Every buck’s path in life is unique, and so is every buck’s antler growth progression. Ups and downs come with external factors like drought (or, conversely, abundant rain), poor mast crops (or heavy ones), severe…
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The Rewards of Restraint
Sep 13, 2012Lindsay Thomas Jr.
Look carefully at the trail-camera photo above, taken by QDMA member and private lands biologist Joe Lacefield of Kentucky. I love this photo because it captures part of the spirit of Quality Deer Management in a…
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Which Bucks Can I Shoot?
Jul 23, 2012Lindsay Thomas Jr.
Imagine an old friend joins you for a weekend hunt on your QDM lands. The night before the hunt commences, your friend asks an important question: “Which bucks can I shoot?” For you, this is…
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Why We Can’t Manage Deer Genetics
May 30, 2012Lindsay Thomas Jr.
The power of selectively controlled breeding is incredible. With it, we transformed a wolf into a chihuahua over the course of 15,000 years – mere milliseconds in the echoing depths of geologic time. We transformed…
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Will Dominant Bucks Dominate the Breeding?
May 17, 2012Kip Adams
“Do a handful of bucks sire the majority of the fawns?” This question is often followed with a series of questions, such as: “If the dominant buck in my area has narrow antlers, will I…
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The Antler Growth Bell Curve
Apr 23, 2012Lindsay Thomas Jr.
There’s a simple rule underlying antler development in whitetail bucks that all hunters should understand. Awareness of this rule provides a bridge over many of the false expectations, myths, mistakes and frustrations that lie waiting…
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QDM: Frequently Asked Questions
Mar 14, 2012Lindsay Thomas Jr.
Why practice QDM? Do I have to wait for a “wallhanger” or a “trophy” before I can kill a buck? I hunted all season and did not see a buck that was legal under my…
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Harvesting the Right Number of Deer
Mar 9, 2012Kip Adams
In other articles, we’ve talked about harvesting the right number of does and bucks in your QDM program. Once you set your harvest goals, it is critical that you monitor the results by collecting harvest…
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How Many Bucks Can I Harvest?
Mar 9, 2012Kip Adams
Let’s continue our discussion of harvest prescriptions with another common question: “How many bucks can I harvest?” The number of bucks you can harvest will depend highly on your level of restraint and the age…
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Leading Other Hunters to QDM
Mar 8, 2012Lindsay Thomas Jr.
One November, my brother, Rans, showed me a video clip he filmed while bowhunting a small, suburban tract in Georgia. The clip included several minutes of footage of a nice 9-pointer working a scrape and…
