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Buck Limit In Your State

austin1990 said:
Arkansas' limit is 2 bucks total no matter the methos, both have to have 3 points per side atleast 1 inch long. Youth hunter don't have antler point restrictions and both bucks can be anything. Some wma's and zones have 4 point rules, some have a 4x4 slot, which is a buck with 4 points total and less or 4 points on one side. Even a couple wma's have a 15 inch inside spread or 18 inch main beam rule.
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I believe that they have or are considering removal of 3 pt rule in CWD zones, which seems to increase every year
 
fbwguy said:
I believe that they have or are considering removal of 3 pt rule in CWD zones, which seems to increase every year
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You're right, I don't hunt near any of the cwd zones and forgot. They did do away with antler restrictions there but it's still the same bag limit. I did see they just added 2 or 3 more counties to the cwd zone. Wont be to many years and I'm afraid it'll be statewide if not already.
 
Maryland here - Western part of the state is different but the majority of the state is 2 buck limit but you can purchase a bonus tag for a 3rd. I believe one buck has no antler requirement but the rest do. Before last year it was a 3 buck limit + the bonus tag.
 
Mississippi - 3 buck limit. 3/4 of the state they have to be 10" spread or 12" beam. Delta Region is 12" spread or 15" beam.

I'd prefer a 2 buck limit. Would also prefer a higher antler requirement.

Overall, it hurts. But much fewer people in my part of the world shooting 2 year old bucks now.
 
Alabama has a 3 buck limit. One must be 4 points or better on one side.

I am 100% against antler restrictions, and any attempt for the state to manage for "quality" bucks. Why? Because most guys can't afford to hunt trophy bucks. Look at what it costs to hunt a big-buck state. Look at lease properties (and public lands) getting bought up by deep pockets once it gets out that that's where the big'uns live. Look at one deer a year limits. What if I don't give a worn out penny about antlers, and just want to shoot 5 does and a spike? What if my kids all want to shoot a deer?

Trophies should be trophies, and not everybody should have one on their walls. A big buck should stay the absolute summit of the hunting experience.

And anybody that wants to kill a deer should be able to do so for the cost of a $35 license. If you wanna hunt trophies, work your butt off and/or manage YOUR property. Don't impose your style and vision on the next guy.
 
Nutterbuster said:
Alabama has a 3 buck limit. One must be 4 points or better on one side.

I am 100% against antler restrictions, and any attempt for the state to manage for "quality" bucks. Why? Because most guys can't afford to hunt trophy bucks. Look at what it costs to hunt a big-buck state. Look at lease properties (and public lands) getting bought up by deep pockets once it gets out that that's where the big'uns live. Look at one deer a year limits. What if I don't give a worn out penny about antlers, and just want to shoot 5 does and a spike? What if my kids all want to shoot a deer?

Trophies should be trophies, and not everybody should have one on their walls. A big buck should stay the absolute summit of the hunting experience.

And anybody that wants to kill a deer should be able to do so for the cost of a $35 license. If you wanna hunt trophies, work your butt off and/or manage YOUR property. Don't impose your style and vision on the next guy.
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While i totally agree with your rational regrading APR's, I think that some restrictions should be in place. For one, APR's do improve the age structure of the overall deer herd. However, in PA for instance, a 3 up (with or without browtine depending on where you are) restriction also prevents the harvest of many older deer, like a 4.5-5.5 yo six point. I have seen a couple heavy bodied large antlered 6 point including the browtines. I feel that to restructure the ages of bucks a simple spike restriction should be the model, it would reduce the number of older bucks that would be protected but not eliminate it. Obviously that is just an opinion as I could be totally wrong about how i think APR's work.
 
Virginia 3 bucks a year some county's some counties 2 bucks with antler size restrictions doesn't matter what method
 
thwack16 said:
Mississippi - 3 buck limit. 3/4 of the state they have to be 10" spread or 12" beam. Delta Region is 12" spread or 15" beam.

I'd prefer a 2 buck limit. Would also prefer a higher antler requirement.

Overall, it hurts. But much fewer people in my part of the world shooting 2 year old bucks now.
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This coming year they're allowing one of the three buck limit to be any buck. Insane!
 
I don't think a 3 or 4 point rule plays as big of a role as people think. If you're really trying to manage I feel a spread or main beam length is a better way if you're going to enforce antler restrictions.
 
