Hunters having a ‘phenomenal’ deer season
Many Texas hunters and most wildlife experts will agree that it has been one heck of a deer season thus far.
Things have been particularly good in eastern Texas, where antler restrictions continue to work their magic and more hunters are reaping the big benefits of laying off young bucks.
Antler quality generally improves with age. The idea behind the antler restrictions is to protect young bucks from harvest, allow more animals to reach maturity, improve age structure within the herd and enhance rutting activity.
Wildlife biologist Rusty Wood oversees the Pineywoods region for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. While the region has produced a handful of topshelf bucks with abnormally large antlers this season, Wood says what impresses him the most is the sheer number of quality animals that have crossed paths with hunters. Dozens of great bucks have shown up at department check stations, processing facilities and on social media websites.
Facebook pages like “903 Outdoors” and “Deep ETX Pineywoods Hunting Forum” have been particularly busy. Both forums are loaded with pictures of outstanding whitetails.
“I don’t know that it has been the best year ever, but it has certainly been well above average as far as the number of quality bucks go, for sure,” Wood said. “On opening weekend it was just buck-after-buck at our check stations — or at least it was where I was at. They were good bucks, too.”
The biologist believes several factors are to credit for the spike in quality buck harvest across the region.
“Several consecutive years of rainfall stacked up, we’ve had good mast crops and antler restrictions are paying off — that’s exactly what it is,” he said. “Several years ago 80-90 percent of the bucks brought to our check stations were only 1½ years old. Today, we’re seeing 80-90 percent 3½ year olds. We’re getting more bucks into that older age class, which is what the antler restrictions are designed to do. It’s been pretty incredible. It seems like there are good quality deer wherever you look.”
Region 5 district leader Roger Wolfe said hunters across the Post Oak Savannah are experiencing good results for similar reasons. Wolfe also believes favorable weather has been a key factor lending to hunter success during the first leg of the 2019-20 season.
“You couldn’t have asked for better weather,” he said. “It’s been nice and cool. The good weather likely got more hunters into the field. It’s been a great year so far with lots of mature deer showing up in the harvest.”
The banner harvest hasn’t been limited to private property, either. At the Gus Engeling Wildlife Management Area in Anderson County, hunters have shot six bucks off the 11,000-acre WMA this year that qualified as Texas Big Game Awards scored entries. The total ties the 1997 WMA record.
The WMA’s top-scoring buck this season is a 166 5⁄8 gross 12 pointer taken by Leonard Mechler, according to TPWD wildlife biologist Kyle Brunson of Tennessee Colony. Five other bucks scoring between 1352⁄8 and 1507⁄8 have been brought to the WMA check station.
One of the best private lands low fence bucks reported in East Texas this year is an Anderson County 20 pointer shot on Nov. 17 by Matt Helms. TBGA scorer Duston Hudnall said the 6½year-old buck has been green scored at 1974⁄8 Boone and Crockett inches.
Helms shot the the big non-typical off a 5,000-acre club that is part of the North Neches Management Co-op managed by Forest Resource Consultants. The coop includes more than two dozen clubs totaling nearly 80,000 acres along the Neches River.
“It’s been a phenomenal year,” said Hudnall, an official TBGA scorer. “I’ve scored a bunch of really nice bucks and I’ve never seen so much mass. I’ve scored 4-5 bucks with six inch bases.”
Another outstanding Post Oak buck was reported by James Blackburn from from Navarro County. TBGA lists the gross score for the 10-point typical at 1654⁄8.
As good as season has been in the Post Oak, reports from the Pineywoods have been even more impressive.
The best open range buck to surface this year originated on the 903 Outdoors Facebook page. It was shot in late October in Panola County by archery hunter Daniel Prior of Houston.
Prior, a Henderson native, arrowed the remarkable 16 pointer on 2,000acres of open range property. The 6½-year-old buck has been unofficially green scored at 2143⁄8 gross. It’s the biggest buck reported from Panola County since 1997.
Prior, 28, said he held his bow at full draw for more than two minutes before the buck offered a clear shot.
Several more outstanding Pineywoods whitetails have shown up on the TBGA website, texasbiggameawards.org. The best thus far is a Walker County non-typical shot by Shawn Byler. TBGA lists Byler’s score at 185.
Another remarkable nontypical was turned in by Ernest Morgan of Cleveland. The deer was taken on an 11,000-acre low fence club that is part of the Shawnee Prairie Deer Management Association co-op in Angelina County.
Morgan’s buck is a main frame 8 pointer with a pair of tall kickers that parallel its left brow tine. It has been officially green scored at 1756⁄8, 173⅛. Amazingly the 6½year-old buck grosses around 165 as an 8 pointer. The deer grew tremendous main beams of 26½ and 27 inches; both G2s exceed 14 inches.
Rusk County has history of producing bucks with abnormally large antlers. The latest belongs to Henderson archer Matt Davis. Davis arrowed the big 16 pointer on Nov. 19 while hunting on 160 acres. Davis has green scored the buck at 172⅛ gross.
Trinity County has been a hotspot for whopper whitetails this season. Leta Thomas’ 16 pointer is the best reported thus far with a gross B&C score of 185⅛.
Another outstanding Trinity County buck was shot off an American Forest Management lease by David Park. AFM wildlife biologist Matt Taylor said Park’s 15 pointer registered a TBGA gross score of 1676⁄8, 1613⁄8 net.
Dyllon Pate’s Trinity County 11 pointer has not yet been officially taped for TBGA, but Pate has rough scored the rack at 1656⁄8. Pate said he shot the buck on 200 acres of private property.
Things have been surprisingly quiet in Polk County this season, but bowhunter Blake Laviolette of Onalaska rang the bell with a beautiful 11 pointer that may be topscoring typical reported from the Pineywoods this year. Laviolette said the buck grosses 1636⁄8 and nets 1623⁄8 after deducts. Interestingly, the buck came from a small, 150-acre spread Laviolette has under lease for bowhunting inside the city limits of Onalaska.