Trophy and Range Estimation

There are few things more disappointing than for a hunter to wait all year for an expensive hunt, spot his game, estimate it as a prize, shoot it, and then come up to find that he has downed a scrawny trophy.

In addition to the inherent difficulties of appraising game at a distance, there is a definite mental obstacle as well. The hunter thinks, "I've waited all year to hunt. Here is a prize, and I may not get another shot." In the excitement induced by the year-long wait, the sudden appearance of game, and the fear that this chance may be the only one, his imagination runs wild. He does not see the game animal which actually stands before him, but a prize created by his dreams and desires.

I am convinced that the majority of the ranking heads in the record books were not taken by hunters who estimated their game carefully, killed it, then found it would "make the book." Usually the biggest heads are taken partly by luck, partly because the hunter merely guessed at the animal's size. The discovery that it would make the records came later.

The record elk head for one western state was taken by a hunter who was sick for the day and stayed in the tent. Hearing a sudden commotion just outside, he lifted the tent flap to see a huge bull elk splashing through the creek. The sick man simply laid down his reading material, hoisted his rifle, and shot the bull. It was his taxidermist who discovered that the bull was a record-buster.

I have a Stone ram head which will rate fairly high in the records. This ram was taken out of a band of eleven rams, all within shooting distance, in British Columbia.

As my partner and I lay down to fire, I asked the Indian guide, "Which?"
Without lowering the binoculars, he said, "One there in front. One over there."

"Take your choice," I whispered to my partner, who had never killed big game any larger than deer.

My partner missed his, and after some terrible shooting at the other ram at long range across the basin I got it down.

Coming up to it, we laid the tape around its horns and I was immediately disappointed. Our outfitter had sworn there were rams in the area which would surely go 45 inches around the curl. Mine didn't quite make 40 inches. The first indication that it was a real trophy came later when the outfitter measured it and grinned widely. The conviction that the ram was a prize came when the taxidermist saw it, ran for his tape and record book, and we measured it again.

GAME SIZE AND HUNTING AREA

Perhaps the biggest difficulty in assessing the size of big-game animals has to do with the area which produces the game. A game animal is largely a product of what it eats. With many species, the ranting of the young produces later adult animals of small size. This is especially true of deer. Antler development is determined by the incidence of certain minerals found in the game area. Deer need forage from a region high in limestone deposits if the antlers are to reach prodigious size.

Certain broad regions often produce a relatively smaller norm of the same species than do other regions. This often has nothing to do with the abundance of feed but with the type of feed available. In sections of Arizona the mule deer's antlers are skimpy in diameter and length, and are without massive weight. Mule deer in the Black Hills of North Dakota are smaller than the mule deer of other western regions. Oppositely, that strip of mountainous country on the border between Wyoming and Idaho on Idaho's southeastern side produces some of the biggest mule-deer bucks on earth.

My son killed a young buck in that region which was only a two-pointer. However, the antlers measured exactly 19 inches around the outside curve, and the same distance across at their widest spread. That is big for any two-point muley. In previous years in the same country, my wife and I had taken two-pointers up to 16 inches around the curve several times.

As against this, my three-point muley in Arizona this past fall was only 13 inches in width and a foot around the curve. I was advised that this was about average for three-pointers in that region.

Such a wide divergence of size among the same species makes the estimation of an animal before the shot difficult indeed.

The relative length of the seasons also determines to some extent the size of trophy heads, and even the size of the animals themselves. In years of late spring following a hard winter, the heads are normally small that subsequent fall—especially if fall happens to come early. Antler develop­ment and growth depend on food, and there simply aren't enough days for the antlers to sprout from tender nubbins, grow, and become polished fighting gear for the fall rutting season. For this reason, in the same area and with the same species, there are years of good heads and years of poor heads. This is confusing to the hunter trying to size-up game.

METHODS OF JUDGING GAME

Despite the difficulties, there are ways of appraising game before it is shot. With observation and practice, these ways will pay off, and any hunter can become reasonably adept in using them.

Two of the best tools for estimating game are binoculars and a spotting scope. With them solidly set up, the hunter or guide can often make a fair judgment of the size and desirability of game at great distances. This not only saves time spent in wasted stalking, but prevents disappointment after the kill.

Such pre-assessment should, if possible, be done in advance of the stalk. Game will be farther away, it is true, but will often be standing or slowly moving. It is hard to estimate game breaking cover at close range. Under such a situation, the hunter has to make up his mind awfully fast.

