I was reading the local paper on Sunday and read about the opening day of the deer hunt here in Utah. There was an article that talked about some of the success that happened on opening morning of the rifle hunt. Here is an excerpt from that article:
As of 1 p.m. on Saturday, hunters checking in at the Division of Wildlife Resources checkpoint in Spanish Fork Canyon had taken 12 deer, all but one mature, said Hadley [Mark Hadley of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources] . The information was reported by Scott Root of the Springville office of the DWR, who manage the checkpoint.
“Only one was a yearling, born in the spring of 2005,” Hadley said, “The other 11 were at least two-and-a-half years old, and most of the animals were three point or better.”
Hunters are happy to find mature animals because they are usually larger, he said.
I kind of had to do a double take, but did the Utah DWR just state that a 2 1/2 year old buck is considered a mature buck? What do you consider a mature buck?
October 23rd, 2006
There is no question the email that caused the firestorm of controversy regarding the 575 Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness elk will go down as the top story for 2006 (in regards to interest and popularity on Internet searches). As most have now discovered, this bull was taken in Quebec, Canada behind a high fence and scores around 560 SCI. But who was the actual person who took this bull? That person is Lou McMurray from California. It looks like Lou is trying to help clear up the false rumors and has posted information and more photos on his web site. Thanks to “Mac” for posting the comment about the link.
According to Lou’s web site, he has posted the following information:
# Shot with a 300 Winchester Magnum at approximately 80 yards.
# Taken from the Laurentian Wildlife Estate in the Quebec Province of Canada on Sep 6, 2006.
# The estate has been approved by Safari Club International as a qualified hunt and eligible for a world record. SCI is the accredited organization that qualifies world records.
# The elk has been measured by two non-certified guides at around 560 by the Boone and Crockett Club standards. The current world record is 503. It is a non-typical estate antler. For the estate to qualify, it has to be a minimum size. In this case the area was 370 acres. Also, it must be forested with trees and not an open field. The Laurentian Estate is heavily forested. The elk was not easy to find and had not been seen for two weeks by any of the guides previous to our hunt.
# It takes a 60-day drying out period before a certified master measurer can make an official measurement. We plan to submit to SCI for world record.
Link: Here is the link to Lou McMurray’s web site
Now…if we can just find out who sent the original mis-leading email full of false information that started this whole thing?
October 23rd, 2006
