A calcified layer of cementum is laid down each year a deer is alive which allows you to take a cross-section of the tooth and count the number of rings associated with it. Well the same concept can be applied to white-tailed deer. Most people have probably heard about how you can use growth rings to age a tree. Additionally, the number of points and a bucks antler configuration can change from year-to-year depending on disease, quality of nutrition, and antler injuries. This article discusses the three most common methods to age deer. This is because about 70% of yearlings will disperse up to five miles away from where they are born. Even if you think the deer is most likely a yearling when you first see it, there’s only about a 30% chance that buck will be on your property the next year. Outside of that, you can rarely say with 100% accuracy that a deer is a certain age, but you can say that a deer is displaying characteristics associated with a certain age. Even though people will use the number of antler points and antler configuration to keep track of a deer throughout the years, they are still making assumptions about how old the deer is the first time they see it. The only way to know for certain how old a deer is, is to give it some type of unique identifier at birth. Each method also has a certain level of subjectivity associated with it. There are several ways to age deer, but it’s important to understand that none of them are 100% accurate and accuracy usually decreases as deer get older. Allowing those bucks to live for a year or two more would likely help those hunters accomplish their goals, but they won’t know that if they aren’t aging their deer. Many hunters would like to consistently harvest bucks of a certain antler size, but often times fall short. Aging deer, whether dead or alive, can give you valuable information about what you can do to better manage your herd and reach your goals. If you’ve been around deer hunting for any amount of time you probably understand that many hunters get caught up in trying to age deer, and for good reason. Īging Deer on the Hoof, Jawbone Aging, and Cementum Annuli But, also note his thinner hind quarter in December, which is the result of his reduced feeding activity during his increased exercise (sounds just like most human weight-loss programs!). Note how much different he looks in December – his neck is much thicker, a re sult of steroids (testosterone) and 3 month of serious exercise (rubbing, scraping, traveling, and fighting). His antlers look huge, but remember velvet antlers always appear to be larger than fully hardened antlers. This buck photographed in mid- September has a relatively thin neck, which make s you think he’s 3-4 years old. His interests and activities change once testosterone levels increase dramatically in August, leading to antler hardening and shedding of their velvet during mid-to-late September. Bucks relax during the summer, putting extra nutrients into body fat and rapidly growing antlers. Bucks change dramatically between the early fall compared to when they are primed for the rut, so always consider the date relative to you area’s peak rut. Combining that with seasonal changes in body shape will really increase difficulty. Aging Deer on The Hoof | Consider Seasonal Body ChangesĮstimating age of photographed bucks can be difficult enough due to less-than-ideal body alignment in the photos.
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