***ARCHERY TIP OF THE WEEK***

DECOYS

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A number of years ago, our whole family took a vacation together at the Outer Banks. During our stay, my brother-in-law, Michael, and I decided to play a round of golf. As we were driving our cart between holes, we noticed a $5 bill lying in the middle of the cart path. As Michael stopped the cart, I quickly scampered towards the $5 bill. But just as I reached for it, the bill suddenly scooted away from me. Thinking that the wind was responsible, I took a few steps and once again reached down for the bill. But yet again, it fluttered away.
“Oh!” Michael muttered.
I looked up and hiding behind a nearby sand dune was a 10 or 11 year old boy. He had a small stick with a long length of fishing string on it. And at the end of the fishing string…..was that $5 bill! The boy was laughing and Michael and I realized, with smiles, that we had been tricked big time! We had been duped into believing that the $5 was ours for the taking but in reality, we had been lured into a child’s clever scheme.

Archery hunters are always looking for ways to get closer to deer so that when we release our arrow, we have a greater chance of taking them in the boiler room for a quick and humane kill. But more often than not, we are actually looking for ways to get the deer closer to us. We want the deer to be duped into believing one thing, but in reality, we are luring them into a clever trap.

We use attractant scents to fool a buck’s nose. We use grunt tubes and rattling antlers to fool a buck’s ears. Both methods can deceive a buck into thinking that we are either a hot doe or another buck moving in on his turf. Sometimes, these tricks work and the buck comes close enough to us to give us a shot.

A few years ago, I brought two bucks 100 yards across an open field to within 15 yards of my stand using just a grunt tube and a can call (doe bleat). Unfortunately, by the time they presented a clear shot to me, I ran out of daylight. Two does had also come directly beneath my stand from the opposite direction.

But another way to fool a buck is the use of a decoy. This technique fools a deer’s sense of sight. When combined with scents, grunt tubes, rattling antlers, or can calls, a buck or doe decoy will very often close the deal for a buck and bring him in for a shot. Very often, a buck wants to confirm with his eyes what his nose or ears have picked up.

If a buck smells what he thinks is a receptive doe, he will follow the scent trail and expect to SEE a doe at its origin. The same principle applies to a buck’s ears. If he hears what he thinks is another mature buck or a pair of bucks battling it out, he will come in and expect to SEE a buck at the source of the sound.

There are buck and doe decoys and each should be used at different times of the season and under different circumstances. In my next installment of “Archery Tip of the Week” I’ll discuss when, how, and where to use buck and doe decoys.

Many archery hunters use products to fool a deer’s nose and ears. Very few use decoys to fool a deer’s eyes. I hope that this season, some of you will try out decoys and I’ll bet that if you use them correctly, you’ll have better success at getting that buck within range.