We’ve seen a lot online lately about drone use related to deer hunting. They’re used for recovering deer, herd surveys, and even following bucks around to make behavioral observations. And it’s getting a lot of attention because, well, it’s new, interesting, and many times we get to watch in HD video. In fact, these “drone studies” are being argued by some to be more scientific and insightful than University-led, multi-year collared buck studies which have been the gold standard for deer research for decades. But are they? Can a random person buy a drone online and provide cutting edge revelations into whitetail behavior that have eluded scientists for decades, or are these just the new flashy object of the hunting industry? Let’s try to break it down and find out.
The Pros & Cons
For sake of ease, let’s look at both collared buck studies and drone studies, and the pros and cons as far as I can tell for each in a list. Keep in mind collared buck studies started in the 1960’s and have been used ever since for tracking bucks and collecting data, so we have much more experience with them to draw from.
Collared Studies:
Pros:
- Fairly large population sample – usually 40-70 bucks of various ages.
- Continual data collection over years – 24/7, giving coordinates from every 1 hr to every 15 minutes in some studies.
- Led by teams of trained researchers – allows for removal of bias, accountability, and ensuring valid measuring methods and data collection.
- Quantitative data sets to mathematically analyze for statistical significance.
- Peer review – outside scrutiny in the science community, further verifying results.
- Allows, in some cases, for removal of variables other than what is the focus (example – MSU Deer Lab’s study of the moon’s affect on bucks).
- Allows for a big picture of how bucks, and deer behave using averages and other statistical calculations.
- The team is not trying to sell products or services related to the study, minimizing interpretation bias.
Cons:
- Does not allow nuanced viewing of behavior – if a buck is in a location, it doesn’t show what he’s doing just where he is. It does not show if he beds and gets up, interacts with other deer, makes a scrape, or just stands there.
- Does not focus on individual, or outlier buck behaviors.
It seems collared buck studies are best suited for finding general buck behavior and crunching numbers to draw fairly broad conclusions that can be applied to similar deer herds.
Drone Studies:
Pros:
- Allows for viewing nuanced behavior of what a buck is doing in the moment, if visible.
- Allows for viewing an individual buck’s reactions to other deer, hunters, etc.
Cons:
- Smaller population sample
- Cannot track or observe 24/7 – many holes in data.
- Difficulty finding same deer on multiple days or potential high error doing so – potential to mistake one deer for another.
- Spotty observation conditions due to foliage or weather conditions.
- No method to ensure competence of researcher or forthrightness of information presented.
- No team of professionals to verify methods, data, conclusions drawn, or to eliminate bias interpreting or presenting data.
- Minimal quantitative data to crunch, if any.
- Individuals many times are trying to sell a related service, leading to a strong chance of interpretation bias.
These being true, drones are much more individualized – good for finding specific buck behavior, how deer use a specific area, and recovering deer.
Putting this in list form makes it glaringly obvious –for those wanting reliable data and viable trends to capitalize on as a hunter, collared buck studies are the clear winner. The one downside of not revealing exactly what a deer is doing at the moment the gps collar pings, could be easily remedied with a supplemental drone for additional observations, but it’s not necessary with the quality of scientific data currently being gathered from collars. And I should emphasize if done, this would be best done by an accredited institution.
Why? Because when an individual, also likely a hunter, is doing “scientific research” with a drone, they begin to enter a gray area in most state law – scouting. Scouting deer with a drone is illegal in most states because it is considered part of the “act of hunting.” Unless a drone researcher is very careful never to hunt in that same specific area he studies, a state agency may have good reason to assume that information in some way is being used to help them gain advantage on a deer.
Going Further – The Law
From state to state drone use regarding deer observation is different, but many only allow retrieval of a shot deer. And if found alive the drone operator may not be allowed to tell exact gps coordinates of where it is. It seems the law is trying to walk a razors edge between modern technology and hunter ethics. Here’s a list of some MidWest states and what you can and cannot do with a drone (do research for yourself before you do anything with a drone, however. This article is not legal advice).
And state DNR agencies are showing great willingness to draw a sharp line, using data from confiscated drones as rock-solid evidence to in a recent Indiana case, and also in a Pennsylvania sting case against operator Joshua Wingenroth for drone deer recovery, only getting thrown out due to prosecutors withholding exculpatory evidence (leaving Pa drone operators in the lurch).
Some states, including Pennsylvania, are looking to introduce legislation that allows recovery only, but how this shakes out across the country remains to be seen.
What It Means
So for the average hunter, the current applications of drones appear small – for deer recovery where legal, and for herd inventory – which other than business applications is subject to interpretation by DNR officers and prosecutors and could be risky business. It seems data obtained from collared buck studies is a far more valid and safe way to find out about buck behavior.. or maybe by good old fashioned scouting.
