Fair Chase Winter 2017 by Boone and Crockett Club

WINTER 2017 | $9.95

Conservation Education Protecting Hunters’ Rights Please Join Us.

Next DSC Convention January 4-7, 2018 biggame.org G R E A T E S T H U N T E R S ’ C O N V E N T I O N O N T H E P L A N E T TM 2

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THE OFFICI A L PUBLICATION OF THE BOONE A ND CROCK ETT CLUB

Volume 33

Number 4

Winter 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS 6

FROM THE EDITOR

FROM THE PRESIDENT | Busy Boone and Crockett Club

CAPITOL COMMENTS | Time for a Science Lesson

ACCURATE HUNTER | The Pack

REALLY?

ANTLER POINT RESTRICTIONS: THE SOCIAL SIDE OF THE STORY

26. Antler Point Restrictions

18. Really?

Doug Painter

B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr.

Steven Williams

Craig Boddington

Wayne van Zwoll

Duane R. Diefenbach

EXCERPT FROM RECORDS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME, 14TH EDITION VOLUME ONE | History of the Records Book B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. 34

THE HUNT FOR A DEAD RAM

B&C 2017 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

Charlie Ebbers

48 SCIENCE BLASTS | Studying Mule Deer in Oregon John F. Organ 50

34. The Hunt for a Dead Ram

EDUCATING THE NEXT GENERATION OF CONSERVATION LEADERS The Wildlife Society and Boone and Crockett Club’s University Programs Promoting Professional Engagement

41. B&C 2017 Holiday Gift Guide

56. The Value of Sagebrush Country

56 86. Caught On Camera

THE VALUE OF SAGEBRUSH COUNTRY

THE ORIGINS OF FAIR CHASE

EXCERPT FROM RECORDS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME, 14TH EDITION VOLUME ONE | Noteworthy Guns: Focus on Grancel Fitz

BEYOND THE SCORE | Family Respect

TROPHY TALK | Welcoming a New Director

GENERATION NEXT | 30th Awards Youth Trophy List

RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES AND TROPHY PHOTO GALLERY 30 th Awards Program Entries | Sponsored by Realtree Xtra Green

COVER A lone bull elk rests in the understory of a mixed aspen and fir forest in the Canadian Rockies. © Tony Bynum

@BooneAndCrockettClub #BooneAndCrockettClub

Joshua Millspaugh

Eldon L. “Buck” Buckner

Tyrone R. Robinson

Justin Spring

CAUGHT ON CAMERA

Photos from the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch

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ABOUT THE BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB MISSION STATEMENT

It is the mission of the Boone and Crockett Club to promote the conservation and management of wildlife, especially big game, and its habitat, to preserve and encourage hunting and to maintain the highest ethical standards of fair chase and sportsmanship in North America. VISIONS FOR THE CLUB n

We envision a future in which the Boone and Crockett Club continues to be an internationally-recognized leader in conservation, especially in research, education, and the demonstration of sustainable conservation practices. A future in which the Club continues its legacy as a key leader in national conservation policy. A future in which the Club continues to be North America’s leader in big game records keeping as a conservation tool. A future in which the Club’s members continue to be respected and commended for their individual and collective contributions to conservation. A future in which the Club’s leadership and management continue as examples of excellence, and programs remain balanced with financial capability. A future in which the Club’s activities continue to be highly-focused and effective, and as a result, natural resources sharing, wildlife populations, habitats, and recreational hunting opportunities continue to improve through, and beyond the 21st century.

VISIONS FOR WILDLIFE AND CONSERVATION n

We envision a future in which wildlife and its habitat, in all their natural diversity, are managed and conserved throughout North America. A future in which hunting continues to be enjoyed under rules of fair chase, sportsmanship, and ethical respect for the land. A future in which all users of natural resources respect the rights of others in the spirit of sharing. A future in which the value and conservation of private land habitat is respected and supported. A future in which North Americans are committed to the principle that their use of resources must be sustainable both for themselves and future generations. A future in which hunting opportunities exist for all desiring to participate.

Club President – B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Secretary – Mary Webster Treasurer – Marshall J. Collins, Jr. Executive Vice President – Administration James F. Arnold Executive Vice President – Conservation Timothy C. Brady Vice President of Administration James L. Cummins Vice President of Big Game Records Eldon L. “Buck” Buckner Vice President of Conservation Tom L. Lewis Vice President of Communications CJ Buck Foundation President – R. Terrell McCombs Class of 2017 Anthony J. Caligiuri Class of 2018 Paul V. Phillips Class of 2019 A.C. Smid

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Editor-in-Chief – Doug Painter Managing Editor – Karlie Slayer Conservation and History Editor Steven Williams Research and Education Editors John F. Organ William F. Porter Hunting and Ethics Editor Mark Streissguth Assistant Editors Keith Balfourd CJ Buck Kendall Hoxsey Kyle M. Lehr Marc Mondavi Jack Reneau Tony A. Schoonen Justin Spring Julie L. Tripp Editorial Contributors Craig Boddington Eldon L. “Buck” Buckner Duane R. Diefenbach Charlie Ebbers B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Joshua Millspaugh John F. Organ Doug Painter Tyrone R. Robinson Justin Spring Steven Williams Wayne van Zwoll Photographic Contributors Tony Bynum Donald M. Jones Michael J. Optiz Fair Chase is published quarterly by the Boone and Crockett Club and distributed to its Members and Associates. Material in this magazine may be freely quoted and/or reprinted in other publications and media, so long as proper credit is given to Fair Chase. The only exception applies to articles that are reprinted in Fair Chase from other magazines, in which case, the Club does not hold the reprint rights. The opinions expressed by the contributors of articles are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Boone and Crockett Club. Fair Chase (ISSN 1077-3274) is published for $35 per year by the Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801. Periodical postage is paid in Missoula, Montana, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Fair Chase, Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801 Phone: (406) 542-1888 Fax: (406) 542-0784

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOUNDED IN 1887 BY THEODORE ROOSEVELT CLUB

FAIR CHASE PRODUCTION STAFF

FOUNDATION

Foundation President – R. Terrell McCombs Secretary – John P. Schreiner Treasurer – C. Martin Wood III Vice President – John P. Evans Vice President – Paul M. Zelisko Class of 2017 Remo R. Pizzagalli Edward B. Rasmuson James J. Shinners John A. Tomke Leonard J. Vallender Class of 2018 Gary W. Dietrich B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Ned S. Holmes Tom L. Lewis Paul M. Zelisko Class of 2019 John P. Evans Steve J. Hageman R. Terrell McCombs John P. Schreiner C. Martin Wood III

NATIONAL ADVERTISING Tom Perrier TPerrier@boone-crockett.org Phone: (605)348-4652

B&C STAFF

Chief of Staff – Tony A. Schoonen Director of Big Game Records – Justin Spring Director of Publications – Julie L. Tripp Director of Marketing – Keith Balfourd Director of Sales – Tom Perrier Office Manager – Sandy Poston Controller – Abra Loran Assistant Controller – Debbie Kochel Records Dept. Data Specialist – Kyle M. Lehr Development Program Manager – Jodi Bishop Digital Strategies Manager – Mark Mesenko Creative Services Manager – Karlie Slayer TRM Ranch Manager – Mike Briggs Conservation Education Programs Manager – Luke Coccoli Shipping and Administrative Support Specialist – Amy Hutchison Customer Service/Receptionist – TJ Gould

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FROM THE EDITOR What word might appropriately precede “land,” “opinion,” and “policy?” If you’re a crossword puzzle fan, you might think of more than a few that would fit. Or, you might have guessed the word I’m thinking about: “public.” The word “public” caught my attention because it’s featured in the cover headline of the September 2017 issue of Petersen’s Hunting—“The Top 10 Public Land Hunts”—as well as being part of the cover headline of the September 2017 issue of Field & Stream—“Public Land Deer Skills.” I applaud both these fine magazines in their efforts to reach out to their readers with information on public hunting opportunities, whether that might involve hunting whitetails in a South Dakota walk-in-area or hunting mallards in the flooded timber of Arkansas’ White River National Wildlife Refuge.

Many in our community would agree that hunting as a public resource is a cornerstone of our nation’s hunting tradition. Over the years, it has allowed a broad brush of Americans—not just the privileged few—to enjoy time afield with family and friends. Our ranks remain in the millions today in large measure because we have public access to places to hunt. With this great opportunity comes, of course, the responsibility to continue to uphold and to promote the ethical standards that have long been at the heart of our hunting heritage. A proactive effort in this regard helps ensure a public opinion and, in turn, a public policy that supports hunting along with science-based wildlife management policies. The Club’s Hunt Right; Hunt Fair Chase initiative is all about putting our

best foot forward. As CJ Buck, vice president of communications for the Boone and Crockett Club, emphasized, “Our ethics, how we conduct ourselves in the field, is a matter of great pride among sportsmen, but like anything that was introduced over 100 years ago a refresher course is a good idea. Hunting and even our own motivations and values as hunters are under attack. If this is about a lack of information or misinformation, we can fix that. If this is about the poor behavior of a few, we have a responsibility to fix that. When we’re talking about our own public image then there is no one else but sportsmen who can right this ship.” Your Club’s effort is well underway with advertising and messaging leading folks to a website and the Club’s Facebook page. Overall the response to a conversation

Doug Painter EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

about hunting ethics and fair chase has been very positive. However, just like any effort to bring the ship around there are those with their heels dug in against what they don’t understand or feel threatens their personal brand. I encourage you to go online, read the materials and forums, and weigh in with your own thoughts. Steering a ship takes many captains. We should not forget that the word public can as easily precede approval, or outcry. Hope to see you down the trail. n

Please turn to page 62 to read about the origins of fair chase.

Hunt Right

HUNT FAIR CHASE

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BUSY BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB There is a lot of important and outstanding work going on at the Club this fall, but I want to highlight three matters in this column today— a book, a campaign, and a program—that I think are particularly significant. The book I’m referring to features an ad elsewhere in this issue for Records of North American Big Game, 14th edition. Think about that: in our 130-year history, this is only the 14th All-Time records book. As president of the Club, it was my distinct honor to write the foreword for this historic publication, and in so doing, I learned a lot. I looked back through previous issues to see what other presidents had to say, and even back to the 1939 North American Big Game foreword for a great and prophetic quotation. So I want to share with you in Fair Chase a portion of my foreword highlighting the history of the records book. You will find it on page 30, and I hope it inspires you to purchase your own copy of the 14th edition. Enjoy taking a walk back through the history of this important work by the Club.

