In general, do you think people over estimate, or under estimate the age of a buck? At first I thought this was a no brainer that it was over estimate, but after seeing some of the responses about "normal for your area" some of the low end ranges regarding the size of a 3.5 yr old buck was surprising to me. Especially in "big buck" areas.
I see a lot more 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 buck in my area than the older guys. Is it because the older bucks didn't get that way by being out in the open where we can see them frequently or is it because of "over hunting"?
Over estimate acrossed the board no doubt!! Unless you are tooth aging it's just a semi educated guess.
I honestly think a lot of people make mistakes both ways. I shot a 2.5 in 2007 that I honestly thought was a 3.5. He was a pretty heavy buck, weighed just shy of 170lbs dressed out, and sported a 98" rack which is probably just a bit shy of average for a 3.5 in that area. My best bud Dan (SN Jaws - has degree in wildlife management, and used to age deer for NYDEC) cracked his jaw open and said he was 2.5. I think this happens a lot more than people want to admit. With that said, I also think a lot of deer get mistaken for being younger than they really are. I don't know what it is, but I've seen certain areas where deer really don't show the physical characteristics of what you would expect for their age. My inlaws for example have several resident deer that run around their house, including a 3.5 and a 2.5 year old, both of which have frequented the area since they were button bucks. If I didn't know otherwise, I would swear both of these deer were a year younger than they really are. I also believe a lot of 4.5 and 5.5+ year old bucks get mistaken as 3.5's as well, I've spoken to buckeye about this in the past and I know he agreed with me on this. Below is a pic of the 3.5 running around at my inlaws. I bet gutted he would weigh maybe 120lbs soaking wet, and he's sporting roughly a 85" 6 point rack..........nothing about this deer would suggest he's 3.5, but I've personally watched this deer grow up since he was a button buck.
IMO...I think most people start by over estimating. Then after a while they second guess themselves and start to under estimate just to be sure. But....then there are those who under estimate because it is the "cool" thing to do. People are too weird to try to figure out.
In my opinion.. 90% of the hunting public get it wrong. But its often only by a year.. so really.. who cares? I mean.. whats the big deal between taking a 3 year old or a 4 unless you're in a co-op.. kill what you want to kill. It's a complicated guess.. and one unfortunately special interest groups (like the QDMA) have a huge hand in. I don't think to purposely sway the public.. but rather to show just how important age is to antlers.. and it's "possible" size when that age is reached. Then the people misinterpret this by thinking every 3 year old should be 125".. across the board. Not true. WAYYYY not true. I've always encouraged people to speak with P&Y or B&C scorers to understand just how UN-often a specific minimum class of animal is. And then to realize only like 50% of 4.5 year olds reach those standards (of 125").. and thats in big-buck states with GREAT trophy potential and in a solid area that allows the deer good nutrition along with a longer life. So most real-world hunters won't see anywhere near these numbers.. and when they base their guess off the antlers.. their seeking an anomoly in many cases. And theirs nothing wrong with that. But it bothers me cause they think they're poor hunters.. when in reality.. they're simply poor at guessing age. I take my friend Justins example as a clear cut case from Illinois. A buck he missed last year (on film) that will only gross 120"... at 5 years or above.. and likely ABOVE. Most would see this bucks antlers and just assume he must be young.. that is not the case. I encourage anyone to watch the video in the video section of this website. And this is perhaps the BEST area in Illinois to kill giant bucks. The Hanson buck another example.. a estimated 3 year old with 200+ inches on his head. The inches on a whitetail should not dictate the age estimate. A 3 year old can go from 100"-200"..
I think many people over estimate the age on bucks. Specially the ones In that 2.5 to 3.5 year old range. 3.5 sounds better then 2.5. There's times that I don't go fully by the body either when judging or guessing on a bucks age, I'll take the antlers Into play slightly also.
This kind of stuff is what intrigues me from an aging/biological standpoint, and not really from caring what I shoot perspective. I am one of the ones who falls into thinking almost every 3.5 yr old buck around here hits 125" (with most beign 130+) I can count on one hand the number of bucks that I felt were old (3.5+) with under 120" racks. I rarely, rarely see a big bodied deer with a small rack. BUT evidently that doesn't seem to mean that I'm not seeing older buck with "small" racks.
Here Rybo.. another tidbit for you to consider. Iowa is perhaps the best place in the world for a big buck. They have roughly 650 B&C bucks over the last however many years or so. Like 40 years or whatever of the entire B&C award recognition. They have like 800,000 deer in that state... EVERY year. You can easily do the math and see just how much an anomaly a B&C is.. even in Iowa. Although P&Y numbers are much higher.. they still only give small percentages when compared to the overall population of any age group. Even my 50% comparison from my first post was rather high.. but in an extremely good environment with the genes and the nutrition its not unheard of for the minimum P&Y scoring.
