Piling 'em up in NC

[sportacus]

Here in se NC most of the yearling (1.5 yr.) bucks are spikes. But by 2.5 you rarely ever see a spike and most are small 6 and 8 pointers (between the ears). It's amazing what one year can do. When I was working as a biologist I would age literally hundreds of bucks a season and it was surprising how few 2.5 and older bucks were spikes. So, to say that a spike will always be a spike was not supported by the data I collected.   Same here in middle TN on 2.5 year olds.  Usually 6's or small 8's.  Traill cam pics have given hunters a tool to take a hard look at their inventory and get a pretty good idea of the age  class of the deer on the property.  Only into second week of rifle in TN but encouraged by the numbers of 2.5 year olds that will probably make it.  All the pics of spikes have been 1.5 year olds except for one.  WAG is he is 3.5 but because he has lived this long, does not show up on camera during legal shooting hours.  Will shoot him if he makes a mistake.  Had a "roamer" show up on camera Friday night.  A big 10 that I did not know was around.  I have the attention span of a gnat.  Will chase him to end of season.  Probably a fluke he passed through, looking for love.

[jvw2008]

Johnny Lee: "looking for love in all the wrong places"

Good luck Wayne. ?

[txaggie]

That's great stuff - we have a rule on the farm spikes don't walk. We allow everyone to have a buck of there choosing and a cull. Sometimes we shoot more culls than "trophies" and that's alright too - always tell the kids you can only hang so many horns on the wall. Youngest stepson (21) had his sights on an old 6 point that needed to be shot years ago finally pinned him down and the deer made his last mistake. I asked him now wasn't outsmarting that deer more fun than any hunt you've had? He said yep your right find one and hunt him down it's like trophy hunting!

We have 265 acres of heavy woods and oat fields absolutely covered in deer - nothing to see 10-15 a sitting. Doe harvest will begin soon to keep the numbers under control its our little slice of heaven for the 6 kids!

[jvw2008]

Mountain lions on my property do a darn good job of keeping our muley population under control. ?

[jvw2008]

@Downeast
- sorry, we kinda highjacked your thread here. ?