The campaign that I want to highlight is called Hunt Right; Hunt Fair Chase, a two-year outreach and communications initiative for today’s sportsmen. Envisioned and developed by the Communications Committee, headed by CJ Buck (yeah, the knife guy), you will see it as a national ad campaign across print and digital platforms. CJ explains the principles of fair chase like this: Although hunting ethics are both a matter of personal choice and those deemed appropriate by the hunting community at large, the actions of individuals do represent all hunters, which can affect the way hunting is either publicly supported or opposed. It’s therefore important for us, and those who do not hunt, to know that fair chase hunters share these important principles.

LEARN MORE: n Records of North American Big Game, 14th edition on page 30 and 64 n

Hunt Right; Hunt Fair Chase on page 62

Guns For Conservation on page 40

Happy Holidays from the Boone and Crockett Club! Snow started falling at TRM Ranch this October.

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FROM THE PRESIDENT

The fair chase hunter: n knows and obeys the law and insists others do so as well n understands that it is not only about just what is legal, but also what is honorable and ethical n defines “unfair advantage” as when the game does not have reasonable chance of escape n cares about and respects all wildlife and the ecosystems that support them, which includes making full use of game animals taken n measures success not in the quantity of game taken, but by the quality of the chase n embraces the “no guarantees” nature of hunting n uses technology in a way that does not diminish the importance of developing skills as a hunter or reduces hunting to just shooting n knows his or her limitations, and stretches the stalk, not the shot n takes pride in the decisions he or she makes in the field and takes full responsibility for his or her actions “These principles are important for many reasons,” Buck added. “If I had to put my finger on just one reason, it would be the fact that hunting is actually a privilege, not a right. Like any privilege, it is something that must be earned repeatedly. In our

B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. PRESIDENT

democratic society, a fair chase approach helps to ensure our opportunity to hunt.” Be on the lookout for this initiative that we can all use to become better ambassadors for hunting. For more information and to join the conversation, visit huntfairchase.com. Lastly, the program I referenced in the opening paragraph is called Guns for Conservation, and it supports the Foundation’s endowment. It provides members the opportunity to support the Club through the donation of firearms, sporting collectibles, wildlife art, and hunting books—what a great idea for those of us with too many guns and other sporting collectibles. See the ad in this issue for more details. Since this is the holiday issue of Fair Chase, let me take this opportunity to wish you, your family, and loved ones a wonderful holiday season. May it be filled with love, good cheer, great memories, and charity for those less fortunate. May God bless you all. n

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TIME FOR A SCIENCE LESSON Natural events have dominated the news this summer: first, the solar eclipse that occurred in August; and second, the hurricanes that ravaged Texas, Florida, and the Caribbean in August and September. Scientists predicted each of these events. In fact, the solar eclipse was predicted 26 years prior, providing the exact date and time. Hurricane tracking, although not exact, was accurate enough to deliver advance warnings to residents in the hurricanes’ paths. Science provided the evidence behind these forecasts, amazing achievements in and of themselves. However, science continues to be ignored in Washington, D.C., and across the country. I watched the news during the hurricanes, as did most Americans. I was absolutely stunned by the ignorance of a group of commentators who didn’t understand the basics of meteorology. I watched as they chattered amongst themselves, marveling at how warm waters, atmospheric moisture, high and low pressure systems could combine to develop the massive hurricanes we experienced. Their seeming fascination with these dynamics, but lack of understanding of science, was breathtaking. As they admired the ability of forecasters to predict hurricane paths, wind speeds, and rainfall amounts, it occurred to me that these individuals were probably like a large segment of our citizens—almost completely devoid of a basic understanding and appreciation of science.

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Consider this, there is a large proportion of people who believe that dinosaurs existed at the same time as humans, that humans first appeared on earth in our current form, that evolutionary theory is wrong (if not immoral), that climate change is not occurring or occurring only naturally, and that genetically modified foods are dangerous for our health. A study reported that 82 percent of Americans supported labeling of genetically modified food, 80 percent also supported mandated labeling of foods that contain DNA. Think about that. With the exception of the dirt I occasionally consume, all my food contains DNA, but 80 percent of survey respondents thought it was important to be labeled as such (although I doubt they know what DNA is). It is interesting to note that people with and without a high degree of education share some of these beliefs. When science conflicts with our values, we often believe what comports with our values, science be damned. Why should we care? We should care because science is an endeavor to understand the world—how it is organized, how it functions, and how it changes. Government is a system designed to control and manage a community, a state, or a nation. Science provides information to the government to assist in managing the use of resources for the benefit of its community’s citizens. Science and government must be linked. The accumulated knowledge of federal scientists and their colleagues at the state level

CAPITOL COMMENTS

and academic institutions are essential for sound policy decisions. However, the disparagement of scientists by those who deny climate change, evolution, medical advancements such as vaccinations, and basic life requirements of imperiled species endangers our democracy. A misinformed or uninformed voting public, in the words of Neil Degrasse Tyson is leading to “the unraveling of an informed democracy.” The fact that “alternative facts” has entered our vernacular is dumbfounding. Recent research available at the Social Science Research Network (ssrn.com/abstract=3004631) indicated that voters might be uninterested in the truth. “Alternative facts” were shown to influence voters even when presented evidence that the alternative facts were not true. Our political representatives reflect

Steven Williams, Ph.D. B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER PRESIDENT Wildlife Management Institute

their constituents’ values; however, I believe we must hold them to a higher level of accountability when it comes to matters of science knowledge and application. So the climate change deniers brush off the threats of sea level rise, more severe storms, changing weather patterns, and changing habitat conditions. Some of these very same individuals are making resource policy and budgetary decisions as we speak. Meanwhile, insurance companies, urban planners, and the Department of Defense have been studying and

Government is a system designed to control and manage a community, a state, or a nation. Science provides information to the government to assist in managing the use of resources for the benefit of its community’s citizens. Science and government must be linked. The accumulated knowledge of federal scientists and their colleagues at the state level and academic institutions are essential for sound policy decisions.

W W W.ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/HARVEPINO

preparing for these impacts for years. The same commentators I referred to earlier were so impressed with FEMA’s response to the hurricanes and waxed on about the importance of the government’s response. They seemed to be unable to process the link between the government’s response and the science necessary to appropriately stage supplies, conduct search and rescue operations, provide medical service, restore power grids, repair infrastructure, and provide transportation. Their newfound fascination with science made me think that they may have been raised on a different planet (presumably one that was flat). How could they praise the government’s response to disasters without the recognition of the accumulated knowledge provided by scientists and the importance of that science?

Boone and Crockett Club members should appreciate the science behind the management of our nation’s natural resources. Further, members should respect that science and not let personal beliefs or values, not backed by evidence, cloud our decision-making process. Finally, we should hold our political representatives to science-based, decision-making. Polemics and dogma do not pave the way for progress. Science has produced the bountiful fish and wildlife resources we enjoy today. And, oh by the way, science calculates that the next total solar eclipse will be visible in the United States on April 8, 2024. In Harrisburg, PA, it will be at its maximum eclipse at 2:17:16 p.m. Don’t forget your glasses. n

B&C Staff participated in the eclipse this past August with homemade viewers.

The Boone and Crockett Club asks that you please thank our Trailblazers with your patronage. FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 11

HUNTING “The game we hunt is neither helpless nor

helpful, which requires us to develop skills and grit in uncomfortable conditions.”

— SHANE MAHONEY

The fair chase hunters wouldn’t have it any other way

Wildlife managers, hunters, and other conservationists have long been concerned about the decline in mule deer populations throughout the West. Is it predation? Is it hunting? Is it habitat? Is it human land uses? Is it poaching? There has been a lot of speculation as to the causes and remedies, and fortunately, many agencies are investing in science in order to unravel the mysteries surrounding the decline.

PG. 48 STUDYING MULE DEER IN OREGON BY JOHN F. ORGAN

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ETHICS

A message brought to you by

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 13

CRAIG BODDINGTON PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

ACCURATE HUNTER THE PACK The larger your

We knew Brittany’s Rocky Mountain goat was just over this little rise, so I crawled up with my pack, got it in position, and got out of the way so she could slide her rifle into place. If you’re not alone, a buddy system often helps a lot.

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repertoire of how to get steady—fast—the more consistently successful your field shooting will be. That said, it is almost inevitable that, over time, you will develop a default setting, a position or setup that is your preferred option when possible…and thus unconsciously sought no matter how many other options might be available. For some it may be shooting over a bipod; for others it may be shooting sticks.

Perhaps the ideal situation, at least for me, is to lie more or less prone over a pack. Obviously it’s essential to have a clear path to the target, so often you must find a way to get the rifle higher off the ground.

This is perfectly fine so long as you aren’t so wedded to one setup that you dither in confusion when you can’t make it work. There is no single shooting position or shooting aid that is ideal for all situations, so it’s important to practice a wide range of options, and keep your mind open as shooting opportunities develop. Field shooting is not necessarily a game of utmost precision. The vital zone must be hit, but it’s a pretty large “X-Ring.” Getting a bullet into it is always a matter of achieving adequate steadiness, but time and distance are major factors. You always want to get as steady as you can, but generally speaking, the shorter the distance the less stability is required—and the less time you usually have to get into position before the opportunity is lost. As we’ve d i s c u s s e d , t her e a r e fast-breaking close-range situations where the only chance for a shot is to stand and shoot unsupported. You hope that doesn’t happen, but it’s wise to practice a whole lot just in case! However, given enough time and a clear path to the target, my default setting is to rest over a pack.

