90% of the time it's and ear, the line of the back, a movement, something out of place that alerts you to the animal. I have ran past deer trying to cut them off, only to turn around and see it behind a balsam 30' away but have no shot.
Nothing beats a Win94 or 1x scope model 7, whatever Youre preference in these thick close conditions.
About 20 years ago, I was fairly newlywed, and my now ex's family owns farmland, and I was out there whitetail hunting. From behind the house there was about 10 deer at approx 350-400 yards. I cranks the scope on my M77 MKII 308 to 9x for a shot but decided not to take it at that range. So I snuck up using the round bales as cover to get closer, once I was within 100 yards I started to look for the deer again. Nothing. So I snuck up to the tree line only to discover they were gone. Well, I had my wife in tow, and was about 10-20 yards from the bush, with a pond on my right. Wouldn't ya know, a nice little back jumps out of the thick stuff and tries to run around the pond. I up with my 308, and wow, brown gong blink in! Blink out! Of the scope. One eyed shooter of course. So....next time I saw brown, I pulled the trigger!! Deer dropped, bawling like mad! I blew its rear hips out. Needless to say, wife was not impressed. Never deer hunted with me again.
That's most of northern Ontario! Thick bush, close range shooting.
