Badlands mule deer

[Kurtr]

The major thing you are missing is winter. Those deer have places to migrate. Look at Idaho two years ago the wintering grounds got pounded deer died. Robby denning who is a big deer killing machine says five to seven years after that winter with ideal conditions. The deer here have no where to go and our winters on a normal one is way harder than the ones where the deer migrate. We get six straight open winters nice rain in the spring summer hope to hell a disease does not come and wipe out the deer even if the weather was nice blue tongue. Then avoid people driving on the road which out west they go high where our deer are just in the open. Mountain lions and coyotes. I think the deer out on the high plains here have a much lower survival rate just because of the harsh conditions we live in. The other thing about Colorado is they went to a draw because they wiped the deer herd out trying to get rid of cwd. Personally this has been one of the best years ever for seeing 180 plus deer which has been 2 one is dead and the other is still running around hopefully I still have a bow tag and after actually seeing one on the hoof and holding it I can say a lot of the other 180 I saw were probably 160 or so. I would put our deer on even a more weather dependent cycle than deer Who migrate for winter hunting has some affect but Mother Nature is who decides. Plus I have been trying for over 16 years to get a 180 inch mule deer on public land and few things have felt that good when I did this year I wouldn’t want it any easier.

 

[frozen4sioux]

As vast as the badlands seem to us, the reality is between the grazing and the oil pads and related traffic.....

Very little of the region is actually "remote" at this point and many areas are down right busy.

IMHO The world of the remote wilderness territory is more of a romantic fantasy than reality.

 

[Wags2.0]

As vast as the badlands seem to us, the reality is between the grazing and the oil pads and related traffic.....

Very little of the region is actually "remote" at this point and many areas are down right busy.

IMHO The world of the remote wilderness territory is more of a romantic fantasy than reality.

Agreed. Pretty hard to find multiple areas where you can walk 3 miles without finding another road. Also and this is just my observation.. most of the biggest deer I’ve seen out there were the couple years after the big population crash

 

[ND58201]

Increased oil activity and too many nonresident archery tags has really hurt the ND mule deer quality IMO. 150 buck tags and 25 doe tags would be plenty for ND rifle season each year as well

 

[riverview]

im allways impressed by the body size of the mature muleys

 

[Achucker]

All of the above. I think biggest factor is habitat and pressure from human activity. Here is a site with the amount of public land.

https://www.summitpost.org/public-and-private-land-percentages-by-us-states/186111

 

[frozen4sioux]

Increased oil activity and too many nonresident archery tags has really hurt the ND mule deer quality IMO. 150 buck tags and 25 doe tags would be plenty for ND rifle season each year as well

I think that the mentality has changed a bit to try and give as many residents a chance for a legit gun tag as possible as the numbers of poached deer has been exponentially increased by oil activity.

 

[Retired Educator]

How much has it changed? Genetics and food are 2 important parts of the puzzle. I have had ranchers tell me that their calf weight can vary from year to year, dependent on the quality of the grass. Would seem that it would affect deer as well. Weather determines the quality of the grass. Genetics? Age will allow a buck to grow bigger and bigger to a point but genetics are determined by both parents.

How has it changed over the years. Started hunting mule deer back in the 60's, when you could get a tag every year and the tag was for a mule deer, sex didn't matter. Shoot whatever you wanted as long as it had big ears. Anything bigger than a fork horn was a trophy. Shot a 135 inch buck one year and people thought I had a big one.Occasionally you'd see a trophy but for our group its was rare.

No solid answers but one thing is an absolute. G&F is in charge of managing number of deer, not anyone's personal preference in defining quality. A lot of people just want to shoot a deer and size isn't all that important. I haven't filled my tag and if I don't I'm fine and I haven't seen 1 1880" deer and that's also fine.

 

[Retired Educator]

Increased oil activity and too many nonresident archery tags has really hurt the ND mule deer quality IMO. 150 buck tags and 25 doe tags would be plenty for ND rifle season each year as well

Seriously? We give out more moose and elk tags than that and those are once in a lifetime. Or perhaps you could just auction the tags and we'd see what it's really worth for somebody who only wants a chance at a BC trophy with no one to interfere with their hunt.

