First camera check of the year had a few good bucks on it, so at least I can start piecing together a little bit of a target list for the 2012 season. I put the SpyPoint IR-6 on video mode for the first few weeks just to see what I could see. After switching out the memory card, I flipped it back over to photo. I absolutely love watching the videos but, man, does it take forever to run through a two week period just to sort out the "keepers." You can learn quite a bit from the videos through, so in the end it's well worth the time and effort.
The first buck to make an appearance looked very familiar to one I had pics of last year. If it's not the same buck, it's at least a close relative. If it is the same buck, he didn't put much of anything on this year, which makes me wonder more about a recent article I read about this summer's drought and it's possible affects on antler development. While this buck is not on the list for 2012, he's got lots of video footage so I figured I would include him. Meet "Flat Top"
Last fall's picture:
This summer's video:
It's interesting to note how "Flat Top" gives the small sapling a sniff before trotting off into the woods. While watching all the clips, I noticed that several of the deer did this. With some of the younger bucks lightly rubbing their forehead on the tree. I'm guessing that this tree has turned into a social signpost for the area, with the deer checking in while they're stopping by the mineral site. There's one 1.5 year old buck that I started calling "Facebook" since he's one of the most social repeat visitors, checking in on the sapling with nearly every visit.
Next on the list was a nice buck that I was only able to get a few seconds of video at first. Then he later made another appearance a few days later, causing me to really look him over. He's on the target list so far, and I told myself that it would probably be a Game Day decision whether to shoot or not if I was presented with the opportunity. With Game Day being the theme sticking in my head while watching and re-watching the clips, the buck was then instantly dubbed "Corso."
Here's my man "Corso" with a few of the lovely ladies:
Lastly comes another really nice looking buck carrying a solid 9 point frame. I combed through last year's pictures and couldn't find anything that looked like this buck. I'm sure he was around, and could have been the bruiser laying down many of the rubs I found throughout the property last fall. I just didn't have any record of him until now. I struggled with a name for this guy... always coming back to the #9 for some reason. What resulted for this guy was the name "Trent." Now, where the heck does "Trent" come from? Well, Trent Reznor of course, from Nine Inch Nails. Maybe there's a music video in this buck's future? If so, I hope that I'm the producer.
Here's a look at "Trent":
