Antler genetics and geography

[Applegate]

I have noticed for some time that bucks seem to share common antler characteristics by geographical location. I know a family that has a barn full of antlers from the same hill behind their house, all the mature bucks are 3 points. There are a couple with more points per side, but they all have a 3 point main frame.

The areas I concentrate on for the most part are all with in 20 miles of each other, however only a couple of spots seem to consistently produce 4x4 bucks. Some areas seem to have tall, narrow racks. Other areas a couple of creeks over produce wide racked deer.

None of the deer locally migrate more than a couple of miles. I am thinking that these deer may need to wander a little more and break up the gene pools? I am fondling the racks from both this year and last, and although different, they are strikingly similar. These two bucks could have been shot from the same treestand. Same ridge, within 30 yards of each other.






This photo does not show it well, but last years buck on the right has several inches of antler broken off. He seems to be a year younger than the other judging from skull size. No eyeguards on either deer, both mature animals.

Do any of you have like examples to share? I think it is very interesting.

[earlybird007]

I find that is true as well. In an area that I have hunted for years there used to be a big ol' one horned 4 point.....and for years there were one horned forked horns that I saw come out of the exact same trail that their papa did. A buddy even killed one of em'. All were tall and narrow and the other bucks that hung out in the same general area were tall and narrow and all good 4 points.

[stlhdr1]

I too find it very true. I know of an area up near Trout Lake that produces great horns but the body's of these deer are abnormally large. We've taken 3 bucks out of this area over the last 5 years and they all seem to dress meat and bones (no head or fur) in the 175-195 pound class. The 3 we've taken were mature 3x3, 3x4, 3x4 all having single eye guards. What's weird is most of the bucks that are taken up there don't usually break the 150 pound mark and these being so big....

Keith

[Bait O' Eggs]

I know a canyon where the bucks all have a wide webbing type palms in their antlers. Every buck in the area I have seen looks like this.

Where I bull hunted this year, all the 5 points have the 5th point coming way forward. None of the last tines fork back like a sword. We were amazed at all the bulls having this 5th point with the forward direction and discussed it around camp.

There is a spot we use to hunt bulls on the coast that all the bigger bulls had crowns in the top.

Antler traits do get passed along.

I like tall bucks over wide bucks, which I am sure have evolved from living in more timber than open country, getting between trees is easier with tall antlers, where all the wide bucks got stuck and killed.

[Lured In]

Applegate...great post.

I know Boyd Iverson addresses this at some level in his book. He also gets into the fact that food sources also heavily contribute to rack development, assuming you have good genetics to begin with. So looking at areas with a good forage base may have as much to do with rack development as genetics given the chance. (more specifically size, not shape characteristics).

I have hunted up in the Applegate a few times for the ML hunt and have noticed a few things. One year I saw a fawn buck (not more than 60-80 pounds) with 4" spikes on his head. That had to come from good genes and also be among the first born of the year to get that kind of development by mid-Nov. The logical conclusion is there must be a monster buck running around, which we were able to confirm the next day. There also seems to be an abnormally high number of young forkies that are trying to go to 3 points in their second fall. (Almost all of them forking on the front first, siimilar to a whitetail rack.) I would also think this is a genetic characteristic.

I think looking at the fawn crop is another way of validating some of the charactistics. Where there is good competition for does (high buck:doe ratio), you will see better racks on the whole. You may also start to see this play out over years if a dominant buck is able to throw 2-4 years worth of fawns, plus his offspring are able to do the same by potentially having the early birth advantage. (I know that is a very QDM philosphy, but I believe given the right herd, it plays out naturally.)

[WSU]

I have noticed more about the feed than anything, although I have only hunted one area long enough to get to know the deer. In pullman, were the deer eat wheat and alfalfa mostly, there seems to be some thing that makes their horns break. I lived there for four years, and out of the dozen or so bucks my friends and I shot I think they all had some breakage. Many of these were before the rut so they shouldn't have been fighting hard. Anybody else ever notice this or know if it occurs? The horns all seem very similar also, same shape, size, width, points, etc. depending on the age of the deer with fairly little variation.