SIGN, SIGN, EVERYWHERE A SIGN
How to correctly interpret rubs, tracks, droppings, scrapes and more to boost your odds of connecting with a trophy white-tailed buck this fall
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Big bucks leave tracks wider than a .308 cartridge (photo: Wikimedia Commons)TRACKS & DROPPINGS
Tracks are the easiest proof to find that deer live in the area. The challenge lies in identifying the sex and age of the deer that made them. For the most part, only tracks left behind by fully grown bucks and small fawns can be identified with confidence—if the hoofprint is wider than a .308 bullet, then it’s probably from a buck. Heavyweight bucks will also leave behind dew claw marks if the ground is soft. In all cases, the direction of travel is wonderfully obvious, and you’ll know if the deer was running if the toe marks are splayed.
As for droppings, bucks leave behind the largest pellets, which clump together more often than doe pellets (depending on the amount of moisture in their diet at the time). Along with tracks, droppings are best used to simply verify that deer have been using the area.
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