In part this is because I almost always carry some kind of a pack. Not everybody does, but as an occupational hazard I always carry two cameras and often a telephoto lens. Add a water bottle, raingear or an extra layer, and perhaps a spotting scope and tripod, a pack is almost mandatory. As we’ve seen, solid objects like rocks and logs make excellent field rests, but they’re even better when you throw a nicely padded pack on top! Height required to achieve a clear path to the target often dictates the position. If prone is possible I’ll usually crawl into position, rifle in one hand, dragging the pack with the other. At some point I’ll have to put the rifle down, push the pack forward, and then I can settle in and slide the rifle over the pack. Obviously if the pack is used atop a boulder or some other solid object, then you may wind up sitting, kneeling, or even standing into the rest. A daypack is usually limited to either the prone position or as padding atop a solid object; usually it just isn’t tall enough or firm enough for a sitting or

kneeling rest. For sure I don’t advocate carrying a bigger pack than you need, but a fullsize pack with internal or external frame is often tall enough and firm enough to set upright and use for a sitting or kneeling rest. The shot I finally got on my Montana bighorn wasn’t very far, but I was awfully nervous (imagine that!). I had a packframe, so I upended it and used it for a sitting rest. That wasn’t the first or last time a packframe has come in handy, but I remember it because it was such an important shot! The procedure can vary quite a bit if you’re hunting with a buddy or a guide— especially if you’re creeping and crawling to get into position, handling both pack and rifle can be difficult, but a hunting partner can help. When daughter Brittany shot her Rocky Mountain goat we went up the last little incline together, me with pack and she with rifle. I slid the pack into position and slithered to the side. She put the rifle in place and crawled in behind it, and as soon as her billy turned broadside, that was that. If you aren’t alone, multiple packs offer even more

For field shooting, there are no limits to the possibilities; you just have to be creative—and practice this stuff on your range.

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 15

options. If you have two or three, you can sometimes stack up a pretty fair equivalent of a benchrest! This is good to keep in mind, because sometimes height is a critical problem. Back in the 90s in southeast Alaska we’d been trying to close on a black bear for hours. When we finally got a chance, we were caught on an open grassy slope and the bear was on the next ridge, not too far, but far enough that stability was essential. There were three of us, and since it was a backpack hunt we had three big packs with frames. It took all three to get the rifle barrel clear of the grass! Since resting over a pack is my favorite field position I usually think of using the pack as a primary rest. There are, however, other clever options. With almost any shooting position it helps

a great deal if you can stabilize the shooting elbow. If available, a second pack can be used for this. However, when sitting or kneeling behind a short tripod or tall bipod, one of the real keys for added steadiness is to anchor the shooting elbow. An upraised knee—the “reverse kneeling” position we talked about in an earlier column— is one answer, but an upraised pack can be just the right height. If you can firmly ground the elbow of your shooting hand a whole lot of wobble disappears from almost any position! For field shooting, there are no limits to the possibilities; you just have to be creative—and practice this stuff on your range. At the SAAM (Sportsman’s All-Terrain, All-Weather Marksmanship) shooting school two

At the SAAM shooting school instructor Doug Pritchard shows my daughter Caroline how to put a pack on her lap to stabilize her shooting-side elbow for shooting sitting behind a tripod.

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wrinkles I’d never seen before is to sit on a pack to adjust the height, surprisingly comfortable in both sitting and kneeling; and, in sitting, to place a pack on your lap to anchor the shooting-side elbow. Almost universal when shooting over a pack (or any solid rest) is what to do with the supporting hand. If the fore end is firmly rested, then you don’t really need it to hold the rifle (I’ll come back to that initial “if”). I usually default to proper benchrest position, curling the supporting hand under the buttstock and using it to snug the butt into the shoulder and make slight height adjustments if necessary. Just be absolutely certain your fore end is firmly rested before you turn loose of it! A few seasons back, near Roseburg, Oregon, I had a

At our range, Donna is practicing field positions with tripod, pack, and our cleaning kit serving as a log or boulder. Here, sitting behind sticks, she’s using an upright pack to stabilize her shooting elbow.

AH great Columbia blacktail standing at about 275 yards. I crawled in behind a big oak, took off my pack, and shifted right. There was some underbrush, so I had to plump up the pack to get the rifle high enough. So far so good, everything perfect. As usual, I curled my right (supporting) hand under the butt, got good and steady, and squeezed the trigger. As the trigger broke, the rifle literally fell off the pack. I couldn’t call the bullet back, and I missed that buck by a matter of several feet. So my systems aren’t always perfect, and it’s best to learn what works for you! n

A pack adds height to any natural rest, as well as cushioning the rifle. For me the rest comes first, and then I figure out the body position needed to use it. Sometimes you wind up looking like a contortionist, but the stability is worth it.

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WAYNE C. VAN ZWOLL

Really?

B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

Some shots are truly unbelievable. Hunters too.

Investments of time, money, effort often distill to one shot in country big enough to deny you another.

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John had descended Mount

Gunnison in big loops. The day’s hunt had produced no elk. Almost within sight of his Studebaker, he released his frustration with a farewell shot at a rock. Turning, he was stunned to see an enormous bull staring from the opposite slope “about 500 yards away.” John dropped to a sit and fired. He managed a follow-up before the elk vanished in oak brush. Though he feared both shots had missed, he dutifully crossed the drainage to check. The great bull’s antlers scored over 397. I don’t doubt this account. At first blush, a 500yard kill from a quick sit seems optimistic, and in 1970 few hunters used laser range finders. On the other hand, John had competed as a winter Olympian in the biathlon event. Exceptionally fit and skilled with a rifle, he could also have accurately estimated bullet drop (38 to 55 inches with a 200-yard zero, depending on the load). I wasn’t there. These days, less believable tales abound. Many can be edited down to shot distance, as if hunting success or marksmanship can be gauged by step. But killing game far away isn’t always hard. My longest shot to date was twice as far as I usually fire at animals. The air was dead still, however, the light perfect, my position solid, the rifle proven on targets. There was no way to approach. The bullet flew true. Then again, I once missed a deer at 14 feet. In shooting, distance is not the only variable! “I’ve killed running deer at 600 yards with this magnum,” boasted a client on the eve of our hunt. Thought I: This fellow not only fires at unrealistic yardage; he spooks game a third of a mile distant! The next day he crippled a buck with a 150-yard shot to the paunch. Some time later we recovered the animal. Often, hunters who earnestly press upon you their shooting prowess have little to demonstrate. On the other hand, even unlikely events can happen once. Once, admiring photos of a truly outstanding mule deer, I asked the hunter for the details. “He got up ahead of me,” he said, “and ran up a ridge. I fired as he went over. A long shot. I thought I’d missed. Got up there and found him dead—but with no bullet hole. Then I found a crease between those 200-inch antlers. The bullet had cracked his skull!”

At woods ranges, shooting can still be difficult. Range is only one of many variables affecting a shot.

From atop a hill in the background, Wayne fired his .25-06 prone to kill this deer as it paused briefly.

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Shooting is a small part of hunting, but days of effort can funnel to a couple of seconds on the trigger!

Believing someone who claims the unbelievable is easier if you consider the impossible shots on record. They go way back, no doubt to before the first culverins, when ignition was cause for celebration. Among the most debated of long shots was fired from the frontier town of Adobe Walls in the Texas panhandle, 26 June, 1874. Buffalo hunter Billy Dixon was one of 28 men asleep in the tiny settlement when at dawn 700 Comanches led by Chief Quanah Parker thundered in. Three whites died before survivors found cover in buildings. Most were hunters, well armed. They repulsed the charge with withering rifle fire. But the battle wasn’t over. Two days later hostiles still lurked, like wolves, on the town’s perimeter. As legend has it, about 15 appeared on a bluff nearly a mile off. Dixon, renowned for his marksmanship, was urged to take a shot with the saloon owner’s 50bore 1874 Sharps. Dixon had used this rifle during the attack, so when he took aim, there was more than hope at

20 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

play. Still, onlookers were astonished when, seconds after the blast, one of the Indians fell off his horse. The distance was later surveyed at 1,538 yards. Wind drift aside, that bullet would have been descending so sharply that a range estimation error of just 50 yards would have caused a miss. Whether or not you believe Billy Dixon downed a Comanche at over 1,500 yards with a black-powder Sharps, you’ll have plenty of company! One of the best shots I’ve seen in the field was not a long one. A week of fog and rain had soaked the hills, muddying trails and flushing away my credentials as a guide. Late the last day, Ken and I clawed our way up a greasy slope toward echoes of elk retreating into timber. Then, antlers! Breathless from the climb, I saw enough to croak, “Shoot!” Behind me, Ken, gasping, on a near-vertical slope, had no chance. The directive simply took me off the hook; I had shown him a bull! But when the elk’s shoulder winked through a slot in

the aspens, the .300 thundered. “Thwock!” The g reat a n i ma l stumbled, then pitched on its nose. Under the most adverse conditions, my client had killed a magn i f icent seven-point bull with an almost unbelievable offhand shot. Fast shooting, when there’s Benchrest accuracy wasn’t a requisite no time for your when this rifle was designed. Quick, head to get in the sure handling still counts! way, can turn in surprisingly good results. Once, in Alaska, I stalked a black bear I breathed a prayer of thanks. in coastal grass. A fish-tailing My frank apology to Mark: wind alerted the bear, which “He’s dead, but that poke was made for cover. From 90 yards too fast, too far.” I rose, swung, fired. Forest Judging any shot by its enveloped the bear. Mark was dazzling result carries the not impressed. My .30-30 was threat that you’ll be asked to by his standards marginal; repeat it, provided the event now light was failing after a didn’t happen long ago and far hasty shot. Under a dense can- away. I can’t recall hearing opy dusk became night. Blood anyone on an active rifle range glistening darkly on giant fern brag about shots to be taken led us to the heart-shot bear. or center hits shy of a finish!

