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Sometimes, they just don't have it

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BSK

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Mar 11, 1999
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Location
Nashville, TN
Here's a buck I've had using my place for at least two years. In the first video from last year, he was a very under-sized 2 1/2 year-old, both in body and antler. Hunters, including myself, passed him up multiple times. I was hoping he might become something once he hit 3 1/2. Nope. Second video is this year at the same scrape. He's added over-all size, but still just doesn't have it. He may go on my "bounty list" as well this year.

When trying to explain what a huge bell-curve distribution of antler scores will exist in a given location for each age-class of buck, I think a lot of hunters don't believe me. They assume all 3 1/2 year-old bucks are going to score right around "X" (whatever "X" is). Well, "X" may be near the average (the peak of the bell-curve), but a few 3 1/2 year-olds will also exist at the far left of the curve (extremely low scores) and a few will exist at the far right of the curve (extremely high scores). This guy is at the far left of the curve.
 

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TheLBLman,

This is a classic example of the high-grading theory. Pass up the older crap bucks and you end up with a lot of even older crap bucks!
 
Eh, I wouldn't be so quick to count him out. I've seen some underachievers explode at 4.5 or 5.5. Just like some teenage boys are 6' in middle school while others don't grow until their junior year. They come back to school and nobody recognizes them because they grew 6". Bucks seem to be the same way. You just don't know what he'll be at maturity until he's at maturity. This is why I'm mostly a proponent for killing mature bucks, not necessarily big antlered bucks. Usually big antlers are associated with maturity, but it's not terribly uncommon for young bucks to have big antlers too. If you're only shooting the oldest bucks on the place then you're never in danger of high grading.
 
Ski said:
Eh, I wouldn't be so quick to count him out. I've seen some underachievers explode at 4.5 or 5.5. Just like some teenage boys are 6' in middle school while others don't grow until their junior year. They come back to school and nobody recognizes them because they grew 6". Bucks seem to be the same way. You just don't know what he'll be at maturity until he's at maturity. This is why I'm mostly a proponent for killing mature bucks, not necessarily big antlered bucks. Usually big antlers are associated with maturity, but it's not terribly uncommon for young bucks to have big antlers too. If you're only shooting the oldest bucks on the place then you're never in danger of high grading.
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I would have lived a great life as a deer. I didn't really "fill out" until I was a sophomore in college 🤣.
 

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