kshunter

Here is a question for your antelope guys. I am going antelope hunting this weekend with my girlfriend. She has a doe tag and I have a buck tag. Since neither of us have hunted for antelope, I'm just looking for a few pointers to help quickly identify the right sex, as well as size. I've posted a picture below. The deer on the left, I'm asumming is a doe since the body is bigger than a young buck, face looks more mature, dark throat patch on face is not evident,and most young bucks with have taller prongs than that. Am I correct in my characteristics in identification? Any other things to look for?

wyomingtrapper

Look for the black cheek patch. Only the bucks have them. Have the patch its a buck, doesn't its a doe. Doe on the left, three bucks to the right, and of course the three fawns.

mnorth

Does the state your hunting define it as buck/doe (male/female) or antlerless/antlered? Most of the states I've hunted goats in define what is a "buck" by being some minimum length of horn...

I'd say your correct in your assessment of the bucks vs. does on your picture. I'd also tell you that while hunting goats you don't have time to be sure of what your shooting at, it's probably not a shot you should take. I think you'll be fine in being able to identify buck or doe.

Where are you hunting at? I leave this Friday morning with my son to hunt them here in my home state of SD.

Good luck!

P.S. Do your best to drop them with the first shot, they can get pretty gamey if they run before they die, the adrenalin gets into the system and can make for some nasty antelope, second, skin them ASAP, and cool them down. I actually skin them in the field. I rigged up a deal on my truck hitch to skin them on the spot.

kshunter

I'm hunting in Wyoming. That is a good point mnorth. I'll have to read the spec's on the tag to see exactly what her tag specifies for. I believe it specifies, doe or fawn though. Thanks again.

wyomingtrapper

Unless its changed, Wyoming will define the gender diff. by the black cheek patch. The tag should be any antelope or doe/fawn. Horn length is not a consideration.

Mnorth is right about the meat. Antelope are not difficult for the rifle hunter. Glass, find, stalk, shoot. Most have no business taking a running shot, though many do. I usually get the meat in the freezer the day of the kill. If you can't butcher right away (don't buy into the idea that you need to age antelope) then skin, quarter and pack in ice in coolers. Let the water drain. If you have to travel for an hour or more before you can do so, than have a couple of bags of ice to pack in the body cavity. It is excellant table fair and I've served antelope steaks to people who swore they hated the meat and thought they were eating deer until I told them otherwise.

Howler

I'm going to disagree with the others, I say all bucks in the pic., along with fawns. The buck to the far left is only about 1.5 years old. He does have quite abit of black down his nose, and is just starting to get the black check patch. He looks larger than the mature buck only because of his body position in the picture. Note that the other young buck also looks larger than the mature buck. Also, the buck on the far left has more horn already than any doe I've every witnessed. Looks to me like he has 3" or so already. Most doe only have an inch or so. I'll attach a pic. of a herd of doe, notice the lack of black on thier nose and the shortness of their horns.

gotlost

The pic you have posted is of a mid June, note the sage and the size of the bucks horns, look for the black patch and black nose,

<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v650/ldjanos/Antelope05014.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

This is a pic of a run of the mill 4 year old, You would be guessing on theleft and far right buck on thier age at that time of year, The buck in the middle is a yearling you can tell by body size and the horn growth.

The goat on the far left is an old doe note the shape of the skull and the lack of cheeck patch.