Deer Experts-Question about Brow Tines

[big_smith]

I just pulled my first set of trail cam photos from the lease. I will try to get some posted up so that everyone knows what I am talking about. The lease is 730 acres East of Brady Texas, low fenced. This area has been hit hard by the drought. We have 5 feeders running putting out Spin Cast which is a protein pellet/corn mix. This is not free choice, comes out of the spinners.

We have always had a few 2.5yo bucks that have not had brown tines, or have only had one brow. We always left them alone. We don't take any bucks under 3yo, and we really try to leave them till they are 4-5yo bucks. This year I have noticed several 3 yo bucks that have no brows at all, and at least one 4yo that only has one brow and it is real short.

My question is: Is this a result of the drought, or is this a genetic thing that requires extra culling? Does anyone have real world experience with bucks that have no brow tines one year, but they have them the next? In the past we have culled 3yo's and older that were missing brows. However, I did not want to wack a bunch of bucks that were just stressed from the drought, and will come back strong next year if conditions improve.

[holdem]

No brow tines will get a buck killed in my setup. Having said that I'm sure someone will chime in with research to the contrary so let's hear it.

[okietaxi]

I can tell you this. I have hunted a place for about 6 years. We have a number of bucks with deformed horns. At the start there were only a few bucks with this problem. Now well over half of them have deformed antlers. WE have started trying to weed them out. I also will say that it is not because of the weather conditions. We have had wet years and dry years.

[bear]

now you can tell what bucks have been breeding the does

[westguy76]

Good question, someone on the GS will know. This drought and heat is killer!

[GILBERT]

No brow tines will get a buck killed in my setup. Having said that I'm sure someone will chime in with research to the contrary so let's hear it.

If you let the no brow tines or 1 brow tine walk...you will always have those culls in abundance. Short and simple, nothing magical is going to happen to make them grow them the following year...Bad DNA.

According to TA&M biologist at the ranch.


GILBERT

[justin156bc]

I would let the wind out of all that don't have brow tines. Just my .02

[big_smith]

Trying to get photos downloaded now. Any other knowledge out there?

[PondPopper]

No brow tines is 100 percent genetic. You see them on good years don't you. Cull them or it's gonna get worse and worse. Been hunting 10 miles west of Brady for 14 yrs shotem the first 3-4 yrs and there's none now. It's low fenced also. Talked to any biologist. Well there opinions differ on this subject also.

[Johnny Dangerr]

DNA is what it is. Cull

[az2tx]

I had some no brow tine bucks on my place, and approached the problem very scientifcally. We shot everyone we saw over the last several years and now we don't any.

[Aggiehuntress]

No brows is a genetic trait. Short tines could be due to weather conditions. Is up to you to descide to cull the no browed bucks off.

[hunt247]

No brow tines is 100 percent genetic. You see them on good years don't you. Cull them or it's gonna get worse and worse. Been hunting 10 miles west of Brady for 14 yrs shotem the first 3-4 yrs and there's none now. It's low fenced also. Talked to any biologist. Well there opinions differ on this subject also.

X's 2

[bowhuntertex]

My biggest deer to date is a no brow tined buck that was that way his entire life.......Solid hill country deer that scored right at 125 when he was 8 years old. He was better at 7, but I choked and missed the shot.........

[Mudslinger]

No brow tines on an extremely young deer just might be culling a possible trophy. If a deer is 2.5 or older, it is definitely a cull. 1.5 year old buck with forks on both sides just may be a trophy down the road and develope brow tines at 2.5 years. I had a friend that killed everything with no brow tines for a few years and almost killed off an age class of bucks because they were killing the really young buck with forks and no brow tines. At least that is what the biologist told us.