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Antler Restriction Results Poll


Canis Latrans
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Antler Point Restrictions Results Poll  

29 members have voted

  1. 1. How have the areas with antler restrictions you hunt affected the quality of bucks?

    • I see significantly more larger, older bucks than before
      8
    • I see slightly more larger, older bucks than before
      7
    • I see more bucks, but they are small ones
      3
    • No change, the bucks I see are the same
      4
    • I see the same amount of bucks but they are smaller
      0
    • I see slightly fewer bucks
      2
    • I see significantly less bucks
      1
    • I see significantly fewer deer over all (including bucks and does)
      4


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1 minute ago, The Jerkman said:

I'd rather self impose Antler Restrictions. I don't need any more Government idiots telling me what I can and cannot do

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I understand that. Have you hunted in an area with antler restrictions? 

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I understand that. Have you hunted in an area with antler restrictions? 
Can't say I have. Only hunted the same property in Westchester 3s with the bow. I have a standard to shoot only 8s or better and they have to be at least as big as my deer in my avatar. Though I did shoot a funky 5 last season but he had character so was totally worthy

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I understand your point of view, but I am interested in hearing from people with experience in the topic. I am not usually a fan of govt. regulation but realize the need for seasons, bag limits etc. I don't believe we would have very good hunting if there were no seasons and people could shoot as much as they want (i.e. regulations). If restricting the class of bucks you could shoot follows the same logic it may also provide significantly better hunting.  I would like to hear from people who have actual experience and hope they at least vote in the poll. 

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i do not hunt in ny ar restricted dmus. pennslyvania is a mixed result depending on area and pressure in that area.. some produce large multi tined buxks other produce monster 4 pt..some of the largest ive seen.. 4 and 5 year old.. to many hunter removing every 3 pt a side and up..

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I hunt in 3H, we’ve had AR in place the longest and for good reason. Western Sullivan County is not a good agricultural area and has few minerals in the soil to aid in antler growth. Over all I’d say it has been a mild success. The number of bucks I’ve seen has increased over the years and looking at the bucks I’ve taken since 1995, the quality has improved also.

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Some people have mentioned there are less Deer overall after AR implementation. What could be the reason for this? The only thing I can think of is bow hunters taking doe instead of bucks. I often hear people on this forum complaining that there aren’t many bucks but they saw 18 doe in the stand that day, yet still can’t get doe tags. 

 

It sounds like maybe maybe two or three years of AR’s in that area might be a good solution.

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  • 2 weeks later...
I understand your point of view, but I am interested in hearing from people with experience in the topic. I am not usually a fan of govt. regulation but realize the need for seasons, bag limits etc. I don't believe we would have very good hunting if there were no seasons and people could shoot as much as they want (i.e. regulations). If restricting the class of bucks you could shoot follows the same logic it may also provide significantly better hunting.  I would like to hear from people who have actual experience and hope they at least vote in the poll. 
Antlers restrictions went into our area if 3 a number if years ago. It works. I remember my dad who has hunted 3A and 3H for 50 years bitching when the restriction went in. He now admits he has seen the results. When I see a buck, it is more often than not a shooter. So yes..I have seen it work.

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I hunt in 3H, we’ve had AR in place the longest and for good reason. Western Sullivan County is not a good agricultural area and has few minerals in the soil to aid in antler growth. Over all I’d say it has been a mild success. The number of bucks I’ve seen has increased over the years and looking at the bucks I’ve taken since 1995, the quality has improved also.
I concur whole heartedly.

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5 hours ago, dlgerow said:

Antlers restrictions went into our area if 3 a number if years ago. It works. I remember my dad who has hunted 3A and 3H for 50 years bitching when the restriction went in. He now admits he has seen the results. When I see a buck, it is more often than not a shooter. So yes..I have seen it work.

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What specifically is a "shooter"?

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I picked the first option because it truthfully describes what I've seen with AR at my family's property in 4G. That said, the long answer is a bit more complicated; I'll share it here for those who care to read it.

First some back story. Between myself and my parents we own about 70 acres in the northeast corner of 4G. That puts us right near the AR boundary, meaning that bucks that we can't shoot on our property don't have to go far to leave the AR area and get shot, and some of them certainly do. During my first gun season as a 16 year old in 1996 I shot an 8-point on this property that scored right around 100". To this day it's the largest buck I've ever killed there. I did have one opportunity at a 130-140 class 8-point in my mid-twenties with my bow but he came in high-strung and ducked the shot on me, I only clipped his upper shoulder. The neighbors shot him during gun season a couple weeks later, he was a stud. Prior to AR's I would spend most seasons seeing nothing more than yearling spikes and forkhorns, with the occasional yearling 5 or 6 thrown in. I stopped shooting yearlings after I'd killed three or four bucks, so I had lots of time on stand to see what was out there because the only thing I ever really shot was doe. It was easy to go 5 years or more and see nothing but yearlings from the stand. 