ANTELOPE

Antelope are among the smallest of North American big game, and one of the most difficult to size-up in advance of the shot. First, because of their marvelous eyesight and flat-country habitat, pronghorns are normally seen and shot at extended ranges. This adds to the difficulty. Again, the way buck antelope carry their heads habitually gives the impression that the horns are longer than they really are. That is a basic rule in antelope estimation—horns always measure less than they appear. This illusion is augmented by the habitual appearance of mirages in antelope country. Mirages, by their very nature, tend to extend any standing animal's height.

The basic method for appraising any big game's headgear is to compare the antlers or horns with the beast's body size. The antelope hunter who does this, and knows in advance the dimensions of an adult antelope, will come fairly close in his estimation of horn length—as long as he doesn't let the factor of desire affect his judgment.

Adult male antelope average 34 inches long and stand 36 inches high. Hog-dressed bucks will lose an average of twenty-seven per cent in weight. As an example, two of the biggest bucks checked at a nearby station for a 1960 Idaho special antelope hunt weighed 90 and 95 pounds respectively. That meant a live weight of 123 and 130 pounds.

Pronghorn antelope are taken largely for trophies, and if the hunter will keep the above dimensions in mind, he can estimate horn size within reason. If a large buck measures 34 inches from brisket to rump, then it would take a 17-inch horn to give the appearance of being half the animal's length. Such horns are, of course, of real record size; and under close scrutiny, very rarely will any buck antelope's horns ever appear to be half a body length.

In today's hunting, a 15-inch antelope is considered mighty good. Most good trophies will be in the 13-inch class. A 13-inch buck should have horns which appear to be at least one-third the animal's body length.

MULE DEER

Because of their variation in size between areas, deer are hard to estimate as to antler dimensions. First, the hunter should predetermine if the general run of animals in the region he wishes to hunt is large or small for the species. Then, as with other game, a comparison of the headgear may be made with the beast's body size.

As an example, if the mule deer in a certain region run large, and a big buck would stand approximately 4 feet high at the withers, then it would take an antler height of half that to be a 24-inch head.

One thing I've come to look for when sizing-up trophy mule-deer bucks

A full-grown pronghorn is trophy size if the horns are at least one-third of its body length (above), or if its horn spread exceeds half of its body width (left).
is the amount of width between the antler and the body, as seen when the beast faces either away or towards me. Big muleys in many western areas will have a rump width of around 18 inches, hair and all. If, as the animal faces away, there appears to be half that much width between antler-and-body on the outside, then it is in the 30-inch class. This trick is most useful when hunting in snow, as such a space shows up well.

WHITETAIL DEER

Whitetail deer are somewhat more difficult to estimate in advance of the shot than are mule deer, for two reasons. First, whitetails are brush-loving deer. The hunter is more apt to come upon them partially obscured by foliage. Again, the hunter is far more apt to come upon his whitetail at close range, which induces the animal to bolt suddenly from its place of concealment, making it difficult to estimate its size.

Secondly, the antlers of a whitetail do not stand upright in the same fashion as do those of the mule deer, but the beams point forward and assume more of a basket shape. The beam lengths, because of this, lie in a flat plane to the viewer, and are hard to estimate.

However, the best procedure is to estimate the antlers in some way against a known body feature. While whitetails vary greatly in size, an average big buck may reach 15 inches in body width. The record antler width (inside spread) for this species ranges in the ranking heads from 16 to 23 inches. This means that if a whitetail can be sighted from the rear for even a fraction of a second, and its antlers appear to exceed its body width, it is probably a whopper.

Another way of getting a quick appraisal of a running whitetail buck is to estimate the height of its headgear against two body features—the up­lifted tail, or the vertical height between brisket and chin. If the antler height appears to be comparable to the tail length, or would fill the area between chin and brisket as the buck runs, it is apt to be outstanding.

CARIBOU

Caribou may be sized up in the same way as mule deer. Big bulls of several subspecies weigh up to 600 pounds or more and reach 5 feet at the shoulders. Caribou have antlers that are large in proportion to their

A mule deer is trophy size if the antlers are at least one-half the animal's height from withers to ground (above), or if either antler overhangs the body by at least half the body width (left).

