John Eberhart

On managed properties, hunter interactions with bucks are considered non-life-threatening until the bucks reach the trophy antler or age kill criteria. After they reach such benchmarks, they have a high tolerance for human intrusions and are very responsive to hunter tactics—they’ve responded...

Scrape signposts are often mentioned in hunting literature and on entertainment television. While some hunters consider them paramount, others dismiss them as secondary locations. Over half of the bucks I’ve arrowed were taken from active scrape areas, so I consider them major focal points of buck...

While many hunters value agricultural fields as reliable food sources for deer, one negative aspect of standing cornfields is that mature bucks rarely leave them. Standing corn makes for secure bedding, feeding, and breeding. These reasons give bucks little reason to stray very far. Rather than...

In every state, hunters kill an average of 55% to 65% of the Pope & Young record bucks during the season’s abbreviated rut phase periods. That stat being what it is, it makes sense to scout during the post-season when the rut sign is still visible (scrapes, licking branches, runways in bedding areas...