Judging how old a deer in the wild is can be tough. It can become increasingly difficult when coupled with the sheer excitement and adrenaline rush experienced when you see a buck while deer hunting.
One of the best ways to be able to judge a deer’s age is to study as many deer as you can.
Look through the Deer Cam Pictures at www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com. Study pictures of deer. Watch deer hunting videos. These are great ways to learn differences between mature deer and young deer.
The easiest way to judge deer age is by the overall size. Most generally, a spike buck or fork-horn buck is probably sporting his first set of antlers. This usually happens when the buck reaches 1½ years.
But judging by antler size alone is not always accurate. Antler growth depends on many factors. Age, genetics, nutrition and stress all play key roles in antler development.
Marty Prokop Reveals a Simple Measurement to Help Age a Deer
Here is one of the best tools I use to age a deer in the field.
I focus on a simple measurement beginning at the inside corner of a deer’s eye and running to the tip of its nose.
A mature deer’s head, be it a buck or a doe, will be considerably larger than a young deer’s head.
Generally, mature deer will measure between six and seven inches in length from the inside corner of the deer’s eye to the tip of the deer’s nose.
You may ask, “How can I measure the length of a live deer standing in front of my deer hunting tree stand?”
Marty Prokop Shows…Become a Master of How to Age a Deer
Try this tip to help you better judge the size of a deer standing in front of you.
Find a life size photograph of a mature deer’s head. You could do this by measuring the deer from inside corner of the eye to the top of the nose. It should measure six to seven inches.
Take this photograph to the gun range or you can do this in your yard at your home.
Place the life-size picture of the deer head at different ranges. Look at the life-size photograph through your deer hunting gun scope or binoculars.
Pay attention to how the corner of the deer’s eye and the tip of its nose fill your lens. Make a mental note of what this looks like.
The next time you are out in your deer hunting tree stand and a deer walks in front of you, remember what you saw looking through your deer hunting gun scope or binoculars when you were viewing the photograph.
This has helped me target only the mature animals here on my deer hunting land.
Good Luck and Great Hunting.
Marty Prokop
http://www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com
About Marty Prokop
Deer hunting expert Marty Prokop reveals closely guarded deer hunting secrets on how to get deer every time. Get his Free Deer Hunting Tips Newsletter, free deer videos and free online deer hunting game at Free Deer Hunting Tips.com
Marty Prokop has 24-years experience deer hunting, processing deer for deer hunters and venison sausage making. Marty Prokop teaches deer hunting, hunter safety, deer processing and deer sausage making classes. Marty Prokop has processed 7,805 deer, field dressed 422 deer and made over 991,990 pounds of sausage, smoked meats and jerky. Marty Prokop worked with Minnesota DNR programs. His deer hunting videos are used in statewide advanced hunter education classes. Marty Prokop is a successful speaker, outdoor writer and published author.
