Deer hunting is a popular sport for many outdoor enthusiasts across North America. As the season approaches each year, eager hunters grab their rifles and gear up for the hunt. However, when it comes time to take the shot, most hunters deliberately avoid shooting the deer in the head.
If you’ve ever wondered why hunters don’t aim for a headshot on deer, read on to uncover the reasons behind this common practice.
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: Hunters avoid headshots on deer because the head is a small, moving target that does not offer an ethical kill. Shooting the vitals instead increases accuracy and minimizes suffering.
Anatomy of a Deer
Small Head Size
A deer’s head is quite small relative to its body size. The average adult whitetail deer has a head that is only about 10 inches long, while its body can measure over 5 feet nose to tail. This means a deer’s vital organs and brain occupy a very compact space that is a challenging target for hunters.
There are a few key reasons why deer have evolved to have such tiny noggins:
- A small head reduces overall body mass, allowing deer to run exceptionally fast to escape predators.
- Their narrow profiles also enable swift movements through dense forests and underbrush.
- A light head enhances their ability to swim across rivers and lakes.
So in short, the deer’s petite head gives them a physical edge to survive and thrive in the wild. This also makes them elusive and tricky creatures for hunters to take down humanely.
Mobile Head Target
Another factor is that a deer’s head is almost always on the move. Those large, radar-dish ears are continuously swiveling to pick up the subtlest sounds, while their eyes have a 310° field of vision to scan for potential threats (humans included!).
Even when grazing placidly, deer make frequent jerky motions with their heads to capture scents and sights at all angles. This is second nature to them as prey animals that must stay vigilant against predators. Targeting a constantly bobbing and weaving head takes expert marksmanship.
Deer’s field of vision | 310° |
Human’s field of vision | 180° |
Moreover, responsible hunters aim to make clean kills that minimize suffering. So they need to patiently line up a shot that will accurately penetrate the vital organs instead of merely injuring the head or jaw area.
With deer anatomy putting the odds against hunters here, most opt for higher-percentage shots to the body/vitals over risky head shots.
Difficulty of an Ethical Headshot
Precision Required
Successfully shooting a deer in the head requires incredible precision and skill from the hunter. The deer’s brain is a very small target, only about 5 inches wide in mature deer. Hitting such a small moving target from a distance while accounting for various factors like wind and the deer’s movement takes years of dedicated practice to perfect (source).
Most average hunters simply do not have the expertise to make an ethical headshot.
An imperfect headshot can lead to a slow, painful death for the deer. Nicking the jaw area or non-vital parts of the head may inflict gruesome injury without killing the animal. So hunters are ethically obligated to only take high percentage kill shots they feel fully confident making.
For all but the most expert marksmen, body shots on broader vital organs represent safer ethical options over risky headshots.
Risk of Injury
Another reason most hunters avoid head shots is the risk of their bullet deflecting off the skull and traveling in unintended directions. Deer have thick cranial bone plates protecting their brains that bullets can glance off (source).
A bullet path radically altered by deflection can stray into roads, houses, or toward other hunters – potentially causing tragic unintended harm.
So the ethical choice for hunters of average skill levels is avoiding headshots despite the extra precision they require. Instead, targeting the deer’s vital organs amid the chest cavity represents a more sure kill.
Hunters achieve better accuracy on larger targets, and bullets retain truer flight paths through softer internal tissue. By making responsible shot choices, hunters uphold the highest ethical standards for a clean, swift, safe hunt.
Hitting the Vitals for an Ethical Kill
Larger Target Area
When hunting deer, most experts agree that head shots should typically be avoided. The head presents a very small target area, making it hard to hit accurately, especially if the deer is moving. Instead, the recommended target area is the vital organs in the chest cavity, like the heart and lungs.
This region behind the front shoulders presents a much larger area to aim for, greatly increasing your chances of making a clean, ethical kill.
According to authoritative hunting websites like Outdoor Life, “the heart and lung area is about the size of a pie plate on a deer.” This gives hunters a reasonable margin of error while still allowing for lethal, humane shots.
Targeting this vital zone helps ensure the deer will not run far or suffer unnecessarily. Responsible hunters prioritize ethics, so choosing the vitals over the head is the clear recommendation. As the old hunting saying goes: “When in doubt, take it out” – meaning it’s better to pass up questionable shots to avoid wounding loss.
Increased Bleed Out
Hitting a deer’s vital organs doesn’t just make for an easier shot – it also creates faster bleed out once the animal is hit. The cardiovascular system around the heart and lungs contains major blood vessels and arteries.
