Animal Reactions

[Drache]

It's amazing how animals react from one location to another. For example, hunting with my brother around Quesnel. We've seen more than a few bears and deer. Slightest sound and they bolt. You have to be conscious of wind direction and what is under your feet. Some of these animals would bolt while you were still 160 yards away.

Then you go hunting up the mountain behind my place. 50 yards from bears and you could be yelling at them and they won't even look up from their blueberries. The one time a bear did look up he started blowing because he was not going to leave that area under any circumstances. Scouting an area and had multiple bear within 50 yards of my truck and they didn't even look up when I honked my horn.

My last bear I took this year, the cinnamon that was with him didn't even look up at the sound of the gunshot and the proceeded to sit down on his haunches and watch us gut out the black from 40 yards away despite us yelling at him to leave. Once we left with the black, he went back to eating.

Deer are almost the same. Doing some scouting and was driving my truck (that currently doesn't have a muffler and so loud as hell) into a cutblock and a herd of 8 mulies were standing 50 yards off watching us. I turned off the truck and they went back to eating. It wasn't until one of the does stepped on a twig that the deer "startled" and ran 100 yards off.

Hell even one of the two bull moose we seen decided he was going to walk towards us to get a better look.

Granted there were some exceptions to the rule on my mountain it seemed. But generally I find it almost too easy.

[Lozzie]

Maybe the animals are just surrendering because you are such an awesome hunter. lol

[va7bkl]

I also find the differences in behaviour I've witnessed to be peculiar. Obviously there is the "I don't care, I'm rutting" type behaviour, but I also find when they live in areas that are typically noisy (hwy, lots of atving in the area, town close buy, ect) they are usually less skidish. They especially seem not worried and almost seem to believe they are surrounded by some kind of force field when feeding on the side of a hwy! ;)

I don't know what to think when you encounter situations like the following I recently had... I'm in an area where the animals are not too terrably skidish, walking in an old cut block looking for a place to put a trail camera. Then a bear crests the hill about 50yds away, walking in my direction (GF standing next to me). So I yell to tell the bear he's not alone cause its head was down, the bear looks up at us, then looks down and continues walking closer towards us (in its original direction of travel) till it gets to a log and starts pawing and feeding from it, now the bear is 30yds away. Then I hear a loud "click" from my GF's phone as she takes a pic lol and the bear does nothing. I say to her "let's start walking away" and the bear still doesn't react. As we start to move my foot snaps a small twig, the bear reacts by bolting in the opposite direction and into the trees 100yds away. Why did it take a twig snapping to scare it, but not voices talking, two people being in close proximity or camera shutter noises?

[Drache]

but I also find when they live in areas that are typically noisy (hwy, lots of atving in the area, town close buy, ect) they are usually less skidish. They especially seem not worried and almost seem to believe they are surrounded by some kind of force field when feeding on the side of a hwy! ;)

I've seen that. Except for this mountain there are no roads close by and no one hunts it except 5 people so I don't know.

[squamishhunter]

Spike I got 3 days into this season was with a doe that stood about 15ft away while we dragged him to the road.

[Wentrot]

Spike I got 3 days into this season was with a doe that stood about 15ft away while we dragged him to the road.

Same deal, Two deer shot within minutes and a doe stood feet away watching the entire thing.

[Bison Fats]

The reason that bears (if not habituated) often do not react to manmade noises is because these noises are not ingrained into there 'oh shit I better run' bank. Same reason why bear bells are useless unless the bears are trained to understand what it means.

Below One of the more informative links to bear behaviour. He talks exactly about twig snapping. I'm sure his data regarding bear attack and handgun use will ruffle a few feathers as we'll but none the less interesting presentation. I'm sure the 'experts of HBC' will jump all over it. Should be fun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PExlT-5VU-Y

[Drache]

He talks exactly about twig snapping.

The bears where I hunt on this mountain, even a twig snapping barely gets a notice. They just don't seem to care about anyone but themselves....

[Kami]

I think it's just their contrary nature that we humans struggle to master. Animals can be hard to read. One day they are not scared of you. Like mentioned, you can walk up within 50 yards and they could care less. Other days they see you from 200 yards and they are bolting. There must be many factors they make them act differently from day to day. If a bear is hungry enough and hibernation is coming, I could see how one may barely lift its head to stop eating. If it did and saw you, and huffed, he must be in his happy place.

Speaking of this, has anyone else bumped into super sketchy grouse this year? Maybe its just the area I am hunting them in? Maybe there are lots of coyotes and they are hyper active. I am seeing lots, but this year the majority of them are taking flight long before I can get within range with my 20 ga. Other years, same area, I could walk up and take out a covey from 10 yards, one shot at a time. They never left.

And again, I keep hearing those famous words someone once said..."And that's why they call it hunting, not killing".

[Pangaea]

Speaking of this, has anyone else bumped into super sketchy grouse this year? Maybe its just the area I am hunting them in? Maybe there are lots of coyotes and they are hyper active. I am seeing lots, but this year the majority of them are taking flight long before I can get within range with my 20 ga. Other years, same area, I could walk up and take out a covey from 10 yards, one shot at a time. They never left.

.

Funny you should mention this. I was just saying the same thing to someone at the office. Last week (first 4 days of the season) I could have walked right up to them. Yesterday, a completely different story. Saw more grouse, but they spooked easier. Got 4 though, and a big fat Blue to boot! I gotta learn to just sit and wait and scan for the first one's buddies before retrieving it. I literally walked THROUGH the rest of the covey to get the first one, and they stayed hunkered down until i was on top of them - you can guess how many more from that covey I harvested...