How Old Was that Animal?

[bigsky2]

I got some results back recently too. The first buck is 6 and the second is 7. Being from Montana really makes a guy appreciate deer hunting in Colorado.

 

[sclancy27]

These are all MT, in the last 5 yrs or so, once I started actually finding out how old stuff was.

4.5 yr

6.5 yr

8.5 yr

3.5 yr

4.5 yr

4.5 yr

4.5 yr

4.5 yr

5.5 yr

6.5 yr

6.5 yr

Waiting


Waiting

 

[Valley1320]

Really thinking of sending teeth in for my buck I just harvested..I think he's a 4 1/5...

 

[TheTone]

These are all MT, in the last 5 yrs or so, once I started actually finding out how old stuff was.
View attachment 260381
4.5 yr
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6.5 yr
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8.5 yr
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3.5 yr
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4.5 yr
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4.5 yr
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4.5 yr
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4.5 yr
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5.5 yr
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6.5 yr
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6.5 yr
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Waiting

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Waiting

Nice lineup with ages. Looks like some of those deer had it in the genetic department to grow big antlers and some just kinda didn’t.

I really wish this was done more universally by agencies.

I’m convinced I’m going to start sending teeth

 

[sclancy27]

Nice lineup with ages. Looks like some of those deer had it in the genetic department to grow big antlers and some just kinda didn’t.

I really wish this was done more universally by agencies.

I’m convinced I’m going to start sending teeth

I have more photos, just not on my work computer. We have shot a 7.5 yr old buck that scored like 135". Some time I will have to get all the skulls lined up, skull size (width) is a good way to compare bucks. Sometimes the size difference is crazy. I sure do love bucks!

I would still argue that a good portion of an old buck with smallish antlers is due to habitat. Especially since habitat has been shown to affect genetics over time.

 

[sclancy27]

Really thinking of sending teeth in for my buck I just harvested..I think he's a 4 1/5...View attachment 260402View attachment 260403View attachment 260404

You can get a pretty good estimate by looking at molar wear, but you would need to have a sample size from the area that buck came from cause there can be pretty wide ranges based on geology. Checking out how teeth wear and comparing them to actual ages you start to get really good.

 

[Mallardsx2]

I'm shameful. Most of my deer have been 5.5 years old or less. In GA if a deer lives past 4.5 he is defying a TON of odds. lol

 

[Valley1320]

You can get a pretty good estimate by looking at molar wear, but you would need to have a sample size from the area that buck came from cause there can be pretty wide ranges based on geology. Checking out how teeth wear and comparing them to actual ages you start to get really good.

What you mean by area like how big a area? And like a sample off another buck from the same area?

 

[sclancy27]

What you mean by area like how big a area? And like a sample off another buck from the same area?

It depends on how much the geology changes. For example, elk around Yellowstone have more accelerated molar wear due to higher silica levels in the plants due to the volcanic geology. So you could just talk to a biologist in the area and they should have an idea.

 

[sclancy27]

What you mean by area like how big a area? And like a sample off another buck from the same area?

My guess would be, just from looking at the facial characteristics and body size from that picture he is likely 4.5 or more. But cut out an incisor and send it in so you can start learning how to judge them in the field based on actual data.

 

[RobertD]

I'm shameful. Most of my deer have been 5.5 years old or less. In GA if a deer lives past 4.5 he is defying a TON of odds. lol

I helped a biologist pull samples for CWD testing a few years ago and saw that fact confirmed in real time. Probably less than 5-10% make it past 3.5 years

 

[RobertD]

I am tempted to round up some molars and get some ages on some bucks from around here.

@sclancy27 thanks for sharing all the mule deer with their ages posted like that, very interesting

 

[ImBillT]

I'm shameful. Most of my deer have been 5.5 years old or less. In GA if a deer lives past 4.5 he is defying a TON of odds. lol

Whitetails die younger and peak younger than mule deer. A friend of mine married into a high fence operation doing selective breeding and buying semen straws. Their first real giant peaked at 5.5 yrs old, declined for two years, and died at 8.5. His 6.5yr sheds were a little bigger than his 4.5yr sheds. His 7.5yr sheds were a lot smaller. They never found his 8.5yr sheds. The point is, don’t feel bad about killing 5.5yr old whitetails. That’s a very mature whitetail in his prime.

Below is a different deer. He peaked at 6.5 and was killed at 8.5. It’s easy to track because the had ear tags. He was referred to by his ear tag color and number. Ie “Blue 42”, but of course he wasn’t “blue 42”..Again, the point is 5.5yrs is just right on a whitetail.

 

[7Bartman]

I posted this elsewhere, but this is probably the best thread for it.

My MT cow had some age on her. Oldest the deerage folks have to date for a cow at 15.5. Makes the story that much more interesting to me.

 

[ImBillT]

I plan to send some teeth in to Matson Labs, but I came across a few articles that give me less confidence than I had before. It appears as though TPWD sent in a number of samples from known aged deer and Matson Labs did worse than tooth wear aging, and neither method was very accurate. I still plan to send some in because I’ve had a few bucks aged by tooth wear when pulling CWD samples and I don’t think the age estimates TPWD gave me could possibly be correct.

 

[Deleted member 48080]

@Big Sky Guy

Can I pull a molar off of a cleaned European mount and send it in for aging?

I have w pile of fresh incisors from this year I need to get stuck in the mail.

 

[Big Sky Guy]

@Big Sky Guy

Can I pull a molar off of a cleaned European mount and send it in for aging?

I have w pile of fresh incisors from this year I need to get stuck in the mail.

Yes you can, we can age any of the teeth. It is greatly helpful if you label which tooth it is (i.e. 1st premolar, 2nd premolar, 1st molar etc.). We more often assign an age range with molars/premolars than with incisors but can still get age estimates from them.

 

[Irrelevant]

@Big Sky Guy

Can I pull a molar off of a cleaned European mount and send it in for aging?

I have w pile of fresh incisors from this year I need to get stuck in the mail.

Hope you share the results when you get them, I miss seeing your mt whitetail

 

[7Bartman]

I plan to send some teeth in to Matson Labs, but I came across a few articles that give me less confidence than I had before. It appears as though TPWD sent in a number of samples from known aged deer and Matson Labs did worse than tooth wear aging, and neither method was very accurate. I still plan to send some in because I’ve had a few bucks aged by tooth wear when pulling CWD samples and I don’t think the age estimates TPWD gave me could possibly be correct.

Can you post the link? I have a hard time believing that tooth wear aging would even come close to cementum annuli.

 

[Deleted member 48080]

Hope you share the results when you get them, I miss seeing your mt whitetail

I'm mainly curious about the giant @Schaaf killed. That butthole sniffer hunted one of my favorite spots for a total of 3 or 4 days before killing a buck bigger than I ever have.