Those who invite the public to watch dare not bring their egos. Three years ago on a long rifle range at the FTW ranch in Texas, Jim Spinella courageously uncased a .375 CheyTac built by Hill Country Rifles on a Stiller action. Careful shooting, expert wind doping, and a Nightforce scope conspired to land a bullet on a 36-inch plate at 3,600 yards. Spinella upped the ante in 2015 with a hit at 3,800 yards. Most recently he struck at 4,210—2.4 miles! That bullet spent 10 seconds in flight! Misses? Of course! Spinella conceded: “It’s not about repeatability.” An insightful comment! Shuffling off the line, trusting others to believe your claims without evidence was no option for recruits wanting to join Colonel Hiram Berdan’s sharpshooters in 1861. “No man would be enlisted who could not put 10 bullets in succession within five inches from the center at a distance of six hundred feet from a rest or three hundred off hand.” Black powder and iron sights, of course. Few hunters with scoped rifles these days would meet that offhand requirement! In those days, shooters learned early on to hold rifles. Exhibition shooters near the end of the 19th century wielded them like wands and seldom missed! Illinois market hunter Adams H. Bogardus set the pace with glass balls, the aerial target of 1877. An ace with a shotgun, he fired 1,000 rounds in 75 minutes to break 973. Two runs later, he hit 990. A.H. Ruth raised the bar, shattering 984 balls with a rifle! Dentist W.F. Carver left his practice to join Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, after an exhausting run of 60,000 glass

balls. He missed 660—few enough. Born Phoebe Ann Moses in August, 1860, Annie Oakley got her stage name after marrying Frank Butler, a visiting marksman she’d beaten in a local Ohio rifle match. Just 16 when she joined his traveling show, she’d already proven her shooting talent by hitting quail on the wing. When Bogardus left the Wild West Show, Annie replaced him, shooting coins from between Frank’s fingers and aiming in a mirror to fire shatter glass balls he threw aloft. Sending 25 shots in as many seconds, she tore one ragged hole in a playing card. With a .22 in 1884 she broke 4,772 glass balls of 5,000 tossed. She shot a cigarette from the lips of Kaiser Wilhelm III—remarking after WWI that she’d had the fate of nations in her sights. Johnny Baker, another pro, tried for 17 years to outshoot Annie. “She just wasn’t beatable!” Ad Topperwein, born in Texas in 1869 tapped his natural talents to become a cartoonist, and to drill “Indian head” profiles in tin with a .22 at shooting exhibitions. Ad liked aerial targets. In 1894 he hit 976 of 1,000 2¼-inch clay disks. Ad perforated postage stamps stuck on airborne washers, and could nip the bullet of a tossed cartridge. Shooting for Winchester, he fired a 63 autoloader, ejection port up, then spun and hit with a second shot the .22 hull in its arc! In 1907 he fired Model 1903s at 72,000 tossed 2¼-inch

blocks, hitting all but nine! That record lasted until ‘59, when Remington’s Tom Frye used the new Nylon 66 .22 on 100,010 tossed blocks and missed six! Whoa! Hit a .22 hull spat from an autoloader with the same rifle? Nip a bullet from a tossed pistol cartridge? A hundred thousand blocks? As few shooting routines could be faked, and all were performed in front of spectators, such feats must indeed have been possible! Herb Parsons was the last of Topperwein’s kind. Winchester hired him in 1929. A wizard with a shotgun, Herb could toss a stack of seven clays and shuck a Model 12 fast enough to shatter all before any hit dirt. Using a mirror and two rifles, he’d break one target in front and one behind him, at the same time. He shot tossed marbles. Talking nonstop as he flung fruits and vegetables, he’d mince one with a .30-30, the next with a Hornet, on to a .348, swapping rifles in a blink. From the hip he’d rattle 10 bullets from a .351 auto and dust as many clay disks standing on edge. “They’re not hard to hit, folks, just easy to miss!” Herb’s most famous shot wasn’t scripted. During

an event in Maine, he spotted a flock of crows winging toward woods far away. “What’s behind those trees?” he yelled. “Nothing!” roared the crowd. Parsons grabbed a .30-06, swung and fired. A crow, then a speck, shed feathers and fell. Spectators gaped. Herb shrugged: “That bullet had to go somewhere!” In July 1959, Herb Parsons died at 51 from a blood clot after a surgery. Tom Knapp’s exploits with Benelli shotguns tugged exhibition shooting into the digital age. Like Parsons, he worked magic with shotguns, chatting conversationally as a stream of empties tumbled from the gun and clays disintegrated aloft. Tom tossed as Ad and wife “Plinky” Topperwein shot for Winchester. Ad performed incredible feats with .22 rifles.

Eclipsing even today’s hyperbole, early rifle ads claimed magical properties: Cannot miss? Really?

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Shooting up close can be more difficult—and urgent —than deliberate shooting at distant targets.

many as nine targets at once—a step beyond Herb’s seven-target feat with his Model 12. Many assumed Knapp’s autoloaders had open chokes, as there was no time to direct compact charges of shot. “Not so,” Tom told me. “I have to hit one target at a time so can’t afford broad patterns. In fact, I often fire at a section of a target so the shot doesn’t hit one close by.” Knapp said he’d hit a tossed golf ball as many as three times with .22 bullets, keeping it aloft by shading low, that he could nail air-gun BBs a third of the time. “But spectators can’t see ‘em.” Most hunters old enough to remember 20-cent gasoline can also recall a shot that gave better than they deserved. Mine came when a crow landed in an orchard near the old travel trailer that housed me as a grad student. I snatched up an iron-sighted Browning BL-22 and cycled it. The bead dwarfed the crow

Exceptional shooting could be done with guns like this Holland & Holland—if you had fast loaders! 22 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

but didn’t obscure it, as I held well over. The bird wilted to the report, at 145 steps. Hunting big game, I don’t depend on extraordinary shots, because they’re, well, extraordinary. If you can’t make them routinely, how can you expect one when you must have it? But dangerous game can prompt a shot when you’d as soon retreat. Then you must hope for what you’ve no right to expect. Such was the case with renowned elephant hunter James Sutherlin, in the autumn of 1908 in what is now lower Tanzania. Catching a bull in a glade, he aimed for the heart. The animal charged. Sutherlin waited until it came “within twenty paces” and fired his second barrel. But this bullet, too, missed its mark. “Seizing me by my khaki shirt [the elephant] flung me high… [I fell] between his fore and hind legs.” The hunter lay still. But his antagonist

found him again and hurled him against a tree. He regained his senses minutes later, badly bruised, left thumb dislocated. The bull stood nearby. “I had dropped my .577 [but] managed with some difficulty to place my .318 across [tracker, Simba’s] shoulder and fire….” Alas, the rifle wasn’t steady. The elephant came. “Telling Simba to hold my rifle barrel firmly, I drove another cartridge into the breech and waited….” At 14 steps Sutherlin made the most of his last chance. One of the most celebrated African explorers, Sir Samuel Baker (1821-1893) stayed clear of such straightforward reporting when penning his exploits for The Field, a British sporting journal. It published this account: “Seven stags now broke from a ravine [and dashed] up the hill, thus nothing but rumps were turned toward me…. I put up the back-sight for 250 yards and took a steady

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FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 23

Really? shot….” The other stags ran, then paused. “I put up the 300 yards back-sight and fired…. Again I heard the bullet strike.” A. Tonkin, a writer of my generation from southern Africa, measured the beads of Victorian-era rifles to confirm that the sight on Sir Samuel’s .577 would have covered about 24 inches at 300 yards, or a stag’s entire chest. He noted, too, that in 1883 rifle trials, a black-powder .577 by Holland & Holland beat all comers from the bench, with a 150yard group taping 4.8 x 7.7 inches. As Baker had just dismounted his horse and was firing offhand at twice that distance, his rosy results are at least suspect.

The shooting log of Lord Ripon (the Earl de Grey) claims “seven birds dead in the air at one time.”

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Gunmakers a century ago did nothing to dissuade shooters from such reports. A 1912 Westley-Richards ad for its Accelerated .318 Express Rifle reads: “Authorities agree that its accuracy is so high that one cannot miss with it….” Not that humility defined shotgunners of the day. One of the most famous, Earl de Grey, recorded a lifetime bag of 556,813 in a book apparently current when he died in 1923, age 72. That count is mostly if not all birds—nearly 11,000 a year for 51 years! The book elaborates: “Lord Ripon (the good Earl) had killed 28 pheasants in one minute…. And on another occasion had seven birds dead in the air at one time.” Such claims beg scrutiny. Recent trials with three hammer ejector guns by Purdey & Sons, and expert loaders, concluded the 28-pheasant

minute might have been possible—provided no birds fell onto the Earl, or smoke from the black powder he used didn’t delay shots by obscuring targets. He’d have had to follow any miss with a Scotch double. The likelihood of seven birds falling at once more nearly approaches zero. Tonkin points out that a bird shot at 40 yards hits the ground in less than 3 seconds. From 60 yards, fall time is under 3 ½ seconds. So the Earl had at most 4 seconds after he nailed one bird to kill six more, all at long yardage, with gun changes. Once in awhile, the most unbelievable shot isn’t a shot at all. With Jim, my client on a deer hunt, I entered a copse of aspens. Minutes later a shadow moved. Across a draw, a buck with enormous antlers appeared, walking, a series of winks through the trees as Jim steadied his Sako on a windfall. Then, to my astonishment, an even bigger buck emerged, non-typical antlers the most impressive I’d ever seen afield. Five more bucks slipped, single-file,

from the forest behind. We paralleled the ghostly procession and at last found a slot that opened to a clearing ahead of the deer. “Either of the first two,” I hissed. Both wore records-book bone. The distance had yawned to around 200 yards. “When they stop.” But as they walked steadily into the gap, I knew they wouldn’t stop. “Your call.” I plugged my ears. But Jim’s rifle remained silent. After they left, he withdrew the cartridge and told me he doesn’t risk shots at moving game. American sportsman Jack Holliday was hunting elephants with PH Roy Home when they cut a track with deep “down-at-the-heel” prints. Arduous trailing at last brought the hunters to the bull, his ears spread and trunk up testing the wind. Long ivory gleamed white against the great, dark body— the finest tusks Roy had seen in years. He waited for the shot that didn’t come. Holliday lowered his rifle and said, “I can’t do it. He’s too fine to kill.” Unbelievable. Or not. n

Hunters after grouse fan out on Scotland’s moors. Some century-old shooting records bear scrutiny!

27 CURRENT MEMBERS OF THE WILDERNESS WARRIOR SOCIETY The Wilderness Warrior Society is the Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s premier major gifts society. It is named after Doug Brinkleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historic book about Theodore Roosevelt and his Crusade for America and was launched in 2011 to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Boone and Crockett Club. With your gift of $125,000 or more, you will be honored by being named a member of the Wilderness Warrior Society. You will be presented with your own numbered limited edition bronze of Theodore Roosevelt on horseback, a custom Hickey Freeman Blazer, as well as other gifts to recognize and honor you for your contribution. The $125,000 donation can be paid with a $25,000 current contribution and the balance payable over a maximum of 4 years. Funds raised from Wilderness Warrior contributions are placed in the Boone and Crockett Club Foundation endowment where the principal remains intact, and the annual interest income generated provides permanent funding for vital conservation programs. There are now twenty-five members of the Society. This translates to more than $3 million for the endowment and has been a major portion of the growth of these funds. It has been a huge success by any measure. Please join us in this grand effort. Contact the Boone and Crockett Club today to find out how you can become a member of the Wilderness Warrior Society.

