Does your field judging match the actual age in the mouth?
Everybody these days uses field cameras to monitor their deer herds. This technology has come a long way since the old days when I used the original Camtrak film cameras to observe deer herds across the state when I was the state deer biologist. I first used these cameras to document deer visits to mineral sites on private land and on the Pearl River WMA; later I used the cameras to record deer visits to scrapes.
Field cameras can be used to photograph many species of wildlife, including endangered species, which provides great insight to biologists, especially the critters that live in remote locations. On our little property in East Feliciana Parish we have had a box turtle study going on for the past three years. When we find a turtle, we attach a number to the top of the shell and keep records of where and when we find the turtle again. I had a camera set up on a trail by a mulberry tree and recently got a photograph of a squirrel and a tagged turtle on the trail together!
Hunters have adopted this technology and use trail cameras to record the deer on their land and locate the big bucks they want to hunt during the season. Today, with cell camera technology, hunters’ phones are binging at all hours of the day and night. Most of the articles in the big buck magazines have trail camera photos of the giant they were hunting.
Age estimation
Cameras help hunters identify the various age groups of deer; fawns, yearlings and adults. Putting an accurate age on the deer in the trail camera photo is not always easy to do. Most hunters generally look at the antlers to make their age estimation. This is one way to do it, if you have good harvest data and understand the growth pattern and trends of your bucks. Due to differences in the deer habitat in Louisiana and other states, growth patterns will be different.
In Louisiana, the bottomland hardwood habitat along with agricultural crops produce the largest deer in the state, far above those produced in a dominant pine forest. A good mixed pine/hardwood forest that has a strong hardwood component can produce large deer, but as the pine component increases, the deer growth declines. Feeding deer year-round with high quality feed changes the game and will maintain the nutritional level needed to grow big deer, if you can afford to do that.
What to look for
Now, before I proceed any further, look at the trail camera photos. One photo is of a nice 8-point (probably average for many but nice for us). We had photos of this buck from late August up until the time I killed it in late November. I was estimating the age of this buck to be at least 6 ½ years old. Look at the other photo of the small 7-point. We also had regular pictures of this buck from late August up until the time it was harvested in early January. I was estimating the age of this buck to be 3 ½ years old. On a sheet of paper jot down what you think the ages of these two bucks are and don’t cheat by looking at the end of the story!
Within each class there are those deer that are below the body and antler growth for that age class, there are deer that are above the average body and antler growth for that age class, and there are the deer that are average. Most of the data reporting gives the average body and antler growth for that age class. If hunters want to have larger deer, then the younger deer, 1, 2 and 3-year-old bucks in the above average age classes, are the ones that need to be protected and allowed to grow older. The bucks in the below average age class probably do not catch up with the better ones and are good animals to remove, letting the food go to one that will produce the desired growth. But, as previously mentioned, unless you have good harvest data, it is difficult to determine growth trends and understand what is happening in your deer herd.
When estimating the age of a deer from trail camera photos it is best to not just consider the antlers but also look at the body size and body characteristics. Fawns will be small with small heads and ears. As the fawns grow during the season they may appear to be as large as some of the 1 ½-year-old does. Some doe fawns that have experienced good growth may look pretty big. When by themselves, they may fool you and you age them a year older. This can present data problems if you are tracking the age classes of your does. Nubby bucks will generally have no antlers, only the bony nubs covered with hair on which the antlers grow.
Yearling and 2-year-old deer
Yearling deer, 1 ½ year olds, will be larger than fawns, but on low quality habitat may appear as large as adult does. Bucks will have their first set of antlers and these are generally spikes, while some may have branched antlers. Their necks are slender and their back and belly lines are straight.
Bucks that are 2 ½ years old should have basket racks with at least six to eight points, on good habitat some may have eight points with 13- to 14-inch inside spreads. Their necks are still slender and their back and belly lines are straight. One characteristic I have noticed about the 2-year-old racks is that the brow tines are generally less than 3 inches. The desired body weight of a 2-year-old buck is at least 150 pounds; bucks with weights much smaller are what I consider to be on the low end and can mess up your age estimation.
Three-year-old deer
At 3 ½ years old, a buck should have at least eight points, with a 15-inch inside spread and bases that are 3 ½ inches in circumference. The neck will be much larger than a 2-year-old and will extend about halfway down the chest. I suggest passing up 3-year-olds with 10 points because they should be larger next season. Most 3-year-olds probably have eight points and those with six are on the low end; they generally have brow tines that are at least 3 inches long. The back and belly lines will be for the most part still straight but heavier 3-year-olds may begin to show some sway in the back and have a belly starting to drop down.
Four-year-old deer
Bucks that are 4 ½ and older should be approaching the 200-pound mark, their back and belly lines will not be straight and the neck extends down to the lower chest. The racks are larger with main beams as long as 20 inches or better, 4-inch or better base circumferences, and 16- to 18-inch inside spreads. Knowing the antler growth of the bucks in your herd can help in putting them in the 4, 5 or 6-year-old age classes. I normally suggest to hunters that they harvest 3 ½ or older bucks. An adult buck experiences stress during the rut and with other natural mortality factors passing them up with the idea they will be harvested the next year is not a certainty.
Examining the jawbone
There is a lot of information about aging deer in the mouth that is available if one wants to learn how to do it. Basically tooth wear and replacement are the keys that biologists are looking for. Six-month and 1-year-old deer have a temporary third premolar that has three parts (cusps). A 6-month-old deer has three temporary premolars with the three-cusped third premolar and one permanent molar. Deer that are 12-18 months old (1 ½) have three temporary premolars with that third premolar having three cusps but it is wearing out; these deer will have two to three of the permanent molars fully erupted.
At 18-20 months those three temporary premolars will be shed and will be replaced with permanent ones with the third premolar now only having two cusps. All molars are fully erupted. This key basically separates the young deer from the old deer. As the deer grows older the teeth begin to wear down; the white enamel wears out and the brown dentine begins to show. The sharp crests that the young 2-year-old adults have will wear down and eventually the tooth flattens out.
The results
Now it is time for the tale of the teeth. The 8-point was older than what I had estimated. I aged the jawbone to be 8 years old, much older than what I thought, and it is surprising to see a buck here being that old. My buck weighed 185 pounds, the heaviest one that we have ever killed.
The small 7-point that I was thinking was 3 ½, was actually 2 ½. One reason for mis-aging the buck was that it was often photographed with a larger 7-point that I was aging to be 4 ½. The rack of the small seven was larger than what our 2-year-olds normally have, but it only weighed 120 pounds, a low end weight. The small body size made the rack appear larger in the photograph. While this might have been a buck to pass on, with that small body weight and on our low quality habitat, it would never have been a 150-pound buck and would have grown to be another mediocre adult buck.
The key to field aging your deer is understanding the growth trends of your deer herd. This can only be accomplished by keeping good data, including jawbones for aging.
Looks like it’s going to be another hot summer; the rain has provided good water for the browse and hopefully the body and antler growth of your deer has been good. Be safe and hydrate.
