22 Nebraskaland • August-September 2020
B
esides Nebraska farmers, no group in the state frets
over the weather more than deer hunters. They study
barometric pressure, moon phase, temperature and
daylight hours, trying to figure out when deer will move
and where. Of all these factors, they pay the most attention
to the wind, and for good reason. While we experience the
world through our eyes, deer live in a world of smell, and the
wind is what delivers that scent to their nose.
Deer use their sense of smell to gain
information about the world in an
unbelievably rich way that is hard for
us to imagine. Evolution has refined
their sense of smell, particularly
the surface area of the nasal cavity.
Humans have about two square inches of nasal cavity surface
area. By comparison a good hunting dog, say an English
pointer, usually has around 34 square inches. Researchers
at Mississippi State University found that whitetails
have even more nasal cavity surface area, giving them a
sense of smell well over 1,000 times better than humans.
Furthermore, scientists say that whitetails can sort through
several odors at a time. We might walk into a kitchen and
Common
Scents
A No-nonsense
Approach to Scent
Control
BY RYAN SPARKS
Humans have about two square inches of nasal cavity surface area. By
comparison, a white-tailed deer has more than 34. Some experts estimate
their sense of smell is 1,000 times better than humans.
PHOTO
BY
RYAN
SPARKS
PHOTO
BY
JEFF
KURRUS