Trevor L. Ahlberg James F. Arnold Rene R. Barrientos Marc A. Brinkmeyer Marshall J. Collins Jr. William A. Demmer Gary W. Dietrich John P. Evans Steve J. Hageman B.B. Hollingsworth Jr. Ned S. Holmes Tom L. Lewis Jimmy John Liautaud R. Terrell McCombs Jack S. Parker* Paul V. Phillips Remo R. Pizzagalli Thomas D. Price Edward B. Rasmuson T. Garrick Steele Morrison Stevens Sr. Benjamin A. Strickling III Ben B. Wallace Mary L. Webster C. Martin Wood III Leonard H. Wurman M.D. Paul M. Zelisko * Deceased

Contact Terrell McCombs at 210/818-8363 for more details.

2016 Annual Meeting, Tucson, Arizona

Boone and Crockett Club www.boone-crockett.org 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801 406/542-1888

FAIR CHASE | S| PWI FAIR CHASE RIN NT GE2R0 2170 1725 25

DUANE R. DIEFENBACH,PH.D. USGS PENNSYLVANIA COOPERATIVE FISH AND WILDLIFE RESEARCH UNIT

ANTLER POINT RESTRICTIONS: The Social Side of the Story

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER Allegheny County, PA HUNTER: Richard A. Sneddon SCORE: 196 6/8 DATE: 2016 26 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

In the Fall 2017 issue of Fair Chase,

I explained how Pennsylvania increased the number of older bucks in their whitetail deer (Odocoileus virginianus) population by implementing antler point restrictions (APRs). Depending on the management unit, regulations were changed such that bucks legal for harvest had at least 3 or 4 points on one antler, which reduced the harvest rate of all age classes of bucks. The end result was more, older bucks harvested by hunters. But this outcome is not necessarily the definition of management success.

When my colleagues and I were designing the research to evaluate APRs, we recognized there were four possible outcomes to this management experiment depending on whether hunters accepted APRs and whether APRs achieved the predicted biological results. Only one of those four possible outcomes represented management success (Outcome I in Table 1). Although P.T. Barnum might have also considered Outcome II a success, a government agency entrusted with the management of a public resource cannot! In this article, I will explain whether Pennsylvania hunters found APRs and their results acceptable—plus a lot more. Before reviewing the findings of our research, however, I need to return to an important critique of APRs titled, “Antler Point Regulations: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” written by Len Carpenter and Bruce Gill in 1987. In their paper, they argued that before APRs are implemented and considered a management success, 1) hunters should be made aware of the consequences of APRs, 2) monitoring must demonstrate the desired objectives to be achieved with respect to increasing the number of older-aged bucks, and 3) hunters must support APR regulations.

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER Greene County, PA HUNTER: Ivan Parry SCORE: 184 6/8 DATE: 1974

Also of note, by the end of the 20th century, Pennsylvania had deer densities that were almost double the deer density goal. Therefore, deer population reduction had to occur simultaneously with APRs. The idea behind implementing APRs was that reducing deer densities would be unpopular, but perhaps implementing APRs could be a tradeoff that would be acceptable to huntersâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;fewer deer overall but more older bucks with larger antlers. To make hunters aware of the consequences of APRs, one of my colleagues, Dr. Gary Alt, spent two years crisscrossing Pennsylvania doing more than 200 public seminars on the key issues related to deer management and the consequences of implementing APRs. In addition, the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) distributed 35,000 free videos, hosted by Dr. Gary Alt, about APRs and the proposed increase in antlerless harvests. To monitor hunter acceptance and attitudes, my colleagues and I conducted mail surveys of a random sample of Pennsylvania hunters before and after the deer hunting seasons of 2002, 2003, and 2004 when APRs were implemented. From the first pre-season survey, we know that 11 percent of Pennsylvania deer hunters (86,000 hunters) attended a public seminar and 40 percent (318,000 of 794,000 deer hunters) observed Dr. Alt either at a seminar, on a television program, or watched the PGC video. The public outreach by Dr. Alt addressed the concern of Carpenter and Gill that hunters needed to be informed about the effects of APRs. The response at these seminars was that most attendees supported implementing APRs. But what about hunter support over the next three years after APRs were TABLE 1. Four possible management outcomes when APR regulations are implemented. implemented? After conducting six APRS ACHIEVE APRS FAIL TO ACHIEVE surveys during 2002-2004, BIOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES BIOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES one before and after each deer season, we found about twoHUNTERS SUPPORT Management success Deer management failure thirds of hunters supported APRS AND PERCEIVE (Outcome I) social success (Outcome II) APRs! We know that with MANAGEMENT SUCCESS APRs we achieved the biological objectives, and hunters HUNTERS DO NOT Deer management success Management failure supported APRs (TABLE 1), SUPPORT APRS OR social failure (Outcome III) (Outcome IV)

Before antler point restrictions (APRs) can be considered a management success, 1) hunters should be made aware of the consequences of APRs, 2) monitoring must demonstrate the desired objectives to be achieved with respect to increasing the number of older-aged bucks, and 3) hunters must support APR regulations.

PERCEIVE MANAGEMENT FAILURE

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perceiving them as a management success. By implementing APRs, and then conducting a carefully designed study, the Pennsylvania Game Commission became the first wildlife agency to demonstrate the success of APRs by thoroughly evaluating APRs from both the biological and social perspective. But oh if it were so easy! Nothing in life, especially anything related to deer management, is so simple. Read on for the rest of the story.

Before we began this research, we anticipated deer hunters would be concerned about mistakenly harvesting sub-legal deer (antlered deer lacking the requisite antler size). However, after experiencing one or two hunting seasons, we expected this concern to decline. What we discovered was that over the three years, about 30 percent of hunters agreed that APRs reduced their hunting enjoyment and this did not change. For most, concern that they might accidentally shoot an

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER Jefferson County, PA SCORE: 170 5/8 HUNTER: Thomas P. Pisarchick DATE: 2009

illegal male reduced their enjoyment. We also expected that with more experience with APRs, hunters would be less concerned that pre-season poaching or harvest of sub-legal bucks would be a problem. In contrast, that concern showed no consistent trend over time with about 25 percent being concerned about poaching and about 30 percent concerned about accidental kills. However, before the first season with APRs, 45 percent of hunters were concerned that hunters would shoot antlered deer and then check to see if they were legal. Carpenter and Gill called this the “shoot and sort” effect. From our monitoring of bucks, we know this turned out to be a minor concern, and after that first hunting season in 2002, the concern among hunters declined. Despite this decline, about a third of hunters remained concerned about illegal killing of bucks throughout the study. This lack of change in opinion despite available evidence to the contrary turned out to be a consistent theme from our research.

What we found was that throughout the three years of our research, the majority of hunters supported APRs; but more importantly, their opinions showed relatively little change over time. Our study suggests that many hunters formed an opinion about APRs before they even experienced them. It didn’t matter if it was APR effects on male/female ratios, or sub-adult/adult buck ratios, or deer harvests, or legal harvest—we observed relatively little change in opinions over time. In fact, we asked the same hunters before the 2002 hunting season and after the 2004 hunting season their opinions, and most (48 percent) had not changed their opinion about APRs. In general, if they liked them before they were implemented, they liked them afterwards, and vice versa! One thing that did change opinions during the course of our research was the reduction in deer density. Although support for APRs remained above 60 percent throughout our study, satisfaction with the PGC’s deer management program declined

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER Chester County, PA

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER Cambria County, PA

SCORE: 168 4/8 HUNTER: Jack A. Horosky DATE: 2005

SCORE: 175 3/8 HUNTER: Philip E. Sever DATE: 2010

28 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

REFERENCES AND SOURCES: CARPENTER, L. H., AND R. B. GILL. 1987. ANTLER POINT REGULATIONS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY. TRANSACTIONS OF THE WESTERN ASSOCIATION OF GAME AND FISH COMMISSIONERS 67: 94 –107.

Read the first part of this article “Antler Point Regulations: Managing for Biological Success,” in the fall 2017 issue of Fair Chase online in the B&C Associates community.

FIGURE 1. Percentage of hunters who approved or disapproved of APRs in Pennsylvania from before APRs were implemented (pre-2002) until after the conclusion of the 2004 deer hunting seasons.

Opinions of PA Hunters Regarding APRs 80

Percent of PA hunters

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Pre-2002

Post-2002

Pre-2003

Approve

Post-2003

Pre-2004

Post-2004

Disapprove

FIGURE 2. Deer population and percentage of Pennsylvania deer hunters who approved of deer management by the PGC, 2002-2004.

60%

1.35

50%

1.3

40%

1.25 30% 1.2 20%

1.15

10%

1.1

PGC deer management approval

1.4

Deer population size (millions)

over time as deer density declined. After the first hunting season with APRs, 57 percent of deer hunters rated the PGC’s deer management program as good or excellent. But after the conclusion of the 2004 hunting season, it had declined to 29 percent. As deer densities declined, so did hunter satisfaction. Before the 2002 hunting season, 34 percent of hunters agreed there were too many antlerless deer where they hunted. But after the 2004 hunting season agreement declined to 13 percent. By the end of our study, 42 percent of hunters became less supportive of any regulation to increase the antlered/antlerless ratio. However, because we observed relatively little change in the support for APRs we interpreted this result to mean that hunters recognized that much of this change in the sex ratio was achieved through increased antlerless harvests. However, if you carefully inspect the graph of hunter support for APRs (Figure 1), you will notice that by the conclusion of the 2004 hunting season, support had declined to what it was before APRs were implemented. Moreover, the percentage of hunters who disapproved of APRs was at its highest! I learned several things from this research. First of all, if you have a deer population that is experiencing high buck harvest rates, APRs can create an older age structure. Second, hunters will support such regulations but probably more from belief than observation or experience. Third, but most importantly, hunter satisfaction is driven primarily by the number of deer observed while hunting. Many studies of hunter attitudes have noted that hunters appreciate the camaraderie of hunting with friends and family, the opportunity to eat wild game, the challenge of pursuing a wily animal, and the desire to harvest a large-antlered deer. But at the end of the day, the positive reinforcement of seeing deer while hunting seems to be the most critical component to hunter satisfaction. This basic characteristic of human behavior will continue to be the most important challenge for deer management. n

1.05

2002

2003 Population

2004 Approve FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 29

EXCERPT FROM RECORDS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME, 14TH EDITION VOLUME I

HISTORY OF THE R ECOR DS BOOK BY B.B. HOLLINGSWORTH, JR. BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB President

As 33rd president of the Boone and Crockett Club, I have the distinct honor of writing this foreword to the 14th edition of Records of North American Big Game. I offer here a portion of the foreword, a history of the records book.