A whitetail deer is trophy size if the ant­lers approach the height of the body from withers to brisket (above), or if ant­ler spread exceeds body width (left).

A caribou is trophy size if the antlers approach the animal's height.
body size, and it takes a bull with antlers approximately 5 feet around the outside curve to make the records. However, it doesn't take that much antler size to make a fine trophy.

A prized feature in any caribou head, and one that should always be determined in advance of the shot, is the presence of double shovels. The normal caribou antlers have but a single brow point (often separating into many points after a palmation) coming down over the animal's nose. The incidence of two such shovels is one in several hundred, and is a prized feature.

ELK

Elk are also estimated by a comparison of the antlers to the body. Bull elk are larger than bull caribou, but have proportionately shorter legs and

An elk is trophy size if the antlers approach body length.

a deeper body. They, too, stand about 5 feet high at the shoulders and hips. From brisket to hams, elk measure 4 feet or a bit more. The largest cows of a band weigh up to 600 pounds. The largest bull of a band is the herd bull, and such a beast often weighs up to 1,000 pounds.

Incidentally, facilities for weighing elk and other large game in the wilds are usually nonexistent. However, by later weighing the dressed quarters at cold storage, a fairly accurate live weight of the animal can be established. It is generally agreed by outfitters and packers that a bull elk will dress off practically fifty per cent with the cape-and-antlers, legs, and most of the neck meat removed from the quarters.

I have an outfitter friend who annually weighs the trimmed quarters of elk at cold storage for his guests. Until 1960 the biggest bull's dressed quarters weighed 556 pounds. In 1960 one of his clients killed a prodigious bull whose dressed quarters weighed 573 pounds—which would mean that bull weighed well over 1,000 pounds on the hoof.

With such facts known before the hunt, the average hunter has a base for a reasonable appraisal of both the elk's size and the dimensions of its headgear. A trophy bull should be nearly as big as a small saddle horse. If its antlers are to reach 50 inches, they should appear to be about as long along their outside curve as the distance from its brisket to its ham at the belly line. Care should be given, in such an estimation, that its hind leg is not stretched out.

In today's hunting pressure, exceptionally large bull elk are kept thinned down in most areas. The seven- and eight-pointers are very scarce, and a six-point bull is considered remarkable. One feature to look for in any six-point bull is the length of the final point, or terminal tine. The biggest six-pointers usually have the longest terminal tines, and one a foot long is good. Ivory-tipped points are another prized feature in elk trophies.

MOOSE

There are three species of moose: the Shiras, Canadian, and Alaska moose, and they range in size in that order, with the Alaska species largest. Both the Canadian and Alaska species measure over 7 feet high at the withers. As with other game animals, antler size is best estimated by a com­parison with that height. Features with moose to appraise with special care are the number and symmetry of points, and the size of the palms. Points are counted, of course, and palms are judged in comparison to body height.

As field examples of how such comparisons turn out, my own 1955 Shiras moose, which placed first in Boone & Crockett competition, stood 6 feet high at the withers, and had an antler spread of 52 inches. A Canadian bull moose which a partner killed measured 7 feet from its withers to its front foot as it lay on its side, had 24 points, and measured 52 inches spread also. It was considered fair. And an Alaska bull I killed in 1958 also had 24 points, a 58-inch spread, and was laughed at by the Indian guides as being but a "leetle one." It, too, stood over 7 feet high at

SHEEP AND GOATS

Rams are estimated by the fullness-of-curl of their horns, and the horns' overall size compared with the body. Rams average from 200 to 300 pounds, depending upon species. Mountain goats are estimated by the size of their shoulder hump and the ratio of horn length to body height. Also by the fact that the big billies are usually alone.

BEARS

All species of bears are generally estimated by their degree of lankiness according to the season, and most accurately by their tracks. A bear traveling alone is apt to be a boar. Yearlings usually travel with their mothers, until new cubs are born during subsequent hibernation. The re­moteness of the area often indicates a bruin's sex and size. Smaller bears

A mountain sheep is trophy size if the diameter of its horn url is about one-third the animal's height.

A mountain goat is trophy size if its horns are about one-fourth the animal's height. Note: measurement does not include shoulder hump which is mostly fleece.

are likely to be seen closest to roads, outlying ranches, and forest refuge dumps. Pest bears are most apt to be sows and young bruins. Bears, espe­cially grizzlies, that are come upon in the most rugged, remote regions, are apt to be boars and are usually very large.

