QDM - Does kills - Doing the right thing
#71
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Pine Hill Alabama USA
Posts: 1,280
If QDM didn't improve herd health then you wouldnt see bigger antlers
QDM is a very new concept compared to how long deer have roamed this earth. Who was here practicing QDM to keep the herds "Healthy" thousands of years ago? The deer did just fine before man was even hunting them at all much less selectively harvesting them in favor of optimum antler grow.
You seem a nice fellow and I mean you no insult. But at the same time I'm too old for you to pee on my back and tell me it's raining.
#72
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 3,879
If QDM didn't improve herd health then you wouldnt see bigger antlers (keep in mind that herd health incudes a balanced buck age structure, so the argument that they're only bigger cuz their older is null and void).
#73
What you guys are missing is that an older buck age structure (ex: more bucks in older age classes) IS a sign of a healthier herd. It is also what persisted prior to european arrival, when the herds were healthier, and there was limited selective harvest. You may counter saying QDM is all about selective harvest, and you may be right, but its selects for a population that persisted prior to our arrival (1 to 1 sex ratio, balanced and older buck age structure). To answer todds question, native americans and natural predators kept the population in check in those days. And I guarentee you that the herd's buck age structure at that time did NOT consist of only immature deer.
PS: Did you know that a yearling buck's sperm are half as mobile and half as fertile as that of a mature buck. Those factors combine and mean that for a yearling to successfully sire the same number of offspring as a mature buck, he would have to breed 4 times as many does, or just breed them 4 times as much.
PS: Did you know that a yearling buck's sperm are half as mobile and half as fertile as that of a mature buck. Those factors combine and mean that for a yearling to successfully sire the same number of offspring as a mature buck, he would have to breed 4 times as many does, or just breed them 4 times as much.
#74
Found this quote online, thought it was pretty good.
"The biggest complaint you hear from some people is that QDM is all about “large racks”. This is a statement made only by the uneducated, because as you can see, QDM is a package deal. If all you are trying to get out of QDM is “larger racks”, please move to Texas and practice what you truly mean to practice – trophy management. QDM in Minnesota is going to be what it truly was meant to be. That is something that focuses on the big picture. Looking at the population as a whole and using sound biological principles to attain a hunting experience that is of the highest quality possible. Yes, larger racks are a product of a more natural population. That is what gets all the attention because they are promoted on TV shows, magazines, and in hunting clubs. Unfortunately, you don’t see too many pictures in magazines of the mature doe that someone shot during muzzleloader season."
"The biggest complaint you hear from some people is that QDM is all about “large racks”. This is a statement made only by the uneducated, because as you can see, QDM is a package deal. If all you are trying to get out of QDM is “larger racks”, please move to Texas and practice what you truly mean to practice – trophy management. QDM in Minnesota is going to be what it truly was meant to be. That is something that focuses on the big picture. Looking at the population as a whole and using sound biological principles to attain a hunting experience that is of the highest quality possible. Yes, larger racks are a product of a more natural population. That is what gets all the attention because they are promoted on TV shows, magazines, and in hunting clubs. Unfortunately, you don’t see too many pictures in magazines of the mature doe that someone shot during muzzleloader season."
#75
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 3,879
What you guys are missing is that an older buck age structure (ex: more bucks in older age classes) IS a sign of a healthier herd
PS: Did you know that a yearling buck's sperm are half as mobile and half as fertile as that of a mature buck. Those factors combine and mean that for a yearling to successfully sire the same number of offspring as a mature buck, he would have to breed 4 times as many does, or just breed them 4 times as much.
#76
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Pine Hill Alabama USA
Posts: 1,280
(ex: more bucks in older age classes) IS a sign of a healthier herd.
To answer todds question, native americans and natural predators kept the population in check in those days
Second, I'm sure that when Indians killed a big buck they may have viewed it as a bonus and used his horns as the basis of a knife handle or something. But I have never read anything that stated that they passed on small bucks and selectively harvested only does or big bucks. I'd love to see a link to that information. My guess would be that people like the native americans, who were hunting to survive with a stick bow and flint broadheads, shot whatever the hell they could get in range.
And I guarentee you that the herd's buck age structure at that time did NOT consist of only immature deer.