Knowing game capabilities

[Trogon]

My single trip hunting Nilgai in Texas on the King Ranch, was an eye opener on how wary they were. They seem to have incredible eyesight (and very wary from hunting pressure). My cousin got his at daybreak, I got mine at sunset, when faded lighting did seem to make them somewhat less spooky. Two days got tiring pretty quickly seeing alot of Nilgai rear-ends.
By contrast, saw many coyotes and they were not spooky at all. Almost felt as though they ignored us.

 

[318AE]

Has anyone experienced anything outstanding with regard to an elephants sense of smell?

Often when you get in close in thick stuff, you can see them raise their trunk up above brush, articulating it around etc., working to get your scent.

 

[Aaron N]

It may have been just a coincidence, but I found the game in Africa much more reliant on scent than sight or hearing. Where a whitetail leaves the county in the first broken twig or crunch of snow, the game in south Africa seemed to stay out if you had the wind in your favour.

 

[Sabre]

It may have been just a coincidence, but I found the game in Africa much more reliant on scent than sight or hearing. Where a whitetail leaves the county in the first broken twig or crunch of snow, the game in south Africa seemed to stay out if you had the wind in your favour.

I feel like whitetail is one of the most easily spooked animals. However, even that differs by location. A deer with relatively little hunting pressure in Iowa doesn't behave as spooky as a deer that lives with immense hunting pressure in Wisconsin. In states with massive hunting pressure it sometimes feels like the deer develop a 6th sense for your presence.

 

[Tucketed]

@steve white the cough issue brings me back to my Illinois whitetail hunt a couple of weeks back. I decided to use the enclosed stands to help muffle my cough. I had watched a couple doe a few times from 30 yards out for any reaction to my vest muffled cough and actually was surprised to see no reaction. Next day same blind my target 8 buck sneaked in behind me and circled at 10 yards out of my view. As I leaned forward and coughed I could now see him looking me straight in the eye and he excited very quickly as seen in the cam shot. Lesson learned not all coughs and deer are the same

 

[BryceM]

Pronghorn can see you before you leave your house in the morning.