Average age and score on TN bucks?

[DWB]

I was wondering what everyone's opinion was on the average age and size of TN bucks. This can fall in multiple categories. Being either alive or harvested bucks and East , Middle , and West TN.
I may be way wrong but in East TN and where I'm at in my deer hunting I feel like a 3.5 year old 90"-100" buck is a good average buck that you don't want to pass on. Now I no they are bigger bucks around here. And again I may be total wrong. Please give your thoughts on it.

 

[Lost Lake]

From what I've seen, on average a third year buck in my areas (middle and west) will score about 105-115. Four year olds will be 120-135.

 

[Winchester]

My experience with mature bucks here in East TN is scores averaging somewhere around 115, Mid to Northern Midwest TN where I have also hunted for many years seems to average a lil higher at maybe 125 imo. These are definitely just averages with many scoring much more and many scoring less as well.

 

[Good time Charlie]

I love to go to the TWRA toolbox and look at the numbers and points they are.

I to was surprised at what would be the average Buck.

 

[MickThompson]

I love to go to the TWRA toolbox and look at the numbers and points they are.

I to was surprised at what would be the average Buck.

Harvest stats don't necessarily reflect what the average would be in an unhunted population. Many hunters selectively kill individuals with more antler points in each cohort (age class), leaving individuals with smaller antlers to be recruited into older age classes. This inflates the avg antler points for younger age classes and removes the best antler point potential individuals before they can be recruited into older classes, depressing the average for older classes. This doesn't equal a generic high grading necessarily.

 

[Andy S.]

^^^^ What Mick said. Hunter selection to shoot at and kill is a big inflation over what the real AVERAGE is for any cohort.

 

[megalomaniac]

Average for 3.5s in my area is 105. 4.5s would be 115.

The key is protecting the high end 2.5s and 3.5s.... those at the top end of the gene pool that will score 120 to 135 or so.... those are the ones that have the potential to hit the magic 150in mark at maturity

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[DWB]

In my area we have some good deer. Around the 120+ mark. But they are not to common. Not by me anyways. But a 3.5 around here is around 100" give or take.

 

[DWB]

Average for 3.5s in my area is 105. 4.5s would be 115.

The key is protecting the high end 2.5s and 3.5s.... those at the top end of the gene pool that will score 120 to 135 or so.... those are the ones that have the potential to hit the magic 150in mark at maturity
I understand that. But its hard when you know you have a lot of hunters in your area that won't let it go.
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[megalomaniac]

I understand that. But its hard when you know you have a lot of hunters in your area that won't let it go.
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Yes, it IS hard. on one side of my farm we lost our best 3.5 y/o (around 130-135") and our best 2.5 y/o (120-125") just before rut started to the neighbors. They left our 6.5 y/o 90" and 5.5 y/o 100" bucks to do all the breeding. 99% of hunters don't have the discipline to pass up those high scoring younger bucks knowing they will probably be killed by someone else.

I'd much rather be surrounded by 'meat hunters' who want to kill the first 2 bucks that walk out in front of them (usually yearlings), than 'trophy hunters' who only shoot based on score (usually 125" around me) rather than age.