 

[Enslow]

Sounds like settling for a dink.

 

[buckhunter24_7]

Just checked the north Dakota big game record book 6 typical mule deer entered 190 + (Boone and Crockett minimum) 3 of the 6 where shot after 2000. Only 3 non-typical b&c eligible entries (230+)

 

[Wildyote]

There are many factors why the quality of mule hunting has crashed in the Badlands units:

-There is too much archery pressure. Before you bowhunters get mad I am a bowhunter for 30+ years in Western ND. Over four months of pressure and bowhunter s are allowed to hunt during gun season also.
-too many archery tags being filled with rifle.
-too many mature bucks being poached.
-archery season should close during rifle season to allow gun hunters a quality hunt. Too many people in the Badlands at one time.
-dont harvest mule deer does
-predator management too many cats in certain areas. Coyotes are hard on old bucks and fawns too.
-Overharvest of up and comer young 4x4s. Do your part and try to harvest a mature deer if not eat your tag or take a 3x3 or big forks.
-Oilfield poaching.
-It comes down to over harvest for example in most Badlands units 200 bucks are taken by archery, 50 by youth, 150-200 by rifle, and how many by poaching ???.

 

[628977]

Rifle season should not be during the rut. That would limit the amount of mature bucks taken.

 

[AR-15]

Would be nice to know the percentage of deer taken in ND from Poaching and Legal tagging, and also how much Poaching is done for food and how much for horns, never will know the real answer, does anybody want to give guess

 

[dirtytough]

My buck is the one in my left hand. Wife's in in the right hand. The buck I killed is probably the most mature buck I saw during the hunt.

 

[Enslow]

This thread smells of excuses. Getting a big Muley in the badlands is not an easy task unless it is.

 

[Bed Wetter]

Seems mule deer range is spreading. I killed this yesterday on family land 45 miles SE of Bismarck. I don’t believe we’ve ever killed a mule here before, just had rumors of sightings over the years and an occasional, “was that a mule deer? Nah, couldn’t be.” She had two fawns with her.

You guys can’t find mule deer and I literally found one without even looking. What’s the problem? :^)


- - - Updated - - -

Proof of mule deer purchase:

 

[PrairieGhost]

Seems mule deer range is spreading. I killed this yesterday on family land 45 miles SE of Bismarck.

A buck and two does have been in a friends pasture (four sections contiguous) for two years now. Looks like they had fawns this summer. That's at Jamestown. My brother-in-law had a small forkhorn hang out for the entire summer, but someone must have shot him because we didn't see him during season. He stuck to the same hill all summer.
I have hunted the Badlands nearly every year since 1980. I think multiple 180 mule deer in a single year is a fluke. Nephew's wife aerial radio tracked mule deer. You see many large bucks doing that, but you have to not only be a good hunter, but extremely lucky to see multiple 180's in a single year. I'm not saying it's bs, but they should have bought a lottery ticket.

 

[Whisky]

This thread smells of excuses. Getting a big Muley in the badlands is not an easy task unless it is.

Whatever man, heard you the first time. How long have you hunted out there and what experiences do you have to base that statement on? Sounds like you disagree that there is a decline in quality mature buck in the badlands. Enlighten me

 

[Meelosh]

Seems mule deer range is spreading. I killed this yesterday on family land 45 miles SE of Bismarck. I don’t believe we’ve ever killed a mule here before, just had rumors of sightings over the years and an occasional, “was that a mule deer? Nah, couldn’t be.” She had two fawns with her.

Congrats on the filled tag.

I wouldn’t say they are spreading. There’s always going to be transient animals of a lot of species. At our farm near Towner, we get the occasional mule deer and pronghorn that come and visit for awhile and then move on by on their own accord.

Across their range, mule deer aren’t doing well. Outcompeted by white tails which are truly spreading and outcompeted by elk in the overlapping habitat. And diminishing habitat overall.

I don’t hunt the badlands enough to have a strong opinion on what’s happening but I can guess. Habitat fragmentation taking its toll.