Lanky-looking bruins are apt to be yearlings, sows with cubs, or young bears. Broad-shouldered black bears are boars and large for their species. This generality must be qualified in spring season as bears fresh from hibernation will be considerably smaller than after a summer fattening.
Grizzlies having the largest shoulder humps are the largest bears of their species. If they travel alone, they are probably boars. The males will have

The best way to estimate any bear's size is from a clearly defined track. The rule-of-thumb is: Add one to the greatest width of its front pad in inches; convert the resulting figure to feet; and the result will be the size of its squared hide.
For example, a black bear whose front paw measures 5 inches across will "square out" as a 6-foot hide. This means that if the hide were laid flat,

and the total of its width and its length were divided by two, the result would be 6 feet.

The formula is quite accurate and applies to all species of bear. For purposes of comparison, a 6- or 7-foot black bear is a large one; a 7- or 8-foot grizzly is also large; a 10-foot brown bear is a whopper; and a 9-or 10-foot polar bear is outstanding.

Comparative sizes of three aver­age species of North American bears (from left): black bear, grizzly, Alaska brown.

HOW TO ESTIMATE RANGE

If the interest around your hunting camp palls and you want to liven things up, just ask each person to estimate the distance to some object, say, 300 to 400 yards away. Heated arguments and money bets will quickly ensue, for the estimates will no doubt differ widely.

Estimating lateral distance is intrinsically difficult simply because man's stereoscopic vision is limited by the fact that his eyes are not set very wide apart. Even so, judging distances reasonably well is amazing when you consider that a person with one eye blinded has trouble estimating any lateral distance.

The normal difficulties of judging distances are compounded by weather, atmospheric conditions, the relationship of the sun's rays to the object, and the incidence of intervening terrain. In clear, sunny weather, distant objects usually appear closer than they are. Objects in fog or other condi­tions of extreme humidity appear to be farther away than they really are. When the sun's rays strike a distant object directly from behind the ob-

Comparison between an av­erage 500-pound grizzly (right) and an exceptionally large specimen of about 1,000 pounds. A noticeable feature of a large bear is its greater skull width.

server such as in early morning or late afternoon, the object will appear to be closer than if viewed at the same distance while looking into the sun. And distant objects over flat surfaces such as water are difficult to estimate, both as to size and range. Oppositely, if no terrain is between the viewer and an object at long range—such as game viewed across a great open basin —estimating distance is the most difficult.

Coupled to this is the fact that the first segment of an extended distance is proportionately easier to estimate correctly than successive segments of that distance. That is, the first 100 yards of a range is easier to estimate than the next 100 yards, and so on. This is because of the fact that the farther one looks towards infinity, or the vanishing point of vision, the more difficult it is to judge the surface of the ground.

It is possible for anyone vastly to improve his ability to judge distances. No one will ever be able to estimate ranges with complete accuracy, but it is encouraging to know that the most accurate estimates are made by the most experienced hunters, who constantly practice some basic form of range estimation.

MEMORIZING DISTANCES

One good way to learn how to estimate ranges is to memorize some segment of distance, then estimate any distance by multiples of that known distance. For example, how far can you throw a rock? Let us say it is 50 yards. This is determined by throwing a number of rocks, then either meas­uring or pacing the average distance. Incidentally, many men who have had numerous occasions to pace distances, such as ranchers who set fence

To estimate the size of a bear's hide, measure the width of its front paw or track in inches, add one, and change the term inches to feet. The result will be approximately the size of its "squared" hide. This brown bear's front paw measures 9 inches, indicating a 10-foot hide.

The first 100 yards of a range is easier to estimate correctly than successive segments of that range. As the hunter's vision approaches the vanishing point, it becomes more difficult to judge the surface of the ground.

posts a rod apart (5½ yard-long paces), can step within five per cent of a measured yard, time after time. And that is close enough for practical purposes.

Having established that you can heave a rock 50 yards (or any other known distance), keep looking at such a distance, and throwing an oc­casional rock and pacing it off, until you have a mental conception of 50 yards. With practice, it can be done.

Then, if that buck you're hunting in the fall appears to be two long rock-throws away, it is right at 100 yards. If it would take you five con­secutive throws with a rock to reach it, then it is approximately 250 yards away.

By remembering the length of a football field, or other convenient distance, a hunter can visualize it in multiples to estimate the range of a game animal.

