Big Deer Stories Archives - Page 17 of 113

26 03, 2019

Weird Deer: Longest “Unicorn” Tine Ever!

admin2020-06-10T09:15:25-04:00March 26th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, BigDeer, Deer Hunting|Comments Off on Weird Deer: Longest “Unicorn” Tine Ever!

The typical “unicorn” tine--third beam that sprouts out a buck’s forehead—is 1 to 4 inches long. The middle tine in this picture appears to be 13 inches or longer, likely making it longest unicorn tine ever on a whitetail. Biologists note that a unicorn tine is caused by trauma to the frontal bone on a buck’s forehead. This entire region of the skull is capable of growing antler, and if an area of the frontal bone is injured (such as a tine puncture from another buck) the trauma may cause a third antler to grow from the injury. How rare is a unicorn buck? Short answer, very. Noted whitetail scientist Mickey Hellickson says that during his days of researching wild whitetails on the [...]

22 03, 2019

Can You Salvage Roadkill Deer In Your State?

admin2020-06-10T09:15:25-04:00March 22nd, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Hunting News|3 Comments

From Popular Science: Jessica Mundall came across a dead buck while driving. The animal had just been hit and killed by a semi-truck, and was still “super fresh.” She and her husband, both hunters, processed the deer on the side of the road…. “After that, we were hooked,” says Mundall, 26, who works for the state’s fish and game department in Boise, Idaho. “We ended up getting our freezer filled off of roadkill.” Idaho is one of 20-some states that allow the free salvage of roadkill animals (you simply need to report your take to the state and answer a few questions within 24 hours). Other states that allow it include Washington, Pennsylvania, Oregon, West Virginia, Montana, Tennessee and Alaska. [...]

20 03, 2019

Deer & Deer Hunting Magazine Files For Bankruptcy

admin2020-06-10T09:15:25-04:00March 20th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, Deer Hunting, Hunting News|10 Comments

I am, or was, a print writer at heart, having majored in English in college many years ago, and then having written thousands of articles for magazines along with 6 books over the past 30 years. This is a sad day for me, as yet another hunting magazine goes down. F+W Media, publisher of Deer & Deer Hunting and 50-some other magazines, is liquidating. The New York-based publishing house, which has been in business for 100 years, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers on March 10. According to the filing, the company has seen magazine subscriptions drop from 33.4 million in 2015 to 21.5 million in 2018. Advertising revenues decreased from $20.7 million in 2015 to $13.7 million. The company’s CEO summed [...]

18 03, 2019

How Will “Bomb Cyclone” and Snowmelt Flooding Affect Deer?

admin2020-06-10T09:15:25-04:00March 18th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, Deer Hunting, Deer Science|Comments Off on How Will “Bomb Cyclone” and Snowmelt Flooding Affect Deer?

The recent bomb cyclone combined with spring snowmelt has swelled some Midwest rivers to record levels and forced the evacuation of hundreds of homes. The governors of Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin have declared emergencies. Some of the water-logged areas are bracing for more rain this week. How will all this flooding affect whitetail deer in the region? Biologists say that rising floodwaters of river and creeks won’t kill many if any adult deer, though it will displace the animals for days and weeks. But the deer will eventually filter back into their habitats once the waters recede. Good news is that pregnant does will move out of rising water now and for the next few weeks. The primary concern for deer herds [...]

11 03, 2019

2018 Virginia Deer Harvest

admin2020-06-10T09:15:25-04:00March 11th, 2019|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, Bowhunting, Deer Hunting, Deer Management|Comments Off on 2018 Virginia Deer Harvest

In my home state of Virginia last season, hunters harvested 190,636 deer, including 96,239 antlered bucks, 12,342 button bucks, and 82,055 does. Bowhunters killed 26,676 of those deer. For the first time since crossbows became legal for all archery hunters in fall 2005, the number of whitetails taken with crossbows exceeded the number taken with vertical bows. Blackpowder hunters shot 43,749 deer during the popular November muzzleloader season. Firearms hunters (rifles and shotguns) killed 120,074 deer, or 63% of the total. Approximately 161,800 deer (85%) were checked using the Department’s electronic telephone and Go Outdoors Virginia online checking portal. Virginia Deer Project Coordinator Matt Knox expected the fall 2018 harvest total to be down for 2 reasons. First, much of [...]