Do deer "learn"?

[cjjcb]

When they see my big white chevy coming they run........they have definitely learned of the killer inside. 

Mine is black.
Same here ,they always on the run.
When they see my beater.

Reinforce what they think they already know!
 

[cjjcb]

But that also brings up an interesting learned point… how many folks here have slow roll pass a deer and the buck/doe did nothing but stare? THEN, the truck stops or hears a truck door open/close and they’re gone! I’d bet that happens alot…
Deer know whats up….

[OutHouse]

JP, I may know about the skittish one that grew to maturity if we are talking about the same time frame. Last year, he was a solid 5 by 5 and he only showed himself once on camera, and it was at night. I think they definitely learn.

[Jpmiller]

I'd be super interested if anyone knows of any actual studies about it. The anecdotal evidence seems really strong but it would be super interesting to see what the limits are.

[Stein]

I read a study where they collared mule deer.  One fawn made the migration trip once and then somehow got separated and mixed in with another herd.  The next year he left that herd and retraced his steps within ridiculous accuracy by himself.

Not sure if that is learning or what, but they can do some pretty remarkable stuff.

[borntoslay]

I think they definitely learn, I busted out a big whitetail a few years back. He held in the bottom of the canyon until i was basically on top of him. Trotted down to the bottom where there was a road, he stropped and looked both ways before crossing the road. No joke

[borntoslay]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

Sleeping maybe? I got a whitetail one year and it seemed like he was doing that but I think he was taking a snooze. Not sure really

[bigmacc]

Do deer learn? Absolutely, they start when they’re dropped. From “minute one”.👍

[Okanagan]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

Sleeping maybe? I got a whitetail one year and it seemed like he was doing that but I think he was taking a snooze. Not sure really

I've watched two different mature mule deer bucks in different states lie down with their neck on the ground and antlers tilted back as near as they can get them to the ground.  They were not sleeping.  One of them was 40 feet from me and he rolled his eyes to look at me without turning his head.  He was sneaking across behind my back as I slowly walked a ridge, crawling on his belly but by pure chance I turned around and caught him in the open.

Besides those two I also watched a 4x4 mule deer buck that was sleeping with his head laid down. 

Not much to do with the topic of learning, but interesting behavior.

[fowl smacker]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

The deer at my house (blacktails) all lay their chin on the ground when sleeping or resting from time to time.  I thought it was funny when I first saw it, but they've all done it, older bucks, young bucks and does.  But yes, I do think deer learn as well.

[bigmacc]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

Sleeping maybe? I got a whitetail one year and it seemed like he was doing that but I think he was taking a snooze. Not sure really

I've watched two different mature mule deer bucks in different states lie down with their neck on the ground and antlers tilted back as near as they can get them to the ground.  There were not sleeping.  One of them was 40 feet from me and he rolled his eyes to look at me without turning his head.  He was sneaking across behind my back as I slowly walked a ridge, crawling on his belly but by pure chance I turned around and caught him in the open.

Besides those two I also watched a 4x4 mule deer buck that was sleeping with his head laid down. 

Not much to do with the topic of learning, but interesting behavior.

Yes sir👍 I killed a buck once that I thought I’d hit dead to rights. Some on here know of this buck. Long story short, 6 hours and 5 boot miles later we found him. Laying like a good old bird dog next to a fire place. About 15 or so yards away when I rounded the rockslide. He had his head buried in the sage brush, I only seen his antlers and his driver’s side ear. My brother and I stopped, I raised my rifle as he reared up like a horse, I put a round into center mass, he buckled and I shot another round into his chest before he hit the ground. I ended up putting another round at point blank range under his front leg where I figured his heart was. That did it. We looked him over, he was a big bugger, we noticed both back legs were shot off at the knee caps. The first shot I took went through both hind knee caps as the buck lunged forward to mount a doe. I had my crosshairs behind the shoulder, about at his heart level. That buck crawled on his two front legs, dragging two stumps for miles, he was so low to the ground we never seen him going through the 4-5 foot tall brush. Even when we came up on him he was still trying to hide and survive. He was 28” across, 5 by 5. Dressed at 329 with the hide still on. Game fellas said he was about 8 and a half yo.

They learn, they learn how to survive. It may be from other deer, bucks may learn from other bucks. Young will learn from herd does or their moms but one thing is for certain, they start learning soon as they hit the ground.

[Caseyd]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

Some star thistle 4ft high and they’ll never move 

I hate to admit the amount of times I’ve had one jump out on the second pass/way out. One notorious spot there is a second ditch from heavy runoff that they get down into.

[dilleytech]

But that also brings up an interesting learned point… how many folks here have slow roll pass a deer and the buck/doe did nothing but stare? THEN, the truck stops or hears a truck door open/close and they’re gone! I’d bet that happens alot…
Deer know whats up….

They understand the difference between a predator hunting them. And a predator just strolling by.

[dilleytech]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

I watched a turkey lay down flat in the grass the other day when I stopped to look at it in a field 30 yards off the road. Grass was about 4” tall and I could barely see it.

[Pathfinder101]

I have seen (and killed) older mule deer bucks in the area that I hunt that were laying with their chins on the ground to get their antlers below the brush line.  Does don't do it.  Young bucks don't do it. 
You can't tell me that they don't learn.   Probably by seeing their older buddies do it.   
These bucks were both killed that way.  I've seen it so much that I expect it now.

Sleeping maybe? I got a whitetail one year and it seemed like he was doing that but I think he was taking a snooze. Not sure really

Nope. 
Making a long story short; the buck in the pic with my 13 year old was bedded between two not-legal two points we stopped to glass.  I was shifting from one buck to the other with my binos and saw antler tips duck below the brush level.  Told PathfinderJR to put his scope between the two bucks and wait.  A few minutes later one of the two points got up and stood there, then the other.  When that big buck jumped out of his bed he was already starting to bound away when the bullet caught him in the shoulder. 
I thought "Man, that brush must be taller than it looks" so I walked up there and found his bed.  The brush was less than 2' high.  The antler tips I saw were him laying his chin on the ground after he saw us stop to glass them.
You can't tell me he didn't "learn that" from other bucks.
And I know those two 2 points had not "learned it yet".