Blinded by inches...what mature really is.

It's an epidemic, one which I'll admit has festered into an almost disease stage within the ranks of hunters. It's the idea that in order for a deer to be a trophy or "worthy" it must score so many inches.

(the following is for those who do chase "trophy"/"mature" bucks and not just freezer fillers. There is absolutely nothing wrong with not caring about any of what is on a bucks head, but this is for those that do)

The bottom line is some deer simply don't put on the inches we'd like....so we label them as inferior or genetically inadequate, and one way or another we try to get rid of them. However, some of the most dominate bucks I've witnessed aren't the ones with the most headgear in inches. No the most dominate bucks, the most savy bucks are the mature bucks.

A mature buck is a breed of the whitetail deer world that is unique all to themselves. Their maturity is measured in years, scars, battles won and battles lost. Their senses are honed by the broadhead that is still embedded in their should blade or that slug hole that still gets sore, that went through the meat of their back between their spine and the vitals. There sense of survival doesn't waiver but maybe a few times a year and they've learned to use other deer as pawns or extra trip wires when the pressure is on. These or the bucks that will stay in the thick cover for hours...sometimes watching lesser bucks steal does away, but they know darkness will come and movement is safer. These are the bucks that have that 6th sense, they hug the brush, they use the gulleys and they seem to be able to disappear just moments after seemingly coming right to you.

Do these warriors of time typically have more inches, yes...but that is merely because they're older. However, if there is one thing we know it's that not all bucks are equal. I've seen first hand bucks that are 2 1/2 years old pushing if not reach/exceed P&Y and 4 1/2 year olds that are just mere inches bigger. I've had friends shoot old 7+ year old bucks with just barely over 100inches on their head....but were the toughest bucks they've arrowed.

So be careful when you are stating a deer is inferior or lesser just due to their headgear...I'll take a 6 1/2 year old that barely breaks 100inches over your 130inch 2 1/2 year old any day! :D You say a buck that is 5 1/2 years old that hasn't started producing a P&Y/B&C scraping rack is inferior and needs culled...I say that buck has lived nearly 6 years, has some of the sharpest set of senses (if you hunt pressured deer I should clarify) out of your buck herd save maybe a couple others that are older and honed even sharper. I know many a guy who has tried to cull these "lesser" aged animals only to find out they couldn't....because they equate "less inches" as "less intelligence"....

...only proving they themselves are the less intelligent. Just some food for thought.


****added to OP because I've brought it up multiple times in the following posts:


I hoped this would fall on the ears of the guys who claim to be after mature bucks, when in reality they could care less how mature the deer is as long as it has the inches. I'm a big fan of calling a spade a spade and not skirting the edges. We're all hunters and need to stick together, but inside ourselves we have to acknowledge and accept our true identities otherwise we do more harm then good by saying we're one thing and doing something totally different.

 

AAANNDDD your arguement only falls on true diehard hunters. The "public" only wants to see inches, they dont care about deer age/maturity. I agree with you though sir...

 

I corrected your statement as to not offend some who are in fact diehard hunters but don't care about age, inches or buck or doe. :D

I hoped this would fall on the ears of the guys who claim to be after mature bucks, when in reality they could care less how mature the deer is as long as it has the inches. I'm a big fan of calling a spade a spade and not skirting the edges. We're all hunters and need to stick together, but inside ourselves we have to acknowledge and accept our true identities otherwise we do more harm then good by saying we're one thing and doing something totally different.

I am still not sure if I'd even classify myself as a true "mature buck hunter"...because while I will hunt the old boys harder and center on them...I'm not the type to let a P&Y walk no matter what age :D

 

Don't you know that it is the size of the antlers that determine how difficult it is to hunt a specific deer? Age and experience have nothing to do with it

 

You also have to remember, every hunter has the right to shoot what he wants to make him happy. Plain and simple, and who are you/us/we to judge that?

 

Exactly! But I'm a huge advocate of calling a spade a spade and admitting what kind of spade you are. I get so sick of guys stating their "mature" buck hunters or what not...when all they judge maturity on is how many inches the deer has......couldn't be farther off the maturity track.

 

I see what you are getting at.

I guess I would describe myself as a "look" buck hunter... I will not hunt just any older buck, they have to have a look I like. It isn't so much about inches... I would not hunt a spindley wide 130 inch 10 point, but maybe would a 130 inch heavy thick narrow 8 point. It's more than score.

 

Respect. Each their own for sure!

 

I am a freezer hunter and look for body size and/or quantity but I like, and appreciate, what you are talking about in your thread starting post.

 

Respect again, recognizing and accepting what kind of hunters we are is something I just feel we all need to realize. Whereas some people point the biggest finger to the "if it's brown it's down" crowd I point a bigger finger to the "I hunt mature crowd" but then shoot only for inches.

 

Mature to me Is 4 years and older. I consider myself a mature buck hunter but I'd be telling a lie If I said I let a 140's 3 year old walk on by. He'd get an arrow. I'm an Inches guy. I've let my share of 4 year olds walk also that didn't hit my 130 Inch mark. Why? Again I'm an Inches guy for the most part. Up until last year I'd not lower my standards none If nothing met my criteria. Now I've changed and I'll hunt the next best thing as long as he's 4 years old. I think once they hit 4 years old you're going to know their potential for sure. Last year I hit a buck high In the back and didn't recover him but he did live through It. He was 5 years old. His rack (sheds) scored 115 Inches. Crappy genes yeah but he was a challenge to hunt. Saw him 3 more times after I wounded him. Would have I mounted him If I had got him? No. Again I'm after Inches or a unique looking rack.

 

Is he around this year Schultzy? Like your post bud!

 

I like to think I do both chase big bucks and fill freezers with slickheads. :D

Good thread Ty.

 

I'm hunting for the experience. I haven't shot a deer yet so I just want the experience now. Maybe later in life I will hunt for inches or maturity.

 

Definitely, let your standards change with the times as you see fit. Good luck, and put something to sleep this year!

 

No where to be seen (yet). Here's another thing to think about. Trail camera's have changed a persons thinking a ton on what they will shoot.

 

I try to shoot for 4.5 yr or older but so
metimes this does not happen. Last year i shot a 10pt that scored 138" and after finding it i think he was more like 3.5. Another time i will shoot nnon mature deer is if i feel its a management deer and it will have no potential. Inches are great and i understand why people shoot for inches but for me trying to harvest mature deer is my ultimate goal. I try to use trail cam photos to determine mature deer but sometimes the photos are not cut and dry. I also fill freezer via does

 

for sure!!!

 

Potential based on what grounds? Do you manage your property for mature, big structured deer, intelligence, or inches/big racks?

No wrong answer just seeking an honest answer.

 

I am probably inches > maturity, but there are a lot of factors. If the mature deer has something gnarly going on, or has a cool story, or has anything unique about him; then he is a definite target. If the younger deer just plain out is way bigger, then probably that one.

I guess it really depends on the year. This is my first time running trail cameras, so this year will go a long way towards what deer I target in the future.