30 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

History shows that regulated hunting is the foundation of conservation in North America. Big game records books help document this history. The Club began laying the foundations for its records program in 1902. Theodore Roosevelt was appointed chairman of the Club’s first records committee—a committee charged with developing a measurement and records-keeping system for male, native North American big game trophies. In 1906, the Club published Big Game Measurements. The stated purpose of this book was to implement a uniform standard of measurements for North American big game. Members were encouraged to record the measurements of the game they harvested and send the information to the Club’s secretary. The scoring system described in this book, which is different from the one used today, was devised by Club

members Theodore Roosevelt, Caspar Whitney and Archibald Rogers. The intentions of the Club in establishing and popularizing a big game records-keeping system were greater than arriving at a score and honoring animals and hunters. Records-keeping also promoted big game recovery, conservation, and ethical sportsmanship. The first objective was to collect biological, harvest, and location data on hunter-taken trophies. Early wildlife science held the belief that the existence of mature male specimens was an indicator of overall population and habitat health. Conversely, their absence was an indicator of unnatural pressures on a population, such as over-harvesting, disease, and degraded habitat. Since wildlife recovery was the focus of the Club’s early conservation efforts and because no such biological data on big game

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB SCORING AND BIG GAME RECORDS COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN

THEODOR E ROOSEV ELT

species existed, the Club believed that this information would be beneficial to game managers in setting and evaluating policies. Trophy records were also used to recognize those sportsmen who were participating in the conservation movement by hunting selectively for mature male animals that had already genetically contributed to a local population. Removing pressure on the young and the females in a herd was paramount to population recovery. By following new game laws and harvest restrictions aimed at recovery, sportsmen began to see the benefits of game management and conserving for tomorrow. Sportsmen began working with, not against, conservation measures. Having their trophy and their name recognized in a records book was icing on the cake. Lastly, big game records offered proof that

sportsmen were holding themselves to high ethical standards. Sportsmen willingly accepted the concept of fair chase—rules of engagement that showed respect for game species. Only those trophies taken in fair chase were eligible to be included in the records books. Using self-restraint and good judgment became a badge of honor. It also shifted the benchmark for success from the quantity of game taken to the quality of the chase. Today, fair chase is widely accepted among sportsmen as doing the right thing even if the wrong thing is not illegal. In 1932, Prentiss N. Gray, a longtime Club member, authored the Club’s first biggame records book, Records of North American Big Game, published in collaboration with the National Collection of Heads and Horns. This volume was followed in 1939 by a second edition, North

JA MES H ATH AWAY K IDDER

PR EN TISS N. GR AY

1902

1908-1910

1931-1934

A LFR ED ELY

1934-1946

H A ROLD E . A N THON Y

1947-1950

SA MUEL B. W EBB

1951-1958

ROBERT S. WATER S

1959-1964

ELMER M. RUSTEN

1965-1970

JACK S. PA R K ER

1971-1977

PHILIP L . W R IGH T

1978-1986

WA LTER H. W HITE

1987-1994

C . R A N DA LL BY ER S

1995-2002

ELDON L . “BUCK” BUCK NER

2002-2011

R ICH A R D T. H A LE

2012-Present

| WI FAIR FAIR CHASE CHAS|EWI N TNETRE2R0 2170 1731 31

American Big Game. This edition was especially notable for several fine chapters focused on measurement and big game. Grancel Fitz had a lengthy chapter on his idea of a complex system of measurements that would, as a result of the numeric score total, rank trophies naturally. After the second World War, interest was renewed in big-game scoring and records-keeping. In 1947, the Club began annual Big Game Competitions, with winners being chosen by a Judges Panel. In 1949, Samuel B. Webb was chosen to chair a special committee for the Club to devise an equitable, objective, and consistent measurement system for North American big game. The committee worked during the year to arrive at the system adopted by the Club in 1950. Prior to publication, the system was circulated to 250 sportsmen, biologists, and other interested parties for their comments. Once adopted, the system quickly became established as the universally accepted standard for measuring native North American big game. The Club’s scoring system utilizes careful measurements of the enduring trophy characteristics of particular species to arrive at a numerical score that provides a reliable, reproducible ranking for all trophies of a category. The system places heavy emphasis on rewarding the most common antler or horn configuration for a species, which includes symmetry between right and left antler or horn. Biologically speaking, symmetry represents healthy or poor habitat conditions where the animal lived and the presence or absence of environmental stressors. Deducting from the final score those portions of the measured material that are non-symmetrical results in even, well-matched 32 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

trophies scoring better and placing higher in the rankings than equally-developed but mismatched trophies. For those antlered trophies with unusual amounts of abnormal antler material, non-typical categories were developed to give them recognition, as they would be unduly penalized in the typical categories. With the new system in place, the Club set about rescoring those trophies previously recognized in the 1932 and 1939 records books. The results, along with other trophies qualifying under the new system, were published in the 1952 records book, the first book that used the Club’s copyrighted scoring system adopted in 1950. It was followed by later editions with this 14th edition being the most recent. In 1984, in order to boost participation from sportsmen and to broaden the scope of the data being collected, the Club established its Awards Program and associated records book with lower minimum entry scores than the All-time book. A special 18th Awards Program records book titled Boone and Crockett Club’s 18th Big Game Awards, was published. Its listings were limited to the 950 trophies accepted during the 18th Awards Program entry period of 1980-1982. Awards Program records books have been subsequently published every three years, the year following the close of each Triennial Awards Program. Thus, there is an All-time records book every six years and an Awards Program records book every three years. The two books differ in important ways. The All-time records book includes all trophies over current All-time minimum entry scores and the Awards Program records book includes only those trophies of the stated three-year Awards Program, as based on the

lower entry minimums applicable for many categories. Ent r ies accepted during two Awards Program entry periods that score at or above the stated minimums and meet other requirements will be added to the listings of the last book to comprise the next edition of the All-time records book. Of course, only trophies never before entered and/or published in a Boone and Crockett Club records book can be accepted as entries. The Club’s original annual competitions that began in 1947 were changed to a triennial basis in 1968. In the early 1970s, the word “competition” was changed to “awards” to better identify the basic concept of recognizing fine trophies taken under conditions of fair chase rather than competition of such trophies. The three-year basis of trophy entry continues today. Following the close of each Awards Program entry period, the finest few trophies of each category are invited to a central location for verification by a Judges Panel. Trophies re-measured by the Judges Panel and subsequently certified by the panel for awards are eligible to receive the Boone and Crockett Club Big Game Medal and/or Certificate. Trophies receiving awards are featured with photos and their hunting stories in the Awards Program records book, (e.g., Boone and Crockett Club’s 29th Big Game Awards) published the year following the close of an Awards Program entry period. I will close by reaching back to the foreword of the Club’s historic 1939

publication, North American Big Game: If big game hunting is to survive in this country, we must have game conservation… It is a lamentable fact that we have been prodigal with our resources of big game to a point where many of our present-day species exist in very small numbers… If only our nation can be brought to a realization that conservation and game management can be practiced successfully to the glory and benefit of mankind, a great victory will have been won in the struggle to preserve one of our most priceless natural heritages. The Committee urges all who read this volume and are interested in the perpetuation of this heritage to enlist with those who are fighting this battle.

We can say that “a great victory” has been won, but the battle continues. The original vision of trophy records articulated earlier, coupled with the critical concept of fair chase, has come to fruition. Some would even say that the golden days of big game hunting are today. We pay homage here to those early visionaries who pleaded for an awakening in this country and pledge to continue their legacy. n

Records of North American Big Game, 14th Edition is available in a two-volume set. Don’t miss Hollingsworth’s complete foreword, not to mention over 32,000 big game trophy listings. See page 42 for details about ordering a Collector’s Edition Set of the new records book.

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CHARLIE EBBERS B&C OFFICIAL MEASURER Photos Courtesy of Author

The hunt for a dead ram One Official Measurer’s afternoon with Professional member and Official Measurer Eric Rominger Ph.D. chasing down New Mexico’s newest bighorn herd

34 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

“Kai-T, that big ram is dead,”

Eric Rominger, a bighorn sheep biologist for the state of New Mexico, said.

“No way, where?” Kai-T Blue-Sky wildlife biologist for Cochiti Pueblo responded. “It’s the only one I’m hearing,” Rominger said as he scanned the countryside with his telemetry device and listened to the steady beep-beep-beep-beep. “I think he’s in the canyon on the left.” Rominger turned and looked at me and said with his cigar-stained voice, “a mystery,” and smiled. It was a dark April day. Hail, rain, and snow squalls whipped across the high desert all morning, and I figured Rominger would rain check our plans. When I called to ask, he laughed and said, “We’re going.” Bighorns had been missing from the Cochiti Canyon area since the 1880s, and a lot of people and agencies have been working to get them back since around 2001. The first of three translocations started in 2014. The last one was in March 2017 when the state added 34 more bighorns. Rominger and I hatched a plan to go and check in to see how things were going with the budding herd. I met up with him at the New Mexico Game and Fish complex in Santa Fe, and then he pointed the truck west towards the canyon and New Mexico’s Jemez herd. Cochiti Canyon is north of Albuquerque and west of Santa Fe but not far from either. The deep canyon walls are made up of different colored layers, and the sun has baked all of them. The canyon was burned through during the Las Conchas fire of 2011,

the largest wildfire in New Mexico’s history at the time. The fire made the canyon look like the charred surface of the moon, but when it burned out the old growth, it created good bighorn sheep habitat. We drove through Cochiti Pueblo and started up the dirt forest service road to the first release area. We drove across creeks, and Rominger crept the truck up the mudslicked route to the first good overlook. When we got there, I threw on my rainjacket and Rominger pulled out his telemetry gear to scan the area. We met up with Kai-T Blue-Sky. He and Rominger talked about the most recent bighorn sightings. Blue-Sky pointed out a mesa across the mouth of the canyon where he said the bighorns had been seen. “They tend to hang out near the Henat Katrut Mesa,” a prominent mesa also called “Horn Mesa” above the village, where he tells me the Cochiti people faced off with Diego de Vargas in the 1690s. Leaders of the Cochiti Tribe came out for the two big releases of the bighorns, and Blue-Sky would like the tribe to be an active part of the reintroduction. “It’s much more significant than just letting sheep off a truck,” he said. “The sheep are a segue to working with our neighbors.” The mountain sheep are seen as a revitalization of the tribe’s heart and will. The weather started to lift a bit while we talked. As Rominger tried different channels on the telemetry

receiver, we looked out at the cold blue of the distant Sandia Mountains while the wind whipped the pickup truck. “The mountains and canyons are a part of us, and we are a part of them,” Blue-Sky said. In August 2014, New Mexico Game and Fish worked with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to capture the first 45 Rocky Mountain bighorns from the Wheeler Peak Wilderness and bring them to the canyon. They were alpine sheep transferred into torched canyon country, and they set to ranging far and wide across all the land that would be their new home. The first set of bighorns traveled up through White Rock Canyon, up to Bandelier National Monu ment , w a nder e d through the nearby pueblo lands, came near the edge of the city of Los Alamos, and worked their way through the nearby national forests just to come back to the canyon during the rut. The majority of the land considered suitable for the reintroduction, about 51 percent, is USFS ground, including the Dome Wilderness. About 30 percent is National Park Service land, eight percent belongs to the state of New Mexico, about five percent is Department of Energy and five percent is private, and two percent are Jemez and Cochiti pueblo lands. The effort to bring the bighorn sheep back has been a collaborative effort between all of the agencies, and Rominger has been there the whole way through. Rominger tells me