I believe it was 2012 when AR's went into effect. It took a few years to notice much difference but now there is no doubt that I'm seeing significantly more "older" deer. The problem is that the bar was so low to begin with, that really I've just gone from seeing lots of yearlings to now seeing a mix of yearlings and small/average 6-8 point 2.5 year olds, still not much for "shooters". The two biggest issues, IMO, are as follows:

1. The AR's that we have are garbage. Three points on a side sucks. It leaves the very best yearlings vulnerable, and now because guys are staying in the woods longer because they can't shoot the first spike or forkhorn they see those good yearlings are that much more likely to get shot.

2. The deer hunting culture hasn't really changed at all in this area. People will still shoot the first legal buck they see, so all the really good yearlings are as good as dead, and most of the rest now just die as 2.5's instead of as yearlings.

I've had a large number of cameras out since June and have a pretty good idea of what is using the property. There are three 2.5 year olds that I'm getting regularly and one that I believe is a 3.5 with a scrub rack. I've also caught one additional 2.5 year old cruising the property a couple weeks ago but that's the only time he's shown up. Here's what I'm working with as far as "older" bucks, the first four are all regulars that I have multiple images of going back to when they were in velvet. I've also got loads of pictures of yearlings, everything from 1-horn spikes to tight little 8-point basket racks.

2.5 year old 6

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 2.5 year old "narrow" 8

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2.5 year old "wide" 8

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3.5 year old (I think) 4

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Here's that 4 on the right with two 2.5 year olds on the left. I'm pretty sure he's a 3.5 based on his body.

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And this is the interloper, a 2.5 year old 10

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The only buck I would really consider shooting here is the big 4, and he's not legal. The rest I would like to see in another year (or two if I'm being honest), but good luck to them making it that far. Overall though, even though I think the AR's could be done way better, I'm definitely seeing a lot more 2.5's, and the odds of a few of them slipping through to 3.5 or even 4.5 are a lot better now than pre-AR. I came close on opening day of rifle last year with a 3.5 nine or ten that was running a hot doe in front of my stand, I just never got a clear shot. That's pretty much the scenario I'm hoping for again (minus the not getting a shot part). The biggest bucks around here seem to have their core areas close to the ag fields a half mile or more from our property, but our property does hold several doe groups and it really just comes down to getting lucky and being on stand when one of the girls brings a new boyfriend home with her. Since the AR's went into effect I now have at least some hope that he could be a real shooter.

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I like the idea of the smartest most wild deer surviving passing on those gentics 

AR is  unnatural when you do that  aren't  you basically turning the wild  deer into almost high fence deer  in a way?  It's good if you want a easier chance at a bigger buck it's bad if you want to hunt bucks that are the smartest and hardist to hunt  as possible. 

 

  

 

 

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10 minutes ago, Storm914 said:

I like the idea of the smartest most wild deer surviving passing on those gentics 

AR is  unnatural when you do that  aren't  you basically turning the wild  deer into almost high fence deer  in a way?  It's good if you want a easy chance at a bigger buck it's bad if you want to hunt bucks that are harder to hunt .

 

  

 

 

A natural population will have bucks in every age class (progressively fewer with each age class, but all classes occupied nonetheless). There's nothing natural about killing 75% of the teenage males in a population year after year after year.

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1 minute ago, alloutdoors said:

A natural population will have bucks in every age class (progressively fewer with each age class, but all classes occupied nonetheless). There's nothing natural about killing 75% of the teenage males in a population year after year after year.

Just my opinion but  you never notice that animals that dont get hunted near the citys let you get much closer to them then animals that live in places that are hunted a lot .

Goes for rabbits crows  deer turkey anything that gets hunted .  AR more then likely Are   giving these  bucks a false sense of security  making them less wild and making them easier to hunt because they dont fear man as much as they  could be .

 

 

 

 

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I was a huge fan of AR and have seen an improvement in racks. My area in 3j went from the land of 4 pt and spikes to the land of 5s and 7s without brow tines and an occasional really nice 8 or 9. It seems to have maxed out. And as a previous poster stated more hunters are now shooting does. When you whack a doe you pretty much killed 3 deer in your area. Maybe we are better off killing the spike that will never amount to more than an odd rack 5 pt and by doing so you only removed one deer front your local here. There will always be enough bucks to service the local doe population. After 10 plus yrs of AR I'm thinking that the soil has more to do with monster antler growth and if your area ain't got it then it just ain't got it.

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Careful now. All this talk of Antler restriction in order to see larger Bucks will have the anti-antler ninnies out whining on about evil trophy hunters and 'bragging rights'. There are quite a few of them about these here parts it seems. 

Good luck growing those trophy slammers to all who are participating. The Field Ager endorses this

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