Big Deer Stories Archives - Page 40 of 113

5 03, 2018

Potential State Record Mule Deer Sheds!

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00March 5th, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Management, Mule Deer, Shed Hunting|Comments Off on Potential State Record Mule Deer Sheds!

My friend Ricardo, a New Mexico hunting outfitter who specializes in limited-entry archery hunts for giant mule deer, found this antler on public land. Look at the size and deepness of the front and back forks--that is what you look for on a trophy mule buck. The shed taped out a tad over 96 inches. “If you double the antler score for the other side and give him a 30-inch spread the buck would score 223 4/8, potential state record! I’ll keep looking for the other side.” Picture below is last year’s shed off the same buck. “He put on a lot (tine length and mass) this year, but lost the extra point,” Ricardo says. Deadline to apply for the [...]

1 03, 2018

8 of 10 Hunters in America Hunt Deer

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00March 1st, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting|1 Comment

In its latest study on outdoor recreation the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) reports that 11.5 million people hunted in 2016, and of those, 9.2 million hunted big game. Take away I million or so that hunted mule deer and elk (my estimate) and that leaves more than 8 million that hunt the white-tailed deer each year. As I have long said, hunting the whitetail is what supports our industry. If whitetail herds were to crash significantly across the country, it would be devastating. That is why the threat of Chronic Wasting Disease is so concerning. Back to the survey, the 11.5 million hunters spend about $25.6 billion a year on licenses, equipment, trips, gas, land leases, etc. That [...]

27 02, 2018

Oklahoma Man’s Amazing Deer-Skull Artwork

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00February 27th, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Shed Hunting|Comments Off on Oklahoma Man’s Amazing Deer-Skull Artwork

Three years ago I posted on the amazing skull art of Robert Nichols, a deer hunter from Oklahoma. I told Robert that I thought his work was awesome, incredible really. I figured he had carved, engraved and painted professionally for years. Robert wrote me back: Hey Mike: Thanks for the compliment on my engravings! This is a new hobby for me. We got snowed in for a couple days last November. My wife had been telling me I should try something like this for a while, so she convinced me to do it. I had a small shed antler and figured, “Why not?” You asked what tools I use. I’m using a 15-year-old dremel…I just picked it up and hit [...]

23 02, 2018

New Research: Southeast Deer Study Group 2018

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00February 23rd, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Deer Science|Comments Off on New Research: Southeast Deer Study Group 2018

The Southeast Deer Study Group meets annually and is a forum for researchers, biologists and wildlife students to share their latest information on whitetail deer. I monitored the 2018 meeting last week via the Twitter of the QDMA and others. Here are some interesting deer science tidbits: Since beginning a quality deer management program (QDM) 16 years ago, a Tennessee hunt club reports an 84% increase in buck sightings per hour for hunters and a 486% increase in mature buck harvest (deer 3.5 years or older) per hunter. QDM works especially when you give it time! Dr. John Kilgo of the U.S. Forest Service reported that coyote reproduction actually increases in response to trapping efforts. Add that to the fact [...]

22 02, 2018

Deer How-To: Scout in February

admin2020-06-10T09:15:54-04:00February 22nd, 2018|Big Deer Stories, Big Deer TV, BigDeer, Deer Hunting, Shed Hunting|2 Comments

If you’ve got a free day this weekend, go back out to the stands you hunted last fall, walk out from them in an ever-widening circular pattern and look for old sign. You will learn a lot about how deer used the terrain, structure, cover and wind when traveling from bed to feed 3 or 4 months ago. You will find spots where bucks rubbed and scraped the most. You will learn if you need to move your stand 50 to 100 yards…or maybe you’re in a good spot and should stay put…or maybe you should pull out of the area all together. All this will double your chances of whacking a big deer when you come back to hunt [...]