Okay whitetail guys, age this guy....

Finally seeing a nice buck or two on the place. A bigger/heavier pale antlered 10 point and this chocolate topped fella. Seems the wolf population is down in my area, not sure whhhyyyyyy, but it's letting the deer come back.
This chocolate top is the one I'm after this weekend, what say you fellas on his age?
Osky

Can’t tell any more than “old enough” in that pic.

too old and chewy find you a spike

3 1/2 for sure perhaps 4 1/2.

Chris

With the head down its harder to judge the body
41/5. I'd shoot it.
Good luck

I’m not sure. Helps with a good shot of the brisket

Pretty nice buck Osky.

Looks like a 4.5 year old.

Solid mid-150's buck.

Can't judge his circumferences.

Love the chocolate colored antlers.

Is he rubbing on black spruce ?

w

This help?

Maybe wait another year. LOL.

I would have shot him when he was a spike. Meat's meat.

Moosetrot

I can tell everything from this photo. Without doubt he is a four year old, born late in the year and was picked on for being of small size. He didn't have a easy life, his father left him immediately and his mother was strung out on winter peas and was nonetentive. He goes by the name Chet in the deer world and is a romantic. He likes long walks in the rain/snow and loves staring at the sky. He has a sign by his bedding area that says, shoot chickens and ride cowboys. Not sure what that means.....

I think he's younger than I thought.
I have been reading up on antler color and a lot is hereditary according to what I can find. Maybe that's wrong?
I have a tall sweeping eight point with chocolate antlers too, and then the large heavy 10 point that has pale antlers. I've got a couple six points of opposite colors as well.
Osky

See that,

His body looks smaller in that 2nd pic.

He looks like an old pot-bellied sway back in

that first pic.

his beams look shorter in the 2nd photo.

his head looks very large in the 2nd pic.

Looks are deceiving, so maybe he is only a 3.5 Y.O

w

Hilarious!

Camera flash and all the darkness doesn't help.

I’d give him one more year, but that’s me.
Nice buck if you take him this year
Good luck.

Longer face decent body 4.5 year old 137-140" good woods buck,a shooter good luck this weekend.

Can't see very well......Is he a 6 X 5 (11 Pointer) ?

w

One of the little chocolate eights

I think he is Wall...

Thanks Rick... I like the forehead and face color along with the chocolate antlers so he will make my wall.

Osky

Wait two more years if you want to have a chance at a monster. This deer is exactly what you want to give a chance to reach old age (5 1/2-6 1/2).
Shoot him 3 years ago if you want tender meat.

Is that a homemade, artificial licking branch he's working

that you set the trail camera on for Portraits of local bucks ?

w

You are right however....
Between the heavy snows of winter and the still present threat of wolves these prime worn down bucks are largely the first to succumb in the coming hard months. I rarely rarely see them bigger and have found plenty of nice racks like this by watching Ravens. They lead you to the kills.
I am nowhere near any agriculture so they don't have that option. Some years I have tried feeding the deer but that becomes a magnate area for wolves.
Darned if you do, darned if you don't.

Osky

That is a product that Bucksnbears and I have developed for deer management. Thousands of pictures and tons of them you would not believe what the deer are doing at them.

Osky

Tell us more.

w

Interesting thread.

He’s a good 4 1/2 year old

OMG Catch I about spit out my coffee. I love trapperman. I laugh so often.
With that being said. 4 1/2. Maybe older. We often underage based on horns. We shot a 7 1/2, 51/2, and 41/2 last year off ours. In Northern MN they better be big bodied. Not sure of your area but even with the amount of land my brother and I own if we let him go and he crosses into the neighbors he is dead.

I will soon, we have a part of the patenting were waiting on for approval. I am not a trophy whitetail guy or guru but I have sure learned a lot I've never seen in print.

Osky

Bear I don't really have neighbors, up here there are hunters and hunting " clubs" of course but to be honest there are so many pieces of land 40 acres and bigger that hunters never walk on, a deer can go 100 yards in any direction and never be seen again. The only long shots are over swamps, most grass plenty hi enough to hide the deer, and clear cuts before they grow in.

Osky

My first thought is 3.5 but I've no experience looking at Northern deer

4 yr old

My guess would be healthy 3-1/2 or 4-1/2..

[quote]Longer face decent body 4.5 year old 137-140" good woods buck,a shooter good luck this weekend.[/quote

X2

lol,,gotta figure

I agree with others 3.5 -4.5, I used to hunt Dryden Ontario and bucks like that were once common. Wolves ,winter, and too many Vermonters killing 2.5 year old bucks and the buck numbers and quality declined.

That was good. In all seriousness, I'm going to go with 4 1/2. I'd shoot him the first time I laid eyes on him because that would probably be the first and last time I ever saw him.

I would say 4.5 - 5.5. My guess on score is 150's. Want to see a picture of you and him together!! Good luck.

Thanks catch just spit coffee all over my phone!!!

Thanks guys.
Been a fun thread and seems about right the consensus on age.
Good humor Catch... I did not see the sign you mention however because Bucksnbears told me NEVER wander into the whitetails bedding area and as well as he knows deer, I listen.

Osky

I would say 3.5 at the oldest and maybe a year younger with good genetics. Buck looks pretty straight in the back and in the belly with a long face. If you cover the antlers up he still looks a little like a doe so that is usually how I judge the age. If you take the smaller 8 and put the pics side by side the body is identical. Still a young deer

I'll age him perfect for ya.

shoot em and get em here.a deer that big will take 12-14 days.

Look's like he has 11 on top so he must be 11 years old

Do you have enough deer to choose which one you shoot? If your going to eat him better get him before he starts losing fat!!
mt

This is about as productive as that other thread about trying to guess the score of a buck.

No Marten I don’t eat whitetail much anymore. I’ve been waiting years now for the deer here here to make a rebound. It’s been 5-6 years since I’ve seen a good buck around and this year I have a pair. It’s interesting on three cameras over 3 square miles in good locations I am almost 3-1 bucks to doe ratio. One might think Mother Nature would go the other way with low population.
I will decide if I see this guy in front, wether to take him. Looks ok for the wall now. Meat will be hung to age then donated.

Osky

What kind of cam you using that has a white flash. I had one back in early 2000 but stopped using it because it ate c size batteries. I can see it is wild game from photos but was wondering if it is one of the older models.

Jby... It is an older model. They sent a bunch to me maybe 12-15 years ago? This is pretty large bodied and takes 4 D batteries. Of the 6 or so sent maybe 3 are still working this being the largest one.
I also have the reconx cameras and I do not care for the dark night "flash". The reconx's do
take awesome day pictures. They are spendy, but bulletproof.

Wish this cat would have come out of the shade but you see the clarity in the trees etc.



Osky

How Old Is Your Camera (White Flash)? Don't You Just Love Scrapes And Licking Trees

K9 I think that big old camera is 12 years old maybe older? Yes I much prefer the good old flash myself. I am very remote tho and don't have any worry that they will walk away. That camera takes 4 D batteries and I have goofed up at times and set it up with wind blown weeds in front so I know I can get at least 4 thousand pictures out of a set of batteries.
Deer can be a bit touchy flash wise? This guy I have tons of pics doesn't seem bothered. The deer below showed up late in the deer season for one and only one photo around 5 years ago. I sure wish I had more of him...

Osky

That rack is big.

Good Gawd What A Rack