![]() The result is the same whether you call this culling, management or just deer hunting. ![]() It would benefit a hunter to shoot a old, gnarly 6 point buck over an up-and-coming 10 point buck that would likely be significantly better in another year or two. A hunter can not expect the removal of an (undesirable) buck a year to make a significant change in the local deer herd. The action does not make sense on smaller properties because not enough area can be “treated” to make a difference. On the flip side, this may be the best buck ever seen on another property, especially those at the early stages of deer management.Ĭulling “inferior” bucks is not a viable management strategy for many properties. Maintaining Perspective on “Culls”Ī property that has been under intensive herd management for years may consider a 5 1/2 year old buck with a 130-inch Boone & Crockett score as a cull, regardless of the number of antler points. In the absence of competent direction culling is not recommended. In short, a deer that is considered a cull varies by property/area, and most importantly by who is calling the shots regarding buck harvest, whether that be a manager or deer hunter. These traits are genetically based and can be observed in a particular buck year after year as it ages. Other bucks commonly considered for culling are those with very short or missing brow tines or very short tine-length overall. However, a 2 1/2 year old buck with 7 points may not be considered a cull because he has not had the benefit of an additional year of skeletal and antler development. For example, if most of the bucks at 3 1/2 years of age on a property have 8+ antler points, then a 3 1/2 year old buck with 6 or fewer antler points would probably be considered a cull buck. Ideally, all bucks should be evaluated on an apples to apples basis. ![]() After all, there is no guarantee those deer will be shot or even seen. This is how culls, keepers and “good shooters” are ultimately sorted out for potential harvest. When considering annual harvest, whitetail bucks can be judged relative to other bucks of the same age that are using the property. Whenever a cull buck is removed from a herd, it should be based on some predefined management parameters, which often includes a combination of age and antler quality. If you don’t have a management plan for the property you are hunting then arbitrarily shooting bucks that you don’t consider “trophies” is not really going to get you anywhere. So which bucks get culled, or managed, this season? The answer depends on several factors - and those factors vary by property as well as on past management objectives and future management goals. So, what is a cull buck on your hunting property? Cull bucks are deer that are removed for management reasons. A buck could also be culled because of an injury. Culling is best described as shooting older bucks with less impressive antlers first rather than younger-aged bucks with more impressive antlers. With that said, a cull buck on one property may not be a cull buck on another property based on measurable or non-measurable attributes. Otherwise, no one would ever be able to select for antler quality through buck harvest.Ĭull bucks are bucks that are deemed genetically inferior in antler quality to other bucks in the area. After all, deer antlers are highly heritable. As such, the topic of cull bucks comes about when property managers and hunters want to make a determination on which bucks should be culled or removed in an attempt to improve the quality of the local deer herd. ![]() The topic always spurs lively debate among a group of hunters, but which bucks are cull bucks and which ones are not? There is an important factor to keep in mind: A cull to one person is not a cull to another, whether it be related to whitetail bucks or something else.Ī cull, by definition, is something that is considered inferior or inadequate - not as good as the rest. You’ve heard the term before, but what exactly is a cull buck? Sure, white-tailed deer managers and hunters often talk about “cull” bucks. ![]()
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