Odd camo question

[ClickClickD'oh]

Deer, coyotes, etc see in shades of grey.

Lots of deer have been harvested by hunters wearing red plaid coats, or blaze orange vests & hats over the last 100 years.

Although that is the "traditional knowledge" it's not entirely true. Deer are red/green color blind, but they do have some sensitivity to blue and can see slightly into the ultra-violet range.

That's why lumberjack plaid and blaze orange can be worn with almost impunity. Find something that breaks up the outline, then check it under a black light for fluorescence.

Beware, some cheap Chinese Blaze orange really blazes under UV where the properly made stuff won't.

 

[sage5907]

I think that if you wear a mixture of different camo patterns at the same time it makes each part of you look smaller. I mix mossy oak treestand, woodland,real tree hardwoods and OD green and it seems to work good if I wear a facemask and gloves. That is, if I have back cover vegetation and don't skyline myself.

 

[jmr40]

Deer, coyotes, etc see in shades of grey.

This is not true at all and is a common misconception. Most animals in the deer family are referred to as being color blind. That in no way means they see in shades of gray. They very much see in color. They just don't see the same colors as most humans.

Many humans are color blind too, I know several including my son in law. No 2 humans that are color blind are exactly alike. They certainly see colors, but to them they cannot tell the difference between some. Some people may see green and blue exactly the same, and tell all other colors apart. Others may see black and red as the same while everything else looks normal to them. This is the same way deer see.

All the studies show that the blaze orange that stands out to most humans is a neutral color to deer. My son-in-law, can't pick out another hunter in the woods wearing orange. It looks like a dull shade of blackish red to him, it doesn't jump out as being un-natural. Other colors do. Probably similar to what a deer sees.

I've read that to a deer the color blue does seem much different than other colors. First I've heard of gray.

Most birds have eyes very similar to humans and it is generally thought they see pretty much the same colors as humans.

Camo clothes never hurts, and may very well help with big game animals. Exactly which shades of color probably doesn't matter all that much. Remember, the deer won't see the same colors you see. The desert camo will be just fine in your area. The green camo would probably work very well for deer too, even though it may be more easily seen by humans. As long as anyone is perfectly still camo is probably not needed. But no one is ever going to take an animal by sitting in the woods like a statue. At some point you are going to move, if nothing else to raise your gun or bow. Camo clothing can help hide that movement.

 

[redneck2]

After deer hunting for over forty years, I' ve read/studied/observed a number of things.

Animals that move at night do not see color as we do. IIRC, greens appear to be what we think of as brown. I can tell you for a fact that deer see light blue and particularly UV extremely well. Maybe thirty years ago was wearing insulated coveralls in the original Realtree. Multiple times I got busted by deer when I was down wind and very well concealed, not moving

Later I figured out that my wife was washing them in Cheer detergent with color brightener, which gives off UV light. One time I was standing dead still behind three rows of corn and a huge doe spooked a hundred yards off.

Birds see color exceptionally well (that's the reason male birds are typically bright colored)

Guys tend to say "deer do ths, do that". Does and particularly young does do stupid stuff. Typically mature bucks are a whole different creature and what applies to one doesn't mean it applies to the other

And, FWIW, I am sitting in a deer stand right now typing this on my IPad, waiting for sundown

 

[Sunray]

"...Deer, coyotes, etc see in shades of grey..." Yep, but camouflage isn't necessarily about colour. It's more about changing shapes. That can be as simple as non-reflecting tape or sewing burlap strips on a coat/jacket and brushing 'em.
In any case, look at your State hunting regs first. There may be a blaze orange requirement and cammies will not be useful.

 

[J_McLeod]

It was interesting that one color a deer can pick up immediately in relation to surrounding colors is blue, and gray also appears as a shade of blue to the deer. So, based on this study it appears that if you want to select camo for deer hunting you would avoid shades of gray as they are readily seen by the deer. Of course, most man made fabrics give off a blue UV glare if they are not treated.

Good to know, and a little disappointing. I have a really warm tan-gray jacket the Air Force gave me that I was planning to take hunting. Also had some nice gray pants I was considering. Otherwise, I'm taking a mix of multi-cam, real tree and solid tan.