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Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 729
Campfire Regular
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OP
Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 729 |
Yesterday afternoon, I saw a nice six-point wth its rack intact. Isn't February 23rd rather late for a Missouri whitetail to still have its antlers? Most shed in early January.
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 96,121
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 96,121 |
"Dear Lord, save me from Your followers"
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Joined: May 2005
Posts: 14,104
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 14,104 |
Antler growth, hardening, retention and shedding are governed by the levels of circulating hormones (primarily testosterone) in an individual animal's blood. These changes are triggered by photoperiod--changes in day length during course of the year. In a deer population, most bucks do all of these within a fairly well-defined window. However, there always seem to be some bucks that are "early" and/or "late" due to their own peculiar physiological makeup.
I have observed a few marked whitetail bucks which kept hard antlers into April and even May before shedding them. These same bucks had new hard antlers about the same time as everyone else in the fall.
Ben
Some days it takes most of the day for me to do practically nothing...
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 57,474
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 57,474 |
Mudhen is right
April 1 give or take has been our spring turkey season opener depending on what areas, can vary a few weeks one way or the other.
On opener I"ve seen all 3 bucks in a group, hard, velvet, and nothing...
We can keep Larry Root and all his idiotic blabber and user names on here, but we can't get Ralph back..... Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over....
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Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 3,291
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 3,291 |
Yesterday afternoon, I saw a nice six-point wth its rack intact. Isn't February 23rd rather late for a Missouri whitetail to still have its antlers? Most shed in early January. I've seen bucks in Missouri with headgear still on in early April. X-VERMINATOR
Sooner or later our heritage of hunting is going to be a rich mans sport and the words "Outfitter" and "Hunt Industry" will be synonymous with cancer and A.I.D.S. among blue collar hunters like me and my family! (A.L. Williams - 2010)
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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 46,745
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 46,745 |
An 8-pt buck got hit by my step-dad's cabinet shop last year in mid-March. It was a big deer with a big rack. It got hit and the antlers still stayed on. I think there are probably a lot of factors that make them hang on. Typically up here, anytime from late November to January is when they fall.
Camp is where you make it.
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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 46,745
Campfire 'Bwana
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Campfire 'Bwana
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 46,745 |
My spring turkey season in early May in central WI, usually has the bucks sprouting 6" or more of velvet.
Camp is where you make it.
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Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 24,628
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 24,628 |
Just got back from south-central KS and most of the bucks were still carrying their headgear.
WWP53D
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Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 11,379
Campfire Outfitter
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Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 11,379 |
Dad's getting pictures on trail cam with antlers still attached in southeast Kansas. Have seen into April around here with antlers still attached.
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Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 504
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 504 |
I've seen two bucks over the past three weeks in Missouri still with their antlers. Both were mature 8 pointers.
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Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 57,474
Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 57,474 |
Did I mention I shot a antlerless deer on our lease first week if January. Meaning it had lost both antlers already. It was previously a 3 point that needed to go anyway. Was just amazed when it walked out with both gone....
I have head shot quite a few small bucks end of season that the impact blows them loose, but I"ve also shot some where the antlers come off attached to frags of skull...
We can keep Larry Root and all his idiotic blabber and user names on here, but we can't get Ralph back..... Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, over....
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Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 96,121
Campfire Oracle
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Campfire Oracle
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 96,121 |
Hell, deer season is still going in Florida.
"Dear Lord, save me from Your followers"
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229
Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 19,229 |
I killed a buck on Dec. 9 here in NY a few years ago that had already lost it's antlers. I've also seen them with antlers in mid Feb.
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Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 4,949
Campfire Tracker
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Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 4,949 |
I probably have seen over 500 deer in the last week driving and have not seen either muley or whitetails with horns. I did some driving in the same area at the end of January and saw tons of good bucks of both types.
Hunt hard, kill clean, waste nothing and offer no apologies.
"In rifle work, group size is of some interest...but it is well to remember that a rifleman does not shoot groups, he shoots shots." Jeff Cooper
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Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 106
Campfire Member
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Campfire Member
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 106 |
Still have several bucks on our place in East Texas with antlers. Saw 2 old bucks this year that had shed in late December.
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Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 980
Campfire Regular
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Campfire Regular
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 980 |
A week ago I saw a buck that still had one horn(4 points) on the right side near the house here. I am in the Appalachian Mountains.
NEVER GIVE UP
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