Are deer thrown off by pink cammo???

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Brittani555

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Hello all,
I really was looking forward to sporting a warm, pink cammo overall winter outfit. However, my husband thinks deer might not like this. He knows that blue doesn't throw them off, but what are your thoughts on pink cammo? Too much>? As much as I would like to hear what makes me happy.... truth will be appreciated for this- I can't let him have a reason to blame me for no luck with the game.
Thank you,
Brittani
 
AFAIK a deer can't see color. They don't really even see shapes all that well if they're not moving. That's why, every year, thousands or maybe even millions of people fill their freezers while wearing blaze orange.:)

So, the real purpose of camo for deer hunting is to break up your outline to help conceal small movements (see the blaze-orange camo now readily available). The fancy photo-realistic stuff is probably most useful for waterfowl and turkeys, with sharp, color vision. Otherwise, it just sells well because humans look at it and think, "Yeah, that looks like a tree all right."

Chances are, your pink camo looks the same to a deer as regular forest camo would. Take a picture and look at it on the computer in black and white.

One caveat: what deer CAN see is ultraviolet. Do NOT use Tide or most other common detergents with "color brighteners" or "bleach alternative". All that stuff is, is ultraviolet dye. Use detergent with NO UV DYES in it, and make sure you get all that crap out of your hunting clothes. We just don't use that stuff on anything -- it just ruins your clothes anyway, and my wife and I have both had regular clothes turn lavender from it.

Wearing the fanciest camo, when deer see it a big glowing blob, doesn't make sense! It's counterproductive, since you probably think you're invisible when you're not.
 
The general belief is that deer can only see yellow and blue - into the ultraviolet spectrum. Take from that what you will. Hunters pretty regularly wear bright orange safety vests/hats and they still seem to be able to get deer.
 
The catch with ultraviolet is that humans can't see it. That's what really matters, but it's hard to gauge by looking.

I'd bet that many deer were taken by people wearing blue jeans last year, too, though pants are more likely to be obscured by brush than a shirt or jacket.:)
 
Just for fun i read this elaborate study of the most effective camo available and indeed it was disguising the human form that was identified as the most effectice camo. as far as patterns go they determined that a wild hawaiian shirt they tried may have been the most effective if not the coldest camo one could choose! I can just see it a new line of Jimmy Buffet camo. jeezzzz.
 
blue has a bit of a glow to it in a deers eye. but how many generations have gone deer hunting in blue jeans?
 
The primary purpose of camo is to break up your outline. That's it.

Like I said, turkeys have crazy good color vision, so some fancy photo-realistic camo might make sense for them. For most purposes, you're just breaking up your outline.:)

Do I have some Realtree stuff? Yeah. Nice multi-configuration waterproof-breathable parka was on sale, and that's what it came in. Realtree does break up your outline, even though it wastes a lot of effort on pictures of leaves and twigs and crap. Some photorealistic camo doesn't even do that, like some of the old Mossy Oak stuff that, from any distance, just looks like dark brown or black. What a bunch of hooey.:D

I've started to see "retro" camo in stores. Seems it used to work, and it still does. Cabela's also has always sold their "outfitter" camo, which is a traditional non-photoreal style.

I've got an older book on elk hunting, and from the pictures, bowhunters can bag some pretty nice elk at 15 yards without photorealistic camo. They wore some camo, but it didn't have pictures of leaves and bark all over it.:)
 
Wearing the fanciest camo, when deer see it a big glowing blob, doesn't make sense! It's counterproductive, since you probably think you're invisible when you're not.
Click to expand...

Just because something may be seen under UV does not mean that it will appear to be glowing. That is something of a misconception brought about by the use of blacklights and watching certain colors and materials fluoresce.

As seen here, some UV materials show up dark, not glowing.
http://www.naturfotograf.com/UV_IR_rev01UV.html

Whether deer see things as glowing or not isn't determined to my knowledge. Deer will react more to motion more so than colors, patterns, or UV issues.
 
Just because something may be seen under UV does not mean that it will appear to be glowing.
Click to expand...

