Results of 3 point or better rule

[Loup Loup]

This pic shows what WDFW big game bios are selecting for with three point or better standard.

[3nails]

This pic shows what WDFW big game bios are selecting for with three point or better standard.

The coon tail is bringing back good memories of one I had 

[HunterStrait]

Artificial selective evolution. Its awful.

Seen too many big mature 2x2 bucks running around. If they're not going to get any hunting pressure, they're going to continue passing on those bad genetics.

[Loup Loup]

Yea, geez, what do you do? Ha ha could be worse I guess.

[Loup Loup]

HunterStrait: exactly. This is the outcome I predicted when they first started three point or better.

[Birdguy]

Those moose paddles are a spectacular distraction to your point of the post. Love a better look at them!

As for the deer I think a lot of us saw that coming but it sure is validation of what we are seeing in the woods as well. That is a great bit of work you posted. Love it and thank you.

[highcountry_hunter]

Question, and I’m not being argumentative. What is a better solution? We already have enough people shooting the first legal 2x2 with a 1 1/32” eyeguard on one side. In 101 there have been multiple cases of dumped 2 points found and left to rot so there’s no shortage of guys willing to shoot 1 1/2 year old muley bucks.

Seems like we’ve gotta have some sort of minimum or nothing will ever reach maturity

[buglebuster]

Darn those young 1.5 year old 2pts 😒

[jrebel]

We saw a pile of clean 2x2’s this year on my late hunt.  Some we slept image to be 4-8 years old old bucks.  One was king of the hill and had a body like a moose.  We also saw some nice big bucks with 3 or more points….but it was a 1:1 ratio of nice bucks to big 2’s. 

[Jonathan_S]

Yea, geez, what do you do? Ha ha could be worse I guess.

Limited tags

[boneaddict]

Remove the late buck tags and make everything draw only is an alternative.

[zwickeyman]

Remove the late buck tags and make everything draw only is an alternative.

 :yeah:Unfortunately this is spot on

[Loup Loup]

Jonathon sorry that comment of mine was in answer to 3 nails coon tail comment.

[Loup Loup]

Here’s how it used to work, back when we had mule deer.
Would be a deer camp of 4-5 hunters. Two would shoot spikes or two points the first couple days. They’d be happy with that. Success. Then everybody would be done hunting and go home. At the same time you could take a kid or old timer out and find them a spike or two point opening weekend.
Now same camp of hunters hunts and hunts and hunts. They stay for the whole season. Because they’re out so long pounding the woods they kill one or maybe two mature bucks. If they would have left early like back in the day those breeders would have survived again. When the whole camp doesn’t get anything they say what fun they had just hunting. The old timers quit buying tags (me now) and the kids lose interest and don’t go out.
On the deer side. So now we’ve got fewer mature bucks. Who are more experienced breeders, genetically superior to a buck that was born a spike or smooth horn two point, and are more adept at eluding predators.
We’ve got a preponerance of inferior spikes and smooth horn two points that will always either be spikes or two points, or throw weak middlin horns.
We’ve got young bucks not being chased off does by mature bucks. So young bucks are falling off does, and pestering them, making the does burn more energy trying to keep them off. Weve got late fawns being born because the doe didn’t get bred the first cycle. Late fawns die. We’ve got inferior breeding stock producing inferior spike and smooth horn two points until the deer are gone.
Not everyone wants big antlers. But I’ve always said if you want to grow big horns, every spike or smooth horn 2 point should be knocked in the head the day it’s born. Or at least the first year it throws horns.

[furbearer365]

I would drop it a 2 point minimum, at least for Muleys. Whitetails grow more point quickly so the 3 point would still be ok. But I believe the same is happening for elk, especially the Westside. Not enough "good" branch antlered bulls to keep a herd healthy.  And we are asking spikes to maintain the herd.