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Deer

There are five species of deer recognized by the major record keeping organizations here in North America, although there are actually many more sub-species of the two main species (whitetail and mule deer) identified by biologists.

The coues deer is really a smaller sub-species of the whitetail that lives in an isolated area in the south central United States and Mexico. The blacktail and sitka deer are smaller cousins of the branch antlered mule deer. The whitetail family of deer have all typical points growing straight up from the two main beams, while the mule deer family have branching antlers that typically grow as a system of forks. Overall body size varies from species to species, area-to-area, and widely with-in a population depending on available feed and age structure. Good trophy deer can be found almost anywhere there is a deer population if one hunts hard and gets lucky. The whitetail deer is the most commonly hunted mammal in North America and has the widest range.

Whitetail

When most people think of hunting, they think of whitetail deer. Our most common big game animal, the whitetail inhabits almost every State and Canadian Province providing hunting opportunities from Maine to Washington State, from New Brunswick to Florida, and from British Columbia to Texas. The largest deer (body size) are usually found in the most northern regions where body weight is important to winter survival. The further south one goes the smaller the deer "usually" become as keeping cool in summer becomes more important to survival than large food reserves during winter. As the body size increases there is a tendency to have increased antler size, however this is not always the case. With serious trophy management (especially in the south) there are numerous places that produce monster racks on deer that can only be considered small to average in size. Texas is a prime example, with many Boone and Crockett (170 point minimum score) bucks taken every season that weigh in at less than 200 pounds. Whitetails are hunted in any number of ways, the most successful for bowhunters being from tree stands. In some areas stands can be placed at or near feeders increasing the chance of seeing many deer, while not always helping one find the big buck! Calling, rattling, stalking, ground blinds, and drives are also used effectively in some places and at some times. While trophy deer can be found almost anywhere with-in the whitetail's range, the odds of finding one increase in areas where there are a lot of big deer and where they are allowed to live long enough to grow those exceptional antlers. Alberta has long been thought of as the trophy whitetail hunter's best chance, however the last few years some of our Midwest states have been producing more and bigger bucks, especially for bowhunters. It takes three all-important factors to grow a trophy rack on a whitetail deer. There has to be adequate feed and minerals to support both body and antler growth, good genetics, and age structure. A buck will not grow his best set of antlers until his body finishes growing in his third year, which means that at four or five years old a buck will usually have his biggest antlers. After his sixth year the rack will usually start going "down hill" because of the inability to process food with worn teeth, unless the deer lives in an area with lots of good year round soft feed. For this reason, hunters need to search out places where the bucks have a chance to live to be five years old if they want the best trophy possible in a given area.

Mule deer

The second most commonly found species of deer in North America is the mule deer. They can be found in huntable numbers from the northwestern Provinces of Canada all the way through the western states and down into Mexico. In many areas you can find mule deer and whitetails in the same general area, as whitetails have spread further west, and compete favorably for habitat with the long established mulies. The mule deer seem to have gotten their name from the oversized ears (in comparison with whitetails at least). They have a tendency to be larger bodied than whitetails (at least in the same geographic area), and tend to stay in higher elevations when available. While any hunting method that works on a whitetail can also work on mule deer, most are hunted by the spot and stalk method.

Coues

The gray ghost of the desert, and one of the smallest whitetails, is the only specific sub-species of whitetail to be segregated into it's own category for record keeping purposes. There are two reasons for this. First, they are so small that to not recognize them would virtually eliminate any possibility of entry into the records of even the largest trophies. Second, they are completely isolated from all other sub-species therefore assuring segregation of the sub-species. All other sub-species of whitetail can/do interbreed, therefore eliminating pure strains, and leading to the grouping together for record keeping purposes. The couse whitetail is found in parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Old Mexico. It is usually found in dry open country which does not lend itself to bowhunting. Don't get me wrong, there are people every year that bag trophy class couse deer with a bow, it is just that they are one of, if not, the toughest deer to kill with a bow. One thing I really like about these little deer is that they can be hunted during the rut in January extending the season somewhat for trophy bowhunters willing to take the challenge.

Blacktail

The Columbian blacktail is a close relative of the larger mule deer, and in some areas they interbreed. They range in the western most areas of the continent from California up into British Columbia. They are known for the thick wet rain forest type terrain they favor on the western slopes of the Rocky Mountains. Most hunting is done by spot and stalk and is very challenging! The racks are shaped very much like their mule deer cousins, but are typically much smaller.

Sitka

The sitka blacktail is a smaller version of the Columbian blacktail with a smaller and more isolated range. They are found on a few islands off the coast of British Columbia and Alaska. Hunting these deer is almost exclusively done by spot and stalk, with access many time arranged by boat. Their antlers are branched like their mule and blacktail cousins but are much smaller. A good trophy will often times only have three points to a side (six point eastern count). On several islands where there are sufficient numbers, a hunter can get tags for 3-5 deer per season making for a real exciting hunt!