A similar way, which may be practiced and developed right in town, is to measure or learn the exact yardage of a city block, or memorize the 100-yard distance of a football field. Again, use your mental conception of such a known range in the hunting field, and utilize it, in multiples, to determine any longer range.

We live on an acreage which is just 80 rods, or 440 yards, long. (Over thirty years of big-game hunting have convinced me that, under the less-than-ideal conditions of hunting, no big game should be shot at over 400 yards.) The neighbors' cattle and sheep often walk and feed along the boundary fence of this acreage. Each time I'm out at the shop, or shooting from the bench rest (approximately 40 yards inside the opposite boundary fence), and there happen to be animals along the other fence line, I simply aim the rifle scope, try to hold on an animal, and think: "That is the outside limit. If that was a bull elk or moose, could you hold on his vital area?" Of course, my rifle is always empty. Such repeated practice helps greatly to establish a mental conception of 400 yards. It does this both in terms of individual rifle holding and size of image in the rifle scope.

A similar way of learning to estimate distances is to sight-in all hunting rifles at a known range, say 200 yards. When doing this, also keep trying to get a mental conception of that range. Try visualizing the size of a deer, elk, bear, or caribou on the backstop of that range; then take these con­ceptions of a known distance to the hunting field.

Another practical way of learning range is to practice each time afield estimating the distance to a certain object; then carefully pace it off. To learn the distance of each pace, try to pace with the same stride every time you pace distances; then measure an average stride after you get well under way. If the stride is 34 inches long, you take 108 of them to the object, and have guessed it to be 100 yards away, then you are a far better "guesstimater" than most.

ESTIMATING WITH SCOPE RETICULES

Much progress has been made with scope and binocular reticules to help in estimating ranges. One of the simplest improvements is the addition of a round black dot, superimposed on the intersection of the cross hairs. Usually such a dot will cover so many inches per hundred yards. Assume that the dot will cover 3 inches per hundred yards. If, when aiming with the rifle solidly held, the dot covers the width of one of the 12-inch planks facing the backstop of the target range, that plank is 400 yards away. Utilizing such a fact in the hunting field involves a knowledge of the ap­proximate size of game. Most hunters, especially experienced hunters, have some basic knowledge of this, and can apply it in practical fashion.

As an example, suppose the black dot of the scope just covers half the body of a standing mule-deer buck, from withers to belly line. Such bucks have bodies around 18 inches deep. A reasonable estimate of the range would be 300 yards.

The standard post of a rifle scope makes a fair range estimator. To use the post for such a purpose involves some knowledge of game size. First, one has to learn just how many inches per hundred yards the width of such
a post reticule will cover. The manufacturer will supply this information if asked. Otherwise, it is simple to determine. Lay the rifle solidly on a table or bench rest, and aim it at a target backstop 100 yards away. Mark the edges—where the post edge cuts the target on both sides—and measure between. Many posts will cover from 4 to 6 inches.

Range-finding with scope reticules: If a dot reticule which covers 3 inches per hundred yards covers half the body of an average mule deer (body is about 18 inches deep), the deer would be 300 yards away (left). If a pair of lateral cross hairs which spread 6 inches per hundred yards bracket the body of the same deer, it would be 300 yards away (right).

In use, either estimate the animal's length in terms of multiples of the amount the post seems to cover, or the width (depth) of its body, and reduce it to number of 100 yards of range. If the 6-inch post covers a third of the length of a 3-foot-long antelope it is about 200 yards away. To estimate its relative width with the post, turn the rifle on its side, allowing the post to run longitudinally; then estimate how many widths it is high.

Still another type of rifle scope has a pair of lateral cross hairs set exactly far enough apart so that at a given range a known amount of inches will show between them. I have one whose cross hairs spread exactly 6 inches at 100 yards. If the top wire were laid along the back line of a buck with an 18-inch body, and the lower wire rested along the belly, then it would be about 300 yards away.

A new type of scope is being developed which has two movable cross hairs and a pair of knurled ring collars, one denoting the game size, the other the yardage. The cross hairs are spread with the adjusting ring until one lies on the animal's back, the other on its belly line. Then the width in inches of the beast's body is set on one ring, and the range in yards is shown automatically on the other ring. Such scopes are somewhat bulky but are most useful at extreme ranges and for standing or slowly moving game.

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