Sitka Deer

## Description

The Sitka deer or Sitka black-tailed deer is a subspecies of mule deer, similar to the Columbian black-tailed subspecies. Their name originates from Sitka, Alaska, and it is not to be confused with the similarly named sika deer. Sitka deer are characteristically smaller than other subspecies of mule deer. Reddish-brown in the summer, their coats darken to a gray-brown in the winter.

Sitka deer inhabit the coastal rainforests of northern British Columbia, Canada and southeastern Alaska, United States. They have also been found on the islands of the Alexander Archipelago, Prince William Sound, Kodiak Archipelago, and Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands), British Columbia.

*Source:* Wikipedia

## Hunting Tactics

*Introduction*

Sitka Deer (not to be confused with Sika Deer) is a sub-species of the well established Blacktail Deer and made its appearance with the introduction of Whiterime Ridge. It comes with no surprise that much of hunting this species is similar to that of its before-mentioned relative.

*Spawning*

The Sitka Deer is a herd animal. The very most sightings will be groups of mixed genders. The most commonly seen group constellation is five females and two bucks, but you can also find others. If you find stray Sitkas, they could be from a group that was parted by spooking or getting stuck in certain territory or vegetation.

*Clothing*

Hunting Sitka in an arctic environment requires at least the  Basic Arctic Outfit, which are free for you to pick up at the store. It is however recommended to wear  Arctic camo clothes as the Sitkas have good eyesight.

*Scent Eliminator and Wind Indicator*

This species has a sense of smell and will detect players around them. Especially when upwind, you will see close-by animals stick their nose into the wind, then run away. The  Scent Eliminator works against all animals with a sense of smell. Apply it when you want to get close to the animal of your choice. Also, make sure to pay attention to the wind direction by observing objects tossed around or by using  Wind Indicator. Use it and follow the smoke with your eyes to see in which direction it is blown. As a general rule of thumb, the wind will blow towards the North-East on all maps. If you are not sure about the wind conditions, apply the  Scent Eliminator just in case. It doesn't hurt to use it once too often if you want to be on the safe side and not regularly spook animals by your smell.

*Searching*

Weight does correlate somewhat with the score. Follow tracks from heavy bucks. There is a chance that one of these males will have a decent score. If you hear a call no matter what gender, lure them towards you. The bigger the group the better the chance for a high scoring male.

*Luring*

Use the Deer Bleat or the Deer Grunt to lure Sitkas. Both callers have the same luring effect, and the effect is the same for both males and females. You may use  Sitka Deer Scent Spray which lasts a lot longer than the caller, and lets you safely move into a hiding place or  stand.

*Field Judging*

When you spot Sitka bucks, look for one with large antlers with long points. Soon you will be able to field judge the antlers and tell a small score from a big one. When luring in bucks, make sure to look out for other males before taking a shot on the first spotted.

*Dealing with groups (herds, packs, flocks)*

If you fancy shooting any gender, roam around and look for their tracks or listen for their calls. If you are after the big male, leave signs of females behind and keep going until you find the according presence of males. When you encounter a group, check the map and look for a good ambushing location.  Call from a 30-50m (100-165 ft.) of your hiding spot or use  scent spray if available, then move there and wait. If the group has a big male, it can be the first animal to react to the lure just as much as the last. It is therefore important to always be patient and try to spot all animals in the group before taking a shot. Spotting all animals also has the positive side effect of increasing your  spotting skill for this species.

*Shooting the animal*

The shot must be well prepared. Search a good place where you can stay undetected. Avoid hasty shots. A good  spotting skill  will support you picking the right animal if there are severals. Wait until the animal of your choice has come close enough for a good shot, or until you can safely hit a vital from the side. It is not always possible to set up an ambush, or to move away on time. Stay alert for other animals (e.g. from a group) that might have come very close to your lure, and make sure to go for a shot before one of these could spook and flush everything around them.

*If the animal flees*

If you spook the animal of your desire, follow the tracks crouching. Use your optics and try to spot it, and also look for tracks or vocal signs. Do not go too fast. The animal can stop fleeing abruptly and return to roaming, and the roaming can be in any direction including coming right back at you. If you end up bumping into the animal it will flee again. Take your time. If the animal is worth it, a few more minutes will pay off.

### Quick Start Locations

Start at the following lodge(s) for quickly finding this species.