly after my mate saw a buck go tearing past his seat at full tilt, not the same animal as it still had winter coat. In 2 hours there must have been 7 or 8 different lots of barking from at least 4 different deer. 1 was definately a young doe as I had watched her and the bark was very unconvincing.
Anybody got any ideas? Do you think they had all twigged us and were unsettled? Might there have been another element at work? I have taken a buck out of there a couple of weeks ago, could all of this have been a turf war? Too early for the rut but presumably it could also be the bucks readying themselves?
Fascinating evening although it ended deerless.
We both saw a doe each but the thing of real note was the amount of barking from roe deer. We were the only 2 in the wood and I am pretty sure we remained undetected as there was no probelm with the does mentionned coming within 15 metres. Yet there was a real barking session early and then 2 more. I then could hear barking upwind of my seat, struggled to find the animal and just as I spotted it it shot off. Very shortly after my mate saw a buck go tearing past his seat at full tilt, not the same animal as it still had winter coat. In 2 hours there must have been 7 or 8 different lots of barking from at least 4 different deer. 1 was definately a young doe as I had watched her and the bark was very unconvincing.
Anybody got any ideas? Do you think they had all twigged us and were unsettled? Might there have been another element at work? I have taken a buck out of there a couple of weeks ago, could all of this have been a turf war? Too early for the rut but presumably it could also be the bucks readying themselves?
Fascinating evening although it ended deerless.