Destroy these structures and blood loss will be extensive, leading to faster death.
According to ballistic research, lung shots typically result in deer running less than 60 yards on average before collapse. Heart shots reduce that distance even more. By contrast, a head shot or spine shot often paralyzes rather than kills, leaving the deer alive as it bleeds out slowly.
This slower death process goes against the ethical hunter’s responsibility to minimize suffering. So aiming for the chest vitals enhances both accuracy and effective bleed out – two key elements of humane big game hunting.
Regulations Discourage Headshots
Fair Chase Principles
Hunting regulations in most states adhere to fair chase principles, which promote ethical hunting practices that give the animal a reasonable chance to elude the hunter. Shooting a deer in the head goes against these principles in a couple ways:
- It does not allow the deer an opportunity to escape after being shot.
- It is seen as an unsporting method that removes the challenge of proper shot placement.
Many states explicitly prohibit headshots on big game animals like deer. For example, in Wisconsin it is illegal to “shoot or shoot at deer or bear or elk in a manner that does not accord them a reasonable chance for escape.”
Most hunters avoid headshots in order to comply with regulations and uphold ethical hunting standards.
Wasting Meat
Another reason hunters avoid headshots is that it often results in damage to large portions of meat. Deer have small brains compared to the size of their body. A bullet through the head will likely destroy very little meat.
However, the shock waves created by a headshot can rupture blood vessels and bruise the surrounding meat.
According to research, up to 6 pounds of venison can be ruined by a headshot. The neck and shoulder region of a deer contains high-value cuts like the loins and tenderloins. A bullet through the head can cause extensive trauma to this area, leading to waste of good meat.
Most hunters strive to dispatch deer quickly while preserving as much meat as possible. Shooting for the vital organs rather than the head achieves both objectives. The vital organs present a larger target that is more likely to cause rapid incapacitation.
And vital shots typically do not damage large portions of meat.
The Exception: Mercy Shots on Injured Deer
Sometimes hunters will end up wounding a deer rather than killing it outright with their first shot. In these unfortunate situations, hunters have an ethical responsibility to track the deer and put it out of its misery as quickly and humanely as possible.
This act of ending an animal’s suffering is known as a “mercy shot” or “mercy killing.” Even experienced hunters can occasionally misjudge a shot and fail to immediately kill an animal. Although tracking a wounded deer can be difficult, most hunters understand that leaving one to suffer would be cruel.
Locating and Approaching the Deer
If a hit deer does not drop immediately, the first step is attempting to visually locate where it fled. Signs to look for include blood trails, broken branches and vegetation, and tracks. Other clues can include circling ravens overhead or unusual deer calls.
Hunters may also try using trained tracking dogs if available.
Approaching an injured buck requires caution as they may try to defend themselves if cornered. Does and fawns tend to flee danger even while injured. Either way, hunters should be armed and ready to act fast upon reacquiring visual contact.
Delivering an Accurate and Instantly Lethal Shot
To minimize suffering, the mercy shot must inflict quick damage to the deer’s central nervous system or circulatory system. This requires placing the shot in the deer’s head or chest area for the highest chance of instant death.
Ideally, the deer should be shot while broadside from 70 yards or less. Accuracy is key as a second misplaced shot will only extend the animal’s misery and pain. A deer’s awareness can remain alert even after significant blood loss, so a precisely-aimed kill shot to the head or neck is vital.
Why the Head May Not Be Ideal for Initial Shots
Some may wonder why hunters do not simply shoot deer in the head on the first shot. While visibly the most sure-kill target, a deer’s head presents some difficulties compared to body shots:
- Much smaller target area than chest/lung zone
- Easier for deer to move head out of bullet path while aiming
- Less meat damage with chest shots
- Deer may not always present clear unobstructed head target
Therefore, an accurately placed broadside heart/lung shot typically has a better balance of lethality and shot placement capability under field conditions.
However in mercy killings, hunters are close enough that precision head and neck shots become more practical to achieve an instant kill.
Conclusion
While occasionally necessary as a mercy shot, hunters avoid aiming for headshots on healthy deer. The head presents a small, moving target that makes accuracy difficult. More importantly, headshots risk wounding rather than ethically killing the animal.
By targeting the vitals, hunters can avoid unnecessary suffering and promote fair chase principles. With knowledge, skill and ethical shot placement, hunters uphold the highest standards of their sport.