Different species of deer?

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Glock19Fan

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Hello.

I am somewhat embarrassed that I dont already know how to tell the differences between the species of deer, becuase to me they all look the same. I cant even remember the how to tell the difference between male and female (doe and deer, crap I dont even remember the names!).

Im fairly new to hunting, and would like to learn the differences, along with the ability to spot and name different game animals.

If anyone could explain, or point me to a good web site, I would really appreciated it!

Thanks!
 
where do you anticipate hunting? most states have only whitetail deer, so you may not need to concern yourself w/ other species. if you live where there are more than one species, you'll have to say where, because some states have mule deer, blacktail deer, or other species...

during hunting season, a female deer (doe) will rarely have antlers on its head. male deer (buck) will have antlers... there's a start... a lot depends on where you live/hunt...
 
Hello.

I plan on doing most of my hunting in middle Tennessee. Im pretty familar with firearms, but not hunting. Ive always wanted to hunt but never had anyone to go with, or even help me out with. Now that I live in a place which more land and have more friends to help me out, I hope I can go hunting for the first time next season.
 
ok, i am almost 100% certain tennessee has whitetails only, so you don't need to worry about species, just sex. pretty easy to tell buck from doe - either it has antlers (buck), or it doesn't (doe). some states or parts of states may have a restriction as to how many points must be on one side or something, but that is something you'll have to check locally.

first thing you need to do is get decent binoculars, and learn how to use them. they will help you to determine sex of the deer, and rack size, plus they will keep you from doing dumb stuff, like looking for game/spotting things w/ your riflescope.
 
I think most states just have antler or antlerless season with antlers having a minimum length, instead of calling them bucks and does.
Be carefull about the species you are hunting, while a Tennessee deer is a white tail I recall a story from a few years back: During opening day a hunter shot a huge buck, he field dressed it and had his buddy help him get it on the back of his truck. He proceeded to drive around town and country showing off his deer, until he got stopped for illegally taking an elk...

Wear hunter orange, even if its not the law.
Know your target, a single leaf blowing in the brush can fool you if
you are eager to shoot. A large white tail will only be about chest high
most are smaller.
Scout your area, here in West Virginia we scout the last couple weeks before opening day, squirrel season is great for this.
Find a scrape line and look for a good place to set up covering it.
 
In the broadest sense "deer" include caribou,moose, elk,deer .The more common usage it means mule deer and whitetail deer .Mule deer is found in the west and whitetail is found in most states. Within the whitetail there are subspecies including northern,virginia,coues,key etc. TN would most likely have the virginia whitetail. In PA the average buck is about 150 and the doe 125 lbs.
 
You may also find Axis deer in some places. You'll know them because their rack is something to behold in comparison to whitetails.

There's also the Yes Deer, which is characterized by it's ability to continue watching the game on the couch oblivious to the fact that his wife is pouring her guts out.

brad cook
 
Here in WA we have mulies, white tail and black tail. With that, the hunting regs have a very good description of each. I don't know about Tenn. but the hunting regs might be a good source of info. for you.
dean
 
Unless you happen to be hunting where the land owner has exotics, you will only be dealing with whitetail deer in Tennessee. Be aware, that the state has an elk stocking program. I believe that the elk are being placed over in/near the Smokey Mt. National Park. Elk have large bodies (300-800 lbs) lbs) and large antlers compared to deer (Deer weigh 100-150 lbs typically). If you have a concern, call the state and ask where they are stocking the elk so that you can rule out that possibility. After you see a couple, there is no mistaking an elk for a whitetail deer. Check out the TWRA web site also. Good information there on hunting in Tennessee.

You might want to do some casual reading on whitetail hunting in the various sporting rags. They should get you thinking about some of the things that can be important. Best thing to do is hunt with somebody else who has some experience.