Eric Rominger scans the area with his telemetry gear.

he doesn’t expect there will be a huntable population of sheep in the canyon for another six to eight years, but that the area may be able to hold 400 bighorns. We got back into the trucks and drove further up the canyon. We hadn’t gotten a signal at the first lookout point, so we kept at it. When we pulled over again, the rainclouds had blown past; still no signal, just a few hoof tracks in the middle of the road. Rominger walked alone to a point off the side of the road and listened. When he came back, he told us that the collar of the biggest ram of the entire herd was sending out a mortality signal. With that news, I knew the hunt was on. We were in a bad place to start down-climbing, so we went up the road to find a good place to work down toward the bottom of the canyon through a dry creek bed. We said adios

Cochiti Canyon is north of Albuquerque and west of Santa Fe but not far from either. The deep canyon walls are made up of different colored layers, and the sun has baked all of them. The canyon was burned through during the Las Conchas fire of 2011, the largest wildfire in New Mexico’s history at the time. The fire made the canyon look like the charred surface of the moon, but when it burned out the old growth, it created good bighorn sheep habitat.

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 35

to a few of Blue-Sky’s compatriots after fishing a weather balloon out of a burned snag, and the four of us—Rominger, Blue-Sky, a quiet young tribal officer named DJ, and I—started the descent. Once we started walking through small bunch grasses and forbes, I noticed the low-growing mountain mahogany that had been browsed by either deer or bighorn sheep. Buckbrush, Gamble oak, and New Mexican locust (Robinia neomexicana) had taken hold since the fire, all good food for critters. Rominger continually checked his receiver and the beeps grew louder. About halfway towards the bottom we had to sidehill the creek bottom because of the treacherous dropoffs, and I glassed white bone next to a little rainwater pool. I tried to beat Rominger and the others to it, and when I got there, I found the rotten skull of a bighorn ewe, one that had probably met its demise up the creek and had been washed down along with its femur. Prior to the 2017

release, New Mexico Game and Fish estimated that there were around 60-75 bighorn sheep in the area. The state has confirmed that three radio-collared bighorns have been killed by lions so far, but believe a few more have been picked off over the years. With the original 45 bighorns, another three rams released in 2016, and the additional 34 released this last spring, there are probably more with lambing the last three springs, but the state doesn’t account for lamb recruitment just yet. Rominger believes 25-30 lambs have been recruited to date, making the total population somewhere around 105-120 bighorns. The two bigger, breeder rams were culled by hunters on a special license this past fall to stymie any inbreeding. The ram we were after was as dead as the ewe lying in front of me, but we didn’t know how he died or where he was, so we continued down the rocky creek. A canyon wren called, while the sound

There were sheer rock faces surrounding the canyon bottom, and the telemetry signal may have bounced off of any one of them.

36 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

of the telemetry signal grew. “It’s just around this corner, 100 yards or less,” Rominger said. According to him, radio tracking is an art, one that takes years to perfect, and lucky for me, he’d been in the business a long time. The four of us combed the bottomland in the spring sunshine for a good 40 minutes till we were all sweating and breathing heavily, but still no sign of the ram. We were directly below the second point where Rominger had first heard the signal. We could look up the wall and see where he had been. There were sheer rock faces surrounding the canyon bottom, and the telemetry signal may have bounced off of any one of them. The dull part of the hunt was on—the time when I started thinking about what else I should be doing somewhere else—and a little doubt crept in. The receiver would catch signals bouncing off of rock walls, and since we were at the bottom of a canyon, and there was no dead ram, it could be anywhere.

I wasn’t the only one with doubts. There was no smell, no scavenger birds or bones strewn across the ground. All that was around was rock, desert plants and soft sand. Rominger told me that we might just be looking for a collar someone had hucked off of a high point near the road. Blue-Sky and DJ started drifting away to look at a flowering cactus. We decided to leave the creek bottom and head up the hill at an angle back towards the trucks, and after we climbed about a hundred yards up the hill we smelled the musky scent of sheep. The doldrums fell away in a hurry. We looked for trees, rocks, and bushes along the hillside where a body could be stashed and worked our way from place to place, but then we lost the scent. DJ and I worked ahead to about 100 vertical feet up the hill when all of sudden he

FAIR CHASE | WI Â© N 2017 T E RYETI 2 0Coolers, 17 37LLC

stopped, like a setter sniffing out a pheasant, and he said, “It smells like death.” We called to the others, and they came over by us; the receiver’s beeps didn’t sound louder to me, but to Rominger’s ear they had grown sharper. If we were going to find anything, we had to climb the route out of the canyon that we didn’t want to descend earlier. We stuck together the best we could, but the loose ground made it dangerous for us to stay too close together, so we worked our way up slowly. Near the top, Blue-Sky and I took a breather, and he told me a little more about the history of his people and the land. I knew little about his tribe though I grew up less than 30 miles away. While we were talking, Rominger worked his way through the piñon-juniper stand nearby. “Found him!” When we got to him, Rominger was in good spirits and walked us through his hypothesis as to what had happened to the only big ram left in the area. He stood on a rock above the remains, grabbed a stick, and pointed out the drag marks above the body. The dead body had been drug from above down the dry wash, and we could see broken branches and places where the dirt had been scuffed up. The only thing left of the body besides the skull, bone, and fur was the rumen and its smell. The ram’s neck was broken just below the skull. We searched the area for some sort of indication of a lion, and soon found some fine grain hair on a branch along the drag path that didn’t come from the sheep. We looked for more, and then decided we’d better get moving towards the trucks. The temperature was dropping, and we’d found what we were looking for. As we waited for a minute at the top of the hill,

38 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

it turned out DJ had already split for the truck, so we climbed in his rig and drove to ours. Everyone was pretty excited about what had just happened, and we needed a minute to collect ourselves. Rominger said that the ram had definitely been alive when they flew the survey in December, which means he had made it through the rut, and he would likely be the primary breeder of the new lamb crop of 2017. The ram’s genes had probably made it into the herd, and there’d be no chance of inbreeding as he had been brought in during the spring of 2016. The herd was doing pretty well. There were no longer any rams over the age of four in the herd, and a new batch of lambs were on the way. We drove our truck further along the canyon’s rim with DJ and Blue-Sky following in their pickup. Rominger pointed out different landmarks along the way. We got into deep mud and barely made it through, so we all got out and stood above Cochiti Canyon. Blue-Sky told us that as a young boy, before the fire burned all the trees away, he would walk the canyon and fish and camp for a week, back when the canyon didn’t hold any bighorns. Rominger, DJ, and I listened and we watched the sun make its way low on the horizon. We knew the same thing, the bighorns were back and the hunt was over. n Charles Ebbers loves Glacier National Park and North America’s wildlife. He first started working in the park in 2010. He went to school to learn how to be a journalist, and has ended up working with local, regional, state and national publications. This past summer was his eighth season building trail in Glacier. Charlie lives in News Mexico when he is not in Glacier and met Eric Rominger at a B&C Official Measurers workshop in 2012.

Found Him!

According to Eric, radio tracking is an art, one that takes years to perfect, and lucky for me, he’d been in the business a long time. The ram’s genes had probably made it into the herd, and there’d be no chance of inbreeding as he had been brought in during the spring of 2016. The herd was doing pretty well. There were no longer any rams over the age of four in the herd, and a new batch of lambs were on the way.

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Guns for Conservation

A dynamic new way to support the Boone and Crockett Club

The Boone and Crockett Club is fortunate to serve a membership that shares a profound dedication to the mission. Now, following two years of careful planning and preparation, it is a pleasure to introduce Guns For Conservation, a program that creates a new way to contribute to the Boone and Crockett Club. Funds raised from the Guns For Conservation program are placed in the Boone and Crockett Club Foundation endowment where the principal remains intact, and the annual interest income generated provides permanent funding for vital conservation programs.

Support the Boone and Crockett Club by contributing:

Guns For Conservation provides you with the opportunity to support the Club through the donation of ﬁrearms, sporting collectibles, wildlife art and hunting books. The program is both simple and ﬂexible, allowing contributions to be made at any time, scheduled over time or formally integrated into the estate planning process.

Firearms Sporting Collectibles Wildlife Art Books & Accessories

The Club has chosen to work with our friends at Sportsman’s Legacy to ensure that every aspect of the program will be handled legally and professionally. Market valuations will be carefully prepared and items will be properly presented on the national stage to ensure that you and the Club receive full market values. Sportsman’s Legacy also stands ready to assist you with all aspects of related planning, legal transfer, transport and other logistics. For additional information regarding the Guns For Conservation program or to discuss a contribution, please contact Jodi Bishop at Jodi@boone-crockett.org or 406/542-1888. 40 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB

GIFT GUIDE HOLIDAY 2017

GIFT IDEAS FOR THE HUNTERS ON YOUR LIST!

Shop on-line at www.boone-crockett.org Cover photo of B&C Member Belmore Browne exploring the Alaska Range, featured in the chapter on Denali in Records of North American Big Game, 14th Edition

Order Today! Call Toll-Free 888/840-4868 or Visit www.Boone-Crockett.org

See Page 44 for more details on this new records book. FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 41

RECORDS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME, 14TH EDITION LIMITED QUANTITIES AVAILABLE!

