First hunt- not period

[R.D.Metcalf]

you have strange deer there...
30 feet, thats what, 10 metres? good luck trying to get that close to a deer here.the only ones that tame are farm deer, and even then usually they scarper long before then

Thats about rifle range in most of my region lots of thickets and hollows that make good hidey holes for varmints. I hunt on the ground too and honestly I probably move within less than 15 feet of deer I never see....It dont mean they're tame it just means they're patient and they'll set still till dark if they have to , the older bucks especially are cool customers they dont get flighty and jump like younger bucks. Theres alot of press about a deers speed but what trips up a hunter aint always there speed its there ability to wait. In nature the first to move is more often than not the first to die, then again the opposite is equally true, its astounding how these older bucks know when to set and when to run.

I once hunted a particular buck for three seasons and finally got a shot I had the cross hairs on his heart @ 210 yards the wind was in my face everything was "right" He stayed broad side for a full three breathes I just watched him through the scope and never touched the trigger.....but he "knew" I was there, I would almost swear to it, anyway I didnt shoot him, and I'm convinced he was hot and bothered by a close doe or I wouldnt have put eyes on him even at that distance..... He was a wiley one. Not a "trophy" by flatland standards just an 8 point or 4X4 for you westerners but he lived a long time with alot of folk gunnin for him

Pardon my askin but what type of deer are found in NZ I'll own I'm undereducated about most species outside of the US I'm interested in how you folk hunt down there...any differences or similarities make for good educational conversation


Eric, congrats on your first hunt its not all about fetchin meat some of the best moments will be when you never fire a shot I'm glad you had a good and safe time. heres to many more

[Cleddyf]

what sorts of deer depends on where in nz you are, around here are Fallow (tiny tricksy deer that are really spooky and hard to find,with dark grey hair) and red deer(big noisy deer) in other parts of nz are Wapiti (a kind of elk), Sambar, Sika, and occasionaly there are reports of moose in fiordland.
what sorts do you have?

[R.D.Metcalf]

I'm guessing you are in Finland or Sweden ? "NZ" made me think you were in New Zealand. We have White tail and Elk, Our elk are illegal to hunt and they would be known as Red deer in europe. I love to hear the elk bugle in the early rut

you are lucky to live close to moose, moose are an animal I've always admired.

[Eledhwen]

We have Whitetail, Eastern Elk, Moose, and a smaller sort that lives in the marshes, possibly a mule deer type. Eastern Elk are protected. There is no Moose season in this state nor one for the smaller deer. Only for the Whitetail.

Eledhwen

[Greg]

In my neck of the woods we've got blacktail and, to a lesser extent, mule deer. Black bear too, but I'm not quite ready to be stupid enough to ground hunt black bears in kit with a trad. bow. A gentleman on the outdoor channel named Tred Barta did it with a glass modern longbow, wood arrows, woodsman points, and a good deal of panic for GRIZZLY a few seasons back, but *I* don't need TV ratings...

[Cleddyf]

I'm guessing you are in Finland or Sweden ? "NZ" made me think you were in New Zealand. We have White tail and Elk, Our elk are illegal to hunt and they would be known as Red deer in europe. I love to hear the elk bugle in the early rut

you are lucky to live close to moose, moose are an animal I've always admired.

i am in new zealand, (nz for short) fiordland is a region on the west coast on the south island, we have both red deer and elk (we call them wapiti) we also have whitetail deer too,thanks for reminding me. All mammals in nz were introduced except for some bats, the moose is a bit of a funny thing, some were introduced in foirdland ages ago and whether they are still there or not is up for debate, periodically someone claims they've seen one but there is no actual proof that there are still moose in fiordland. Its a bit of a joke here.when people who are really rubbish at hunting go into a block with no deer in it at all then claim they saw heaps of deer we ask them if they saw any moose while they were in the block

[R.D.Metcalf]

That is interesting, the animals you listed threw me off

"Wapiti" is a Lakota, American indian word for elk.

Thats funny about the moose We do the same thing here when someone starts making a deer out to be impossibly large we ask if their sure it wasnt a moose

[Cleddyf]

yeah we have a lot of different types of deer, it goes back to when nz was being settled. the Acclimatisation societys introduced heaps of different animals so everyone could hunt and fish,they didn't want nz being like england where only the wealthy could afford to hunt and fish.they also wanted to make nz more like home they didn't just introduce deer, they also introduced ducks,geese, swans,pheasant,quail,turkey, peacocks, various songbirds(which took off so well here that they exported some to aussie to help the acclimitisation societys there), thar,chamios, mountain goats, pigs, red and brown trout, salmon, scallops and many others, most of which didn't take off that well