GREAT OUTDOORS: Rattling in bucks can be effective strategy

Texas is generally credited with being the first place where hunters began smacking deer antlers together to attract bucks. For bucks, it suggests that there is a doe in heat that others are fighting over to secure breeding rights. They and the rest of the herd members hearing this commotion seem compelled to witness deer fights. Glancing through any sporting goods catalog or store will reveal a variety of products used to imitate the sound of a fight, particularly molded plastic racks and rattling bags. The most exciting time that I had rattling, I was fully camouflaged from head to toe, sitting on a cushion against a fence line and facing a woodlot across a small pasture. When I smacked the two antlers together, the resounding "CRACK!" sounded like the deep rich tone of when the sweet spot of a wooden baseball bat hits a fastball, unlike higher-pitched sounds that smaller antlers produce. I kept at it, trying to sound like two angry bucks smacking their headgear together like bighorn sheep rams, then mixing in some rubbing and twisting to mimic deer wrestling for position, pounding the ground, and shaking the brush around me. It seemed counterproductive to make so much racket while deer hunting. But, after about five minutes of this performance, a big buck crested a hill about 300 yards away in the next pasture working its way closer. I also saw two "basket rack" young bucks confidently approaching me from the woods about 150 yards across the pasture from my hidden location. Even though I would have rather allowed the big one time to continue coming closer, the pair of little bucks closed to within 50 yards. Dreading the embarrassment of headlines that might follow, "Outdoors writer gored by bucks while hunting," I stood up and by waving my arms, successfully shooed them away. As they fled with their white tails waving me goodbye, the big one in the next pasture saw them bolting and wisely retraced his steps back over the hill. In the thick brush behind me, I could hear another deer. When I turned around to look for it, I saw a 2-point "spike" buck only about 10 yards away. Even after all of the ruckus, it was still trying to locate a low spot in the barbed wire fence to cross to my side. Finally, after he got five yards downwind of me, he confusedly slipped away. The next morning, I climbed up in a tree stand instead of sitting on the ground and was able to rattle in another 20 deer within sight, but none of the does, button bucks or small antlered bucks offered any reliable crossbow shots. Observers have noted that deer respond more often to rattling during off-peak rut periods when they are not presently paired up. Bucks tending receptive does are unlikely to leave them to respond to fighting. To try rattling in deer, use heavy-beamed antlers, set up in a downwind elevated stand, and mix some loud antler smacking with subtle ticking and rubbing. Rattling for walleyes Meanwhile, the frequent strong winds have discolored Lake Erie's water in many locations that show walleyes present on the fish finder. Anglers using lures containing rattles help walleyes locate their baits in dark or muddy water using their lateral line sensory system that detects vibrations in the water. Their dual-size ball bearing rattles and size have made Dead Eye Juniors particularly effective lately on walleyes, according to Captain Mark Cahlik, owner of Bays Edge Bait & Tackle.