Odd experience whitetail hunting

[Fiftydriver]

Nice looking buck. Has good mass and carries it out well. It could be a slightly different sub species. I have been told that here in N. Wy we have 3 different sub species. The largest they say is the Dakota. I have definitely seen both larger and smaller deer that I attributed to genetics. Good shot. Bruce

Could be, maybe had a coues deer wander up north!!! He would be a STUD of a coues deer!!!

 

[Fiftydriver]

The WT deer sure took a huge turn for the worst this summer. I bet I didn't see a dozen three weeks ago in an area SE of Ulm where it wasn't uncommon to see a hundred in a day. Most hurtful was the loss of the bucks. Ouch.

It's nice to see you were able to connect with one of the few left in the area and having a young family member along side.

The cascade area has taken a pounding for several years in a row. Very sad. The Sun River Valley used to be one of the more numerous herd in Montana thanks in large part to the Broken O ranch that is over 125,000 acres and allows no deer hunting. Was a great supplier to all the surrounding areas for deer.

Mother nature has a way to controlling populations, unfortunately its hard to watch and understand sometimes for those of us that truly love these animals and work hard all year to protect them and promote their living conditions. Again, such is nature but it often times SUCKS!!!

 

[Fiftydriver]

You know thereis one problem though, happens every time Kirby posts. I ALLWAYS end up going to his sight and drooling. lol

Again, there may be some method to my madness!!! Thanks for checking out the site!

 

[Fiftydriver]

What a great little deer. Best of all, you are creating some unforgettable memories for you best friend, Kenzie.

I can't wait to see the little stud! Congrats......

J

He is a fair bit larger then that one that made the trip back with us from S. Dakota!!! A lot more cost effective as well. Sorry guys, small inside joke.

 

[Fiftydriver]

Kirby,

Congrats on an excellent buck and a great story! It makes it all the better that you had your little girl with you. I can't wait for that!

I have had a similar experience with a "pigmy" whitetail. I havn't seen a mule deer like that yet, but I did shoot a small bodied whitetail buck a few years ago with the muzzleloader.

Here in NE it is the same as you describe. 200 lb average on bucks, some bigger, but very rarely much smaller than 200 lbs. This buck weighed in on my spring scale (I know, not the most accurate thing in the world) at 160.

We had a go with EHD last year, which really hurt our deer numbers. I can not believe it, but this year blue tongue has been through and hurt our already decimated herds. We'll see what comes of it. I hope it turns out better than I envision it will.

Joe

That's a great high tined buck, congrats!!! Thanks for sharing.

 

[MudRunner2005]

**** nice deer Kirby! That sounds like a cool experience you got to spend with your daughter. Likely one she'll always remember.

Congrats on the kill bud! And whether it's a monster buck or not, that's a good deer around here...And I live in whitetail country! I wouldn't have hesitated to drop the hammer on him either. LOL

That Allen Mag is moving at 3,450! Just out of curiosity, how's the barrel and brass life on something like that?

 

[Fiftydriver]

**** nice deer Kirby! That sounds like a cool experience you got to spend with your daughter. Likely one she'll always remember.

Congrats on the kill bud! And whether it's a monster buck or not, that's a good deer around here...And I live in whitetail country! I wouldn't have hesitated to drop the hammer on him either. LOL

That Allen Mag is moving at 3,450! Just out of curiosity, how's the barrel and brass life on something like that?

That's moving right along depending on barrel length. Generally speaking, using my recommended loads at 3300 fps or a bit over, if you take care not to let the barrel get hot and keep shooting and keep them clean, you should see 900 rounds of barrel life give or take. Brass life, with the old Jamison brass at that level, probably only 3-4 firings at +3400 fps. Toned back to 3300 fps you would see 6-8 firings at least. We are now using Bertram brass which is stronger and offers 50-75 fps more velocity at same case life or longer case life at my current standard velocity levels. Thanks for the kind comments about the deer!!

 

[MudRunner2005]

That's moving right along depending on barrel length. Generally speaking, using my recommended loads at 3300 fps or a bit over, if you take care not to let the barrel get hot and keep shooting and keep them clean, you should see 900 rounds of barrel life give or take. Brass life, with the old Jamison brass at that level, probably only 3-4 firings at +3400 fps. Toned back to 3300 fps you would see 6-8 firings at least. We are now using Bertram brass which is stronger and offers 50-75 fps more velocity at same case life or longer case life at my current standard velocity levels. Thanks for the kind comments about the deer!!

No problem bud! That really is a nice buck. I call it like I see it, and regardless of body weight or size, it's a good one. I wouldn't hesitate to hang it on the wall.

I know I joke on the "howitzers" a good bit, but it's all in fun and games. Maybe one day I can step up to the big leagues with yall for some serious LR shooting. If you ever make your way down here, don't hesitate to look me up, I'll buy the first round. I'd really enjoy a good convo about rifles and calibers and stuff. Your knowledge and guidance has helped me tremendously over the last number of years.

Thanks again for all the help and advice, and keep up the good work.

