Hunting apparel-Safety, or Camouflage

[thelurkinghorror]

@Kimstu

Well, I suppose it depends on how you define “few”. A subset of ten out of fifty (or seven if you don’t count the three that do have at least some orange-wear requirements) is definitely a smallish minority, even if you disallow the more absolute-sounding descriptor “few”.

By area though, especially legally huntable? These are mostly very large mountain states that are “destination” hunting areas though, MT, and CO are the notable exceptions. I wouldn’t compare the area of Rhode Island to Idaho. The New Mexico areas are limtied military sites, SC is only a few spots, and Texas is largely private.

@Xema

In support of this, I’ll relate a common occurrence in falconry:

You’re holding a hawk on your arm. She’s* looking around, seemingly at random, when suddenly she fixes a stare upward and to the right. You peer carefully at the sky in that direction and eventually spot a raptor at about the limit of your vision. There will always be a bird where she’s looking (though you might need binoculars to see it). Clearly, her peripheral vision is better than your direct vision.
*Among raptors, females are larger than males, and thus preferred for falconry due to their superior ability to take game.

Peripheral vision and central seem to have different purposes in both humans and raptors. We both need to fixate centrally to identify objects. What seems to be especially better in raptors (and diurnal birds in general) is the density of photoreceptors, both foveal and peripheral. So it’s not really fair to compare their peripheral with our foveal, though in both cases they are clearly better at detecting and identifying.

[franklinten]

@Czarcasm

Is it preferable to wear clothing that hides you from your prey, or should one wear something that allows you to be seen by other hunters?

Deer and elk cannot see shades of red very well. On the other hand, orange stands out very well to the human eye, particularly in contrast to a green environment. So, you lose nothing by wearing an orange vest in terms of game being able to see you, but are at the same time much more visible to other hunters. Note that this does NOT apply when hunting birds like waterfowl (ducks, geese, etc) or turkey, all of which can see colors very well.
I always wear hunter orange when required by law. I still usually wear orange if I’m hunting on public land or in an area where I’m likely to encounter other hunters, even when I’m not required to do so.

[Kimstu]

@thelurkinghorror

By area though, especially legally huntable?

Well, that’s a different question that not surprisingly has a different answer.

[Beckdawrek]

Oooh! Imma get me some pink blaze.

[Crafter_Man]

@thelurkinghorror

Mammals have a good sense of smell, birds mostly have a terrible sense of smell.

As far as hunting, scent control is hugeon the east of the Mississippi whitetail treestand scene.

I am skeptical when it comes to scent control products, especially products like ScentLok. Correct me if I’m wrong, but most of your scent is exhaled through your nose & mouth. Unless they’re willing to breath through a charcoal filter, I’d recommend hunters not waste their money on that stuff.