I should have clarified: I didn't mean a halo. AFAIK deer see a plain white t-shirt as "glowing", too -- in the sense that it sticks out from the background very clearly. That's all I meant.:)
 
Scent and hearing are more important to a deer than camo pattern / color. That isn't to say that it doesn't matter, but a deer can look right at an uncamod person and if that person isn't moving, then they will not be overly concerned, however if they catch scent (wind direction) or hear you being overly loud and repetitious in your noise making, they will head for TALL TIMBER.

:)

Hope that helps.
 
I've been early scouting in warm weather with jeans an white t-shirt an
have deer look at me within 20 to 30 yards, out in the open, an never detect
me. I stayed perfectly still while they were checking me out, then they went
passed me....that was many years ago an realized camo was just something
to make the hunter feel good. Since I like to feel good, I usually wear camo! ha.
But I have hunted an takin deer in blue jeans an non camo shirts.
 
Pink camo should be fine. He's probably worried you'll bag the only deer and then be encouraging him to wear pink on his next hunt. He may be fine on the hunt, but the stop off for breakfast after the sun comes up may be hell.
 
Go for it Brittani, wear the pink and bag the big one. Deer are way more concerned with the cologne you may have on, the fancy smelling shampoo, or movement that what your going to be wearing. As mentioned do not use any detergent with whiteners in it, they do see that.

Go out have fun and enjoy yourself, thats what your supposed to do anyway right?
 
I have walked right up on deer in the open with everyday close that was washed with all free & clear. Don't buy into the sales gimmicks of no UV's or camo. It is all about movement while they are looking at you. I do ware a camo coat most of the time but it is only because I got it for $10 or $15 after season at Walmart.

I say go kill a large buck or have your picture taken with someones & ware that pink camo. Then come up with some outrages statistical numbers. You will be surprised how many will try it. I can hear it now "I'm telling you Bob it really works. Just tell people that it's for your wife."
 
OK, you asked for the truth......purpose of camo is to blend into the critters environment and reduce your visibility.....not make a fashion statement. No where have I seen pink in natural surroundings.
 
my dad use to go bow hunting with blue jeans and just plain walmart jackets and would always fill his tags every season and he doesn't even use a treestand..
 
Deer do see colors. It is just that they do not see the same colors that you and I see. To a human the blaze orange color stands out as much different from the other colors we see in a hunting situation. To a deer that particular color is different, just not as much different than the background. Anything blue will jump out to a deer as being much brighter than the background, much more so than to a human eye.

Most of the camo clothes are really designed with duck and turkey hunters in mind. They have eyes that see very much like humans. For deer and most large game the type of camo, if any, is much less important. I don't know of any tests done on pink, but would not be surprised to find it would work just fine for hunting.
 
Deers' colour vision

Here's what one group of deer management experts has to say:

Deer, on the other hand, do not have a UV filter. Therefore, they see much better in the UV spectrum but lack the ability to see fine detail. This explains why deer often move their head from side to side when they encounter a hunter. Since deer lack this filter, they would be expected to see a greater difference in UV treated fabrics than humans.

...What do the results of this study mean for hunters? Should you throw away all of your camouflage clothes? Definitely not. It is important to keep the findings of this study in perspective. There is no question that scent and movement are far more important than the color of your clothing or whether or not it contains UV brighteners.





Complete article:

http://www.qdma.com/articles/details.asp?id=48
 
Pink is not legal here, only blaze orange. If it were, my daughter in law would wear it. She's said she wants a pink gun too.
 
I've sen some research concerning movement and camo.

Supposedly the "fleck" camo is the best for hiding movement.
 
Research into eyeballs and vision and all that has been done for forty forevers. What I've read through the decades has been consistent in saying that most critters see the world in varying shades of gray. What seems to be important for a hunter is that the cloth not be shiny.

White should generally be avoided, since the white of the bottom side of a deer's tail as shown by "flagging" is a warning sign of some sort of danger. However, since deer react to movement, I could see where a motionless tee-shirt would not elicit a "Danger!" reaction. Wrong size and shape.

In the FWIW department: I've noticed that I'll spot moving camo when some other hunter is walking than when the other guy is wearing khaki-colored clothing. The khaki is closer in color to wintertime vegetation, but it seems to be the camo pattern which stands out.
 
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