And for the record to those thinking it, I am not being a brown-noser...I never have been, and never will be one. Kirby has helped me out alot over the years with free advice and info that I would not have learned by anyone around here, because the LR game is not big around these parts.

 

[jkupper]

That's a great high tined buck, congrats!!! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks! I was a bit disappointed with the taxidermist. Rather than buying a smaller mount for the deer, he bought the typical mount and stretched the hide around it like nobodies business. The cape has since split behind the rack. Last time I used that guy.

I wish you luck, and hope that your herd rights itself quickly!!! Again, congrats on the nice buck!

 

[HARPERC]

Interesting to see a 2/3 scale buck. Wonder if it is all genes, or if he was sick/stunted/malnourished/etc when he was younger? Regardless, fun times especially with your little one tagging along!

I remember John Wooters writing, the most important thing in a bucks development was the condition the mother was in during pregnancy.

Research is tending to bear this out. One of the conclusions researchers in South Dakota came to was "Fawns born to mothers in poor physical condition will likely never recover, and remain smaller in both body and antler size."

Some indications that even the grandmothers condition plays a role.

The focus of this particular paper was the differences in size between locations within the state (subspecies).

It seems the backyard deer we have locally follow the pattern of the biggest doe having the biggest fawn. Dominance around the food source seems to make a difference.

A couple of years back in our hunting area (October) I saw probably the smallest doe I've ever seen. I kept looking for spots thinking it was a late drop. A few minutes into watching a spotted fawn steps out and began nursing. Tough to believe either of them made the winter.

My hunting partner snow plows so he's out a lot in winter, this past winter he observed a fairly decent buck chasing a doe fairly seriously in February. Well after the time we usually stop seeing antlered bucks?

Nature, nurture, an immigrant looking for greener pastures who knows? Nice buck, nice shot, your daughter being there PRICELESS!

 

[Fiftydriver]

Thanks! I was a bit disappointed with the taxidermist. Rather than buying a smaller mount for the deer, he bought the typical mount and stretched the hide around it like nobodies business. The cape has since split behind the rack. Last time I used that guy.

I wish you luck, and hope that your herd rights itself quickly!!! Again, congrats on the nice buck!

That's to bad but its relatively easy to get a smaller whitetail cape so down the road you could always remount your buck and keep its scale as it was when you harvested him!!! To bad to loose the original cape but it can be remounted and look good as new.

 

[Fiftydriver]

No problem bud! That really is a nice buck. I call it like I see it, and regardless of body weight or size, it's a good one. I wouldn't hesitate to hang it on the wall.

I know I joke on the "howitzers" a good bit, but it's all in fun and games. Maybe one day I can step up to the big leagues with yall for some serious LR shooting. If you ever make your way down here, don't hesitate to look me up, I'll buy the first round. I'd really enjoy a good convo about rifles and calibers and stuff. Your knowledge and guidance has helped me tremendously over the last number of years.

Thanks again for all the help and advice, and keep up the good work.

And for the record to those thinking it, I am not being a brown-noser...I never have been, and never will be one. Kirby has helped me out alot over the years with free advice and info that I would not have learned by anyone around here, because the LR game is not big around these parts.

In all honesty, I have harvested more big game with my 7mm AM and 300 AX then anything else in my safe, that's including the 338 AM. The monster rifles are not always the best choice for big game hunting. More often then not, the middle of the road chamberings are best for all around use.

I guess I did just call a 7mm Lapua Improved and 300 Lapua Improved "MIDDLE OF THE ROAD" chamberings!!!! Guess only in the APS stable could that be a true statement.

 

[Fiftydriver]

I remember John Wooters writing, the most important thing in a bucks development was the condition the mother was in during pregnancy.

Research is tending to bear this out. One of the conclusions researchers in South Dakota came to was "Fawns born to mothers in poor physical condition will likely never recover, and remain smaller in both body and antler size."

Some indications that even the grandmothers condition plays a role.

The focus of this particular paper was the differences in size between locations within the state (subspecies).

It seems the backyard deer we have locally follow the pattern of the biggest doe having the biggest fawn. Dominance around the food source seems to make a difference.

A couple of years back in our hunting area (October) I saw probably the smallest doe I've ever seen. I kept looking for spots thinking it was a late drop. A few minutes into watching a spotted fawn steps out and began nursing. Tough to believe either of them made the winter.

My hunting partner snow plows so he's out a lot in winter, this past winter he observed a fairly decent buck chasing a doe fairly seriously in February. Well after the time we usually stop seeing antlered bucks?

Nature, nurture, an immigrant looking for greener pastures who knows? Nice buck, nice shot, your daughter being there PRICELESS!

I would tend to agree with all you say and it all makes perfect sense to me from what I have seen over the past 28 years chasing whitetails.

 

[Good]

Could be, maybe had a coues deer wander up north!!! He would be a STUD of a coues deer!!!

that was my first thought!

He's a stud for a coues for sure. But he's darker than the coues we have around here. They're a light grey in color and more "petite" than that beast. And any coues over 100" is a stud!

May have to eat my tag this year, but I'd sure like to get on one like yours sometime this week!