Buck Limit Question
08-14-2004, 11:22 AM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 4
Buck Limit Question
I have a deer management question. I belong to a great hunting club in Bartow County, Ga. We have around 8-10 people that hunt about 1500 acres. We try to practice QDM and dont shoot a buck unless it's rack is outside the ears. This season we will only be taking one buck each. In the long run how do you think this will effect the quantity/quality of our bucks? For what its worth we have some neighbors whose philosophy is " If it's showin' bone it's goin' home!". thanks
zach
zach
08-14-2004, 03:15 PM
#2
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 638
RE: Buck Limit Question
atz3:
Limiting each hunter to 1 buck is a very good practice. Actually since your area is only 1500 acres, taking 10 bucks off of it might be to many. One of the places I manage is alittle over 5,000 acres and only 5 mature bucks are taken off of it each year. This is not a big ranch but it has one of the best deer herds I've seen.
The only problem that I have with your "management plan" is that you allow hunters to take any buck that has a spread out side of its ears. Just because a buck has a 15-17"+ spread does not mean he is mature, theres a good chance that he might only be 2 1/2 years old. If you want a good deer herd then you need to take mature animals only. The best way to do this is to learn how to age a buck by looking at its body. I would do away with the "outside of its ear" rule and switch it to "only 10 pointers may be shot", this will allow most of the bucks to mature a few more years.
And dont worry about your neighbors. Sure they might shoot one of the bucks that you pass up, but then again they may not. Your area is 1,500 acres, that size of area will/can hold a pretty decent number of deer. Which means if you pass up a buck, there is a good chance he will stay on your property.
Limiting each hunter to 1 buck is a very good practice. Actually since your area is only 1500 acres, taking 10 bucks off of it might be to many. One of the places I manage is alittle over 5,000 acres and only 5 mature bucks are taken off of it each year. This is not a big ranch but it has one of the best deer herds I've seen.
The only problem that I have with your "management plan" is that you allow hunters to take any buck that has a spread out side of its ears. Just because a buck has a 15-17"+ spread does not mean he is mature, theres a good chance that he might only be 2 1/2 years old. If you want a good deer herd then you need to take mature animals only. The best way to do this is to learn how to age a buck by looking at its body. I would do away with the "outside of its ear" rule and switch it to "only 10 pointers may be shot", this will allow most of the bucks to mature a few more years.
And dont worry about your neighbors. Sure they might shoot one of the bucks that you pass up, but then again they may not. Your area is 1,500 acres, that size of area will/can hold a pretty decent number of deer. Which means if you pass up a buck, there is a good chance he will stay on your property.
08-22-2004, 06:24 PM
#4
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location:
Posts: 98
RE: Buck Limit Question
A wildlife manager once told me that ON THE AVERAGE 500 acres will produce 1 trophy animal. If you have 1500 acres, you can expect ON AVERAGE, 3 trophy animals. Most clubs do not want to hear this. The reason being, in my area, you have to have about 1 hunter for every 100 acres just to pay the land lease costs. Do the math....500 acres, 5 hunters, 1 trophy buck. There will most likely be 4 hunters that feel like they wasted alot of time and money. If you have good, reasonable hunters, they will understand that even if you do everything right, you still need a lion's share of luck to get that deer of a lifetime.