If you are hunting on private land, you definitely want to do some scouting to learn the boundaries of the land. Scouting should also be done to learn the habits of deer on the property and in the area. Some folks get down-right angry if you walk onto someone else's land by accident while hunting.

What I did was get the tax maps of the property that you would be hunting and then transfer it onto a topographic map to give you a rough idea of boundaries. Tax maps are available from the County Tax Assessor. This is especially true if the property is fairly large and there are clubs that have land leased adjacent to the property you are hunting or you are hunting on their leased lands. The club would have maps also.

You planning on hunting regular rifle season, archery, black powder?

I also hunt middle Tennessee.
 
22-rimfire- I plan on doing rifle hunting. I will be getting an AR-15 soon that I will probably use to hunt. .223 may be a little too light for some, but I dont think I will have any problems as long as I use the right ammo (bonded JSP or JHP) and use good placement.

Everyone else- Thanks!
 
glock- not to rain on your parade, but there is a wicked, wicked disease out there called 'buck fever' (not restricted just to hunters after bucks, either - it also strikes doe hunters). it strikes novice hunters the hardest, fastest, worstest, and all that. this makes your 'placement' idea, while sound in theory, about useless in practice.

the 223 can work fine, but for a first-time hunter, there may not be many worse cartridges to consider... ymmv... buck fever... i'm tellin' ya...
 
Yea, be sure and learn how tell the difference.

I was hunting with a woman one time, we were about 100 yards apart in tree stands. I heard a shot go off so I climed down out of my stand and went rapidly to where she was. I got there and found a man with his hands in the air, holding them up while my lady friend had a gun on him.

I heard him say, OK Ok Ok lady, you can have your deer, just let me get my saddle off of him. :D
 
Marshall: That is a cute story.

Not to pick at you but, I personally believe that the 223 caliber is one of the poorest calibers for deer hunting that you can choose and especially in an AR. It is right up there with 22 Hornet, 218 Bee, and 222 Rem. You probably haven't even heard of those calibers before. I also believe the AR-15 or clones give deer hunters a bad name. You aren't going to war, you're going deer hunting. Please don't use anything less than a 243/6mm for deer hunting.
 
Glock19,

Yep, .223 (or 5.56mm) is really a varmint round, you're not using enough gun. You need something between .243 to .35. with .270, 7mm and anything that starts with .3 being good choices. Slugs through a shotgun work just fine also. You want your deer DRT (or as close as possible). Trailing a wounded deer mile after mile through the woods is not much fun, scares the other deer, makes other hunters mad and you could lose your deer to either another hunter (happened to my cousin, he made a bad shot, we waited and by the time we caught up, another hunter had seen this deer "Just drop dead before I could get my gun up", he had him tagged and half-way gutted when we showed up.) or just lose him period.

Since you've never hunted before you might also want to take a Hunter Safety course. I sat through one with my daughter a couple years back and learned alot. Can't wait to go through it again in a couple of years with my son just to see what else I learn. :D :D

Check the sticky at the top of this forum, there might be someone who'll mentor you on your first hunt.
 
I don't remember the game rules for TN, but in many states a 223 is illegal for deer hunting. Worth a check if it will save you a ticket.
 
Most states have limitations on caliber of weapon for deer.

Here's the specifics for Tenn.

http://www.state.tn.us/twra/04_huntguide.pdf

Deer, Bear, Boar and Feral Hog Hunting
1. Shotguns using ammunition loaded with single solid ball
or rifled slugs.
2. Rifles, except those utilizing an artificial light capable
of locating wildlife, using center-fire ammunition of .24
caliber (6 mm) or larger, in all counties except where
regulated by legislative acts.
3. Muzzle-loading percussion cap or flintlock rifles, handguns
or shotguns of .40 caliber (.40-inches) minimum.
These muzzle-loading firearms are legal during any gun
season or hunt unless otherwise specified.
Muzzleloading firearms are defined as those firearms
which are incapable of being loaded from the breech.

