I am looking for advice or tutorials on how to guess the age of deer from trail camera photos and such... Can someone point me in the right direction?
Have you tried searching this site? There have been many threads on this topic in the past. It's all about body / head size, shape, and how they carry themselves. Antlers are secondary in my opinion when judging on the hoof.
Thanks for the response. I just answered my own question.. LOL I found a document that helps with the aging of them.... Field-Judging Live White-tailed Bucks & Does
Thanks for posting that link Vikki. I'm horrible at aging deer and that should definitely help. Thx again
To cover my weakness in the area, I just wait until others post their opinions, then I say what the majority said. Either I am then correct, or am only as wrong as everyone else. Win-win.
Aging deer on-the-hoof is the hardest way to age accurately. No matter how many tips you get, you will still need experience with "your" deer to get accurate. You will keep learning over time. Tips will help though. Things that I go by. Antler mass (I look at the size of the rack also). Older bucks usually have heavier mass. Size of the deer. This can be tricky because deer, like people, come in different sizes. Body and head size and shape. Older bucks have a blocky, full structure. When a lot of bucks reach 4 1/2 their neckline follows straight into their chest. See below. On bucks younger than 4 1/2 their necks kind of jut in before dropping down to their chest. On dead deer I also examine the size and wear on the front hooves of bucks. Older bucks usually have big blunt feet. The front toes are unequal in length with the inside toe being the shortest. This is from years of traveling during the rut and making scrapes. The way they scrape wears the inside toe the fastest.
Wow! Thank you.... That sounds like great advice. It is starting to put everything in perspective for me....