CRogers said:
I don't think a 3 or 4 point rule plays as big of a role as people think. If you're really trying to manage I feel a spread or main beam length is a better way if you're going to enforce antler restrictions.
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Probably so, but the vast majority of the hunting public can't accurately estimate a deers size, some have trouble even telling if it had 3 points on one side or not. I watch and pass quite a few deer and consider myself a pretty decent field judge on deer but I still get some wrong now and then. I know the majority of people I know that hunt couldn't tell you how many inches wide a deer is or how long his main beams were.
 
I agree with you there, that does make it easier. I'm not a trophy hunter so it doesn't matter to me. I love everything about this sport but if I don't kill a pope and young every year it's not going to break my heart.
 
CRogers said:
I don't think a 3 or 4 point rule plays as big of a role as people think. If you're really trying to manage I feel a spread or main beam length is a better way if you're going to enforce antler restrictions.
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Honestly, if you are trying for antler size you need to protect the bigger racked bucks then, along with spikes ( once a spike is not always a spike!) because you need those bucks to do the breeding and harvest the smaller older bucks
 
@flinginairos it is funny you mention small areas with antler restrictions. We have several counties that have 15” minimum spread rules. They aren’t even the counties that are producing the biggest bucks. One of them has a chunk of public I hunt. I see as many dumb 2.5 year old bucks there as 1.5 year olds around here. Of course instead of having a pile of 1.5 year old bucks killed they get killed at 2.5 if they are barely legal. I don’t like out 4 point 1” long rule. I fought it in a club I was in. I know spikes can grow into nice deer but why would anyone wanting antler restrictions shoot their 1.5 year old 7-8 point deer? I like the spread rule but have seen a few pictures of deer there that are really tall and heavy but narrow enough not to be legal but realistically they are few and far between.
 
Here in Illinois we get 2 bucks/year no matter what equipment is used. I think it works out pretty good that way. 1 is rather restrictive. I feel like too many of the up and comers would get a dirt nap before they got a chance reach maturity if it was too much higher. I have thought it would be nice to be able and take two with the bow and still get a 3rd with the gun. But I’ll leave the logistics up to the biologists and politicians.


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One deer in Idaho per year, buck or doe in archery season, buck only during rifle except for youth hunters. There are of course controlled areas with other rules but I don't hunt them so don't keep track of what those rules are. One deer per year everywhere though.
 
EricS said:
@flinginairos it is funny you mention small areas with antler restrictions. We have several counties that have 15” minimum spread rules. They aren’t even the counties that are producing the biggest bucks. One of them has a chunk of public I hunt. I see as many dumb 2.5 year old bucks there as 1.5 year olds around here. Of course instead of having a pile of 1.5 year old bucks killed they get killed at 2.5 if they are barely legal. I don’t like out 4 point 1” long rule. I fought it in a club I was in. I know spikes can grow into nice deer but why would anyone wanting antler restrictions shoot their 1.5 year old 7-8 point deer? I like the spread rule but have seen a few pictures of deer there that are really tall and heavy but narrow enough not to be legal but realistically they are few and far between.
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I’ve hunted in a management group for a county in MD the last several years and up until 2 years ago the bucks shot had to be 15” wide or 3 1/2. Solved that issue you mentioned but obviously next to impossible to run in a normal state/county wide scenario


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hokiehunter373 said:
I’ve hunted in a management group for a county in MD the last several years and up until 2 years ago the bucks shot had to be 15” wide or 3 1/2. Solved that issue you mentioned but obviously next to impossible to run in a normal state/county wide scenario


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I wouldn’t want it state wide. For kids to love hunting they need to kill deer. A season or two of watching small bucks they can’t shoot bores them. The county wide antler restrictions work and work well. It’s hard to enforce but most people will follow rules well enough that it makes an impact. The downside is it draws more hunters to the area and drives lease prices higher. Eventually you wind up with a bunch of clubs with way too many members who are paying enough they they still shoot the first legal buck they see. It will be a nice buck but other counties around kill bigger deer. Just not as many nice bucks. On the piece of public I hunt their the best 2.5 year old bucks get shot because they are legal. On the other hand most of ones aged 3.5 are no bigger than the 2.5 year olds that get shot. I’ve also witnessed a state biologist age a obvious 2.5 year old buck at 3.5 years old. It weighed 160lbs. It had bigger antlers than the 3.5 year old buck lying next to it that weighed 190lbs and they aged the bigger buck at 2.5 because it had small antlers. It’s all subjective but for public land it’s an exciting hunt during the rut. Too bad I can only draw it every three years.
 
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