Also, if you were born after 1969 you are required to take a hunter safety course.

http://www.state.tn.us/twra/faqmain.html#hunting

Who must take a Hunter Education Class and where are they offered?
Anyone who wishes to hunt in Tennessee and was born on or after January 1, 1969, must pass a Hunter Education Class. These classes are free and are scheduled by the Hunter Safety Coordinator in each of TWRA's four regions. To find a convenient class, call the nearest of TWRA's four regional offices and ask for information about a class near you or click here: Regional Hunter Education Classes . Most of the classes are taught in late summer or early fall.

Arizona has Whitetail, Couse (sp?) Whitetail and Mule Deer.
 
LennyJoe: I'm embarr-assed. It never occurred to me to check the minimium TN center fire rifle requirement. You need to add one important one to the list... (#6) Center-fire handguns .24 caliber (6mm) or larger having a barrel length of four inches or more, in all counties except where regulated by legislative acts. The .40 caliber requirement (above) is for black powder weapons.

Frankly, I think it should be 357 or larger in power. The requirement above opens up a lot of different caliber options that are substandard for whitetail.
 
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Cottle County Texas has Both

I believe the state record Mule Deer buck came from this county. Mule deer generally have bigger ears and out there they tend to run a little bigger. Also Mule deer run a little differetly than Whitetails (not always). Sometimes they do something called stotting. It's kind of a fast bounce.
 
jack03.jpg

Ahhh, so confused, .30-06? .223? 12 gauge?
 
dakotasin- I handle stressful situations fairly well, so I dont think I would be effected too much by the rush. I have a pretty good amount of firearms experience, and im not that bad at trap shooting. Trap shooting definatly isnt deer hunting, but I do think it can be useful for a number of reasons.

22-Rimfire- I know they .223 isnt that great, but it definatly isnt far from the .243 in power. Even with a larger caliber, would a bad shot really be that much better? Besides, the AR-15 I am getting is mainly for home defense purposes, so I will have a lot of time with it. I would much rather be hunting with a gun that I have tons of experience with rather than a gun that I can only afford to zero in.

As for the calibers you listed, I believe the .223 is far more advanced than any of them. I am somewhat familar with them, especially the .22 Hornet, and I will say that most ammo is made specifically for varmint hunting; there are probably half a dozen different purposes, and I believe that some of the heavier, bonded JSPs and JHPs would be closely suited to deer hunting.

As for not using the AR-15 becuase it looks bad, im not sure how others feel about this, but to me it is like saying "use a single shot pistol for self defense becuase you dont want to look like a tactical Ted Rambo wannabe".

As for the minimum caliber limits, I think my first hunting will be on private land, but sometime next year, I plan on getting a .30-06 (100th Anniversary rifle) for this purpose and will most likely start hunting on public land (although the number of irresponsible idiots out there kind of scares me).

Scout- I would really appreciated a fellow THR member close to me to help me out, but I really dont see that happening. :(

I hope I didnt seem offensive in my post. I am still open to this, since like I mentioned, I dont really have much experience with hunting.

Thanks everyone!
 
Glock19Fan - Understand that the .24 caliber restriction in TN applies regardless of whether you are hunting on public or private land, bullet weight and design or your familiarity with the platform you will be shooting it out of.

Just so you are clear....

1-Most experienced hunters believe that .223 is an inappropriate cartridge for deer regardless of bullet design.

2- It is ILLEGAL to use .223 for deer in Tennessee regardless of whether you are hunting on public or private land. You will be charged/ticketed if caught.

Please rethink your decision to use .223.

W
 
It appears to me that Glock19Fan is NOT as gun savvy as he says he is.

One can learn all one wants to learn (as from a book) about deer, varieties, terminology, etc with a simple google search. Likewise, by reading the applicable state regulations one can learn what a legal deer gun would be. Further, by attending a local hunter safety course (mandatory in some areas, certainly recommended here) one can avoid many pitfalls.
 
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