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Dumb or Smart

the blur

By the blur,
in Deer Hunting

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WNYBuckHunter Experienced

WNYBuckHunter

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That squirrel video is neat, but its nothing more than hands off training if you think about it. If the squirrel was really smart, it wouldnt take 2 weeks and gradual training to get it to do that routine.

Im not saying that deer are stupid or lack any intelligent thought, they just arent smart in the way that some insinuate.

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Doc Experienced

Doc

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They catch on because of the increase in pressure. Remember, every time you go into the woods before season starts to put up your treestand, scout, check trail cams, etc etc, you put pressure on the deer that wasnt there before. They start to notice patterns and make themselves scarce.

It is that Noticing of patterns and reacting in some fairly clever defensive ways that are the indicators of intelligence. No, they don't sit down and write articles on evasive maneuvers or things like that. And no they do not rival all humans in terms of intellect (some, but not all .... lol) but they do show the ability to learn, adapt and even perform some fundamental reasoning. Of course it is all relative, but it's never really a good idea to sell a deer short in the area of intelligence. On many occasions, I have found out the hard way that deer do have a far better level of intelligence than I ever used to give them credit for. Their ability to detect hunter presence and then to figure out defenses to mess up the best laid plans of hunters indicates that they do use some form of fundamental memory, reasoning, crude analysis, and problem solving. Those are all elements of intelligence and sometimes, as hunters, it pays not to underestimate that intelligence.

Doc

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Doc Experienced

Doc

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Then back to the original question:

Why didn't they learn to look both ways before crossing a road ?

Not that my 10 YO kid has figured that out yet, but eventually he will learn.

I hope no one thought that I was comparing the intelligence of a deer to that of a human. My point is that it cannot be said that deer are dumb. In the animal kingdom, I would say that they rank right up there. The fact that they get whacked on the highway probably speaks more to their faulty timing than the fact that they disregard autos as a threat. Also, they have another fault that even though occasionally lethal, can be seen as one of the building blocks of intelligence ..... that would be curiosity. That may be the reason for the occasional deer that tries to stare-down an oncoming vehicle. There may also be  depth perception problems when looking into vehicle headlights .... I don't know, that's something I haven't personally tried .... lol. More than likely there are a lot of reasons why deer get smacked by a car, and probably none of them have much to do with stupidity.

Doc

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Culvercreek hunt club Enthusiast

Culvercreek hunt club

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Then back to the original question:

Why didn't they learn to look both ways before crossing a road ?

Not that my 10 YO kid has figured that out yet, but eventually he will learn.

Learning...even how we do it is based on a specific situation.....going through the steps of that situation and evaluating after we are through it. We benefit from communication to pass on  our past experience to others, including our off spring. I think the learning of a deer when crossing a road goes one of two ways...

just another walk in the park....

OR

OH $hit...there is a 4,000 pound chunk of steel....Under this case there sure is no ability to pass anything on...lol

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flny77 Newbie

flny77

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Animals (deer) evolve, survival of the fittest. The deer is programed to survive, not out smart. Through the process of evelotion deer have evolved into an amazing creature. Olfactory systems are elite, night vision and the ability to locate movement are outstanding, their hearing is wonderful, the hoof alone is superior in function. Most (wild deer) react through years of genetic programing, 99% of their behaviors, actions, and basic communication are based on instinct and reacted to, not learned.  Deer are survivors more than adapters.  Next time you're field dressing one of these majestic creatures take a peek inside that cranium.

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Doc Experienced

Doc

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I saw something today that made me come back and open this old thread on deer intelligence back up.

Once gun season opened, all deer sightings in my front yard ceased (surprise....surprise). Throughout the entire season, no tracks, no sightings, no indication that any deer had any interest in crossing my yard or getting anywhere near it.

So today, 3 days after the last day of regular season, I went out town this morning and in the snow was a fresh, walking, deer track that because of the new snow this morning, had to have been in broad daylight. However, they weren't done with me yet. I just looked out and there was another set of walking deer tracks crossing the yard, even more fresh than the other ones.

Now, I want to know who has been leaking the season dates to the local deer herd. These "dumb animals" seem to know exactly when everything is safe and when it's not. Some day I'm going to really mess with them and go out and buy a muzzleloader. Then we'll see just who has the last laugh.

Doc

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