I think a 3 on one side for GS wouldn't be a bad plan. I agree that the genes are down there to produce some big-uns. They already take some nice ones out of there and the surrounding areas anyways. I don't usually like to compare 2 different areas of the country, but up in Pennsylvania the folks raised he!! when they went to antler restrictions in some units. 10+ yrs later most of those units are reaping the benefits with huge bucks and plenty of doe tags every year. But this aint PA........
with my limited knowledge of FLA it seems things could only improve with any kind of change. I feel FL has some big potential for improvement. sure it will sting a bit at first but like the prev writer wrote of Penn in 10 yrs they were glad they made the sacrifice. as for eating young vs old, them spotted ones are mighty tender (JK). with a change in handling and cooking methods old ones can taste good too. good cooks/chefs can make turds taste good.
Let's go back and look at "our" big buck contest and the several posts of deer taken last season by FOHAF members. Then let's watch a deer huntin' show in Texas, Iowa, or one of them "big buck" states and realize that our best entry in a contest is just a "cull" buck to the areas that have big antlered deer.
The Florida big buck registry doen't have that many monsters, true there are some big boys listed, but that is not what most of Florida is capable of producing simpley because we don't have the mineral soils and nutrition that is natural to these other states. Also consider that biological fact, the further north the larger the bodies are because of winter survival issues. I feel these and several other reasons Florida will never be a big buck state.
Trophy hunting is an addiction to some folks and they need to hunt where the big boys live. Plain ol' deer huntin' is just that, plain. If you kill a legal buck or a legal doe, you have been sucessful. "Antler Restrictions" that will help one kill a "BIGGER" buck will hinder another from ever killing a buck. There are always 2 sides to a valid debate and sometimes even more. Personally, I take 'em as they come. Most years I kill 4 or 5 deer and most years I don't kill a wall hanger, but ever 3 or 4 years a good one will show up. By "good" I mean a 14"-16" rack. I sure don't want to go without venison on the table just to satisfy someone's desire to kill a "trophy". And I'm not opposed to bustin' a legal nanny when she presents herself. In my opinion, any legal deer is a trophy and this thing of "braggin' rights" gets out of hand. Treefarmer
Its always interesting when an antler-restriction thread comes up. I don't think I have ever seen 2 people agree on what should and should not be done (not to say any one person is right or wrong)
with my limited knowledge of FLA it seems things could only improve with any kind of change. I feel FL has some big potential for improvement. sure it will sting a bit at first but like the prev writer wrote of Penn in 10 yrs they were glad they made the sacrifice. as for eating young vs old, them spotted ones are mighty tender (JK). with a change in handling and cooking methods old ones can taste good too. good cooks/chefs can make turds taste good.
Were talking toughness. Just like cattle 8 mouths to 16 mouths and in the freezer. By the way we know how to cook & process. We even have some culinary degrees. Personally I would take does but we are not allowed last year i was only able to take two does so the other 3 had to be bucks. Deer right about 100 lbs tend to be from 1-3 years old that just right. Really what do you do with antlers beside handles or trash. That's all i do there is no reason to mount any deer to me. I grew past that a long time ago.