These one-of-a-kind records books live up to their long-standing reputation with more than 32,000 trophy listings, hundreds of color photos and intriguing chapters. In its fourteenth edition since the original book was published by B&C in 1932, this latest edition has grown to over 900 pages split between two-volumes. This Collector’s Set includes two, hardcover volumes with dust jackets packaged in a custom slipcase. Each book is coffee-table quality with full-color printing throughout. Definitely an upgrade from the previous edition!

WHAT’S INSIDE THE SET: n

Listings of more than 32,000 North American big game trophies in 38 categories—an increase of over 5,000 trophies from the previous edition— including B&C final and gross scores, detailed measurements, plus location and year taken.

Four new World’s Records since the previous edition—Alaska-Yukon moose, pronghorn, Rocky Mountain goat, and bighorn sheep.

Stories, photos, and score charts for the World’s Records in all 38 categories, plus over 300 images of the top-ranking big game animals.

Over 350 color field photos.

Entertaining chapters and photo essays including updates on the current status of mule deer and thin-horn sheep, special photo essays about hunting in Alaska and the Rocky Mountains, plus special sections on historic firearms and the story of how hunters are responsible for establishing Denali National Park.

LESS THAN 250 COPIES REMAIN!

We’ve only produced 1,000 copies of this hard cover Collector’s Set. Once they are sold out, no more hard cover books will be made available. Books are not available separately. COLLECTOR’S EDITION

Limited to 1,000 sets Two volumes in a custom slipcase n 560 and 416 pages n Hard cover with dust jackets n 8.5 x 11 inches n Nearly 800 color photographs n n

BRR14 | $200 ASSOCIATES PAY ONLY $160

42 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

Boone and Crockett Holiday Books and Gift Clothing Guide

Order Today! Call Toll-Free 888/840-4868 or Visit www.boone-crockett.org FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 43

GIFT IDEAS FOR THE SPORTSMEN ON YOUR LIST! FROM GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS TO YETI MUGS TO BOOKS

GIVE THE GIFT OF FAIR CHASE! We hope you have enjoyed your association with Boone and Crockett Club and have been able to see what B&C is doing to protect hunting, promote wildlife conservation, and educate the public.

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THEIR WELCOME PACKAGE INCLUDES:

The first of four issues of Fair Chase magazine n Login/Information card n Boone and Crockett window decal n Access to the on-line community: Searchable field photos from the B&C Records database. Individual scoring database where you can score your trophies on-line. Electronic archives of past Fair Chase feature articles. n A 20% discount on select Club publications and B&C branded merchandise on www.boone-crockett.org. n A customizable gift card from you! n

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NOTE: Fair Chase Gift subscriptions are not available on our regular B&C web store.

Go to WWW.BCSTORE.ORG to give a gift subscription online, call 888/840-4868 or fill out the mail-in order form in this issue.

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ARE YOU A FAIR CHASE HUNTER? A classic, comfortable tee with a modern fit. 100% combed cotton, Fine jersey, slim fit, double stitched n Made in the USA, sweatshop free n Adult Sizing (S, M, L, XL, XXL) n Available (from top to bottom) in black, asphalt, navy, white, and heather grey n

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Go to WWW.BCSTORE.ORG to order your t-shirt today. ATFCH | $25 NO ASSOCIATE DISCOUNT

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STUDYING MULE DEER IN OREGON Wildlife managers, hunters, and other conservationists have long been concerned about the decline in mule deer populations throughout the West. Is it predation? Is it hunting? Is it habitat? Is it human land uses? Is it poaching? There has been a lot of speculation as to the causes and remedies, and fortunately, many agencies are investing in science in order to unravel the mysteries surrounding the decline. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) conducted a 7-year study from 2005 to 2012 to look at habitat use and survival of mule deer in eastern and south-central Oregon. Agency researchers radio-collared 621 mule deer as part of this study. Graduate student Lizz Schuyler and assistant unit leader Dr. Katie Dugger of the USGS Oregon Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, in collaboration with DeWaine Jackson of ODFW, used the radio-telemetry data to estimate the survival rates and describe causes of mortality of the collared mule deer. They also looked at how seasonal distribution, movements, and environmental factors such as climate and weather patterns influenced survival. Their study revealed some fascinating insights that I’ll describe in brief below. Lizz and Katie were able to determine the fate of 408 adult female radio-collared mule deer, and these data formed the basis for their estimates of monthly survival rates and the factors that affected survival. The factors that best explained variation 48 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

in survival were related to migration and precipitation on winter ranges. Female mule deer that migrated between winter and summer ranges had significantly higher annual survival rates than those that did not, although both groups suffered lower survival during the October/ November fall migration period. Precipitation during winter on individual winter ranges correlated with survival—more precipitation, higher survival. Lizz and Katie separated males from females in their analyses of causes of mule deer mortality. Not surprisingly, the highest mortality risk for males was harvest (approximately 32 percent), followed by predation (approximately 12 percent). For females, the highest mortality risks were associated with predation (approximately 7 percent), human (non-hunting) causes (approximately 5 percent), and illegal harvest (approximately 4 percent). The higher survival of migrant mule deer across all months suggests the benefits gained by moving to better forage areas outweighs the costs associated with risks and energy expenditure incurred during migration. An ongoing study in Wyoming by Dr. Matt Kaufmann, leader of the USGS Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit has shown mule deer migrations in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem in effect “surf the green wave”—meaning the migrations are timed so that foraging is optimized throughout the migration route. Moving from lower elevations to higher elevations allows the Wyoming deer to intercept

SCIENCE BLASTS

plants in the spring at their most nutritious stage. Whether this phenomenon is at play or not in Oregon requires a closer look, but it is likely. Another possible explanation for the lower survival of the resident non-migratory deer is that their year-round ranges may have poorer food and greater human disturbances. The positive effects of winter precipitation could be due to an increase in winter food quality and quantity. The relative importance of illegal harvest as a mortality factor for female deer, even though it was only 4 percent, is disturbing. What we learned from this study is that more than twice as many male mule deer in south-central Oregon were killed by a hunter than by a predator (cougar or coyote), while an equal number of female mule deer were killed by a predator as by a fence or vehicle or a poacher. We also see evidence of the importance of migration corridors to mule deer survival. Identifying these corridors on the landscape and ensuring these habitats maintain their integrity will go a long ways to helping conserve mule deer. Drought is a serious problem in the West, and

JOHN F. ORGAN B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director of the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units

although there were no significant drought episodes during this study, the relationship of winter precipitation to survival suggests that drought could significantly affect survival. It is possible some mule deer will elect not to migrate to summer ranges during drought periods because the likelihood of better forage will be diminished. This study by Lizz Schuyler, Dr. Katie Dugger, and ODFW has given us some significant pieces of the puzzle associated with the decline of mule deer populations in the West. This, combined with other studies of this iconic species will help wildlife managers piece together a clearer picture of management actions needed to ensure future generations will be able to experience the excitement one feels when seeing a herd stotting across the landscape. n

The higher survival of migrant mule deer across all months suggests the benefits gained by moving to better forage areas outweighs the costs associated with risks and energy expenditure incurred during migration.

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EDUCATING THE

NEXT GENERATION OF

B&C UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS

CONSERVATION LEADERS The Boone and Crockett Club University Program is designed to provide science-based knowledge from seasoned wildlife professionals and educators to college graduates in the wildlife field to better prepare the graduates for the responsible and wise management of wildlife in the future.

The Wildlife Society and Boone and Crockett Club’s University Programs

PROMOTING PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENT In late September, the Boone a nd Crockett Club’s Un iver s it y P r o g ra m s provided its fellows the opportunity to learn from wildlife professionals from throughout North America. Boone and Crockett Fellows and professors from Michigan State University, Texas A&M University, University of Montana, Texas A&M University– Kingsville, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, and Mississippi State University gathered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and joined 1,844 other wildlife professionals at the annual meeting of The Wildlife Society. The Wildlife Society is the professional organization of wildlife biologists with nearly 10,000 members. The five-day meeting was an extravaganza of 87 sessions of oral presentations, 260 posters, and 19 workshops. The B&C’s University Programs organized a symposium that presented case studies and lessons from prominent wildlife professionals on the delicate balance between stakeholder engagement and scientific decision making when formulating wildlife policy. Boone and 50 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

Crockett professional members Becky Humphries, Eric Rominger, John Organ, Laura Van Riper, and Robert Brown shared their experiences along with eight other prominent wildlife biologists. The room was filled to capacity with dozens of participants standing along the walls. Boone and Crockett Fellows and faculty were given a more intimate networking and learning opportunity during a special luncheon hosted by the Boone and Crockett Club and University Programs. Boone and Crockett Professor Bill Porter opened the luncheon with the story of wildlife conservation in North America summarized through the contributions of five generations of conservationists. The story started with Theodore Roosevelt’s and Gifford Pinchot’s generation, which realized many wildlife species were headed toward extinction and took action by establishing the idea of wildlife conservation. Next was the development of the wildlife professional by Aldo Leopold’s generation followed by the scientific underpinnings developed by the third generation of wildlife biologists represented by the likes of Paul Errington and Herbert

Stoddard. The fourth generation, composed of today’s leaders in the wildlife profession, came of age as society codified wildlife conservation through policy and legislation developed and passed in the 1970s and 1980s. The fifth generation is represented by today’s Boone Crockett Fellows who use advances in technology to generate new dimensions in our understanding of the natural world and thereby provide the knowledge necessary for effective management and policies. After getting to know each other during conversations over lunch, Boone and Crockett Professional Member Wini Kessler addressed the group. The insights Wini shared took on additional meaning because two days earlier Wini had been presented the Aldo Leopold Award, the highest honor bestowed by The Wildlife Society. Wini used experiences from her long and storied career to help the B&C Fellows understand the importance of developing, nurturing, and employing professional networks. She explained why having a broad network of people not directly associated with the wildlife profession can make for a more effective

wildlife professional. She emphasized the importance of working to maintain a professional network and made it clear that a long list of friends in social media is not the same as a network of friends and colleagues cultivated by frequent, personal interactions. She encouraged fellows to pick up the phone instead of engaging members using impersonal emails, texts, and postings. Finally, Wini encouraged B&C Fellows to include established biologists in their professional network because those more seasoned members of the wildlife profession stand to benefit tremendously from the enthusiasm of the fellows and from the innovative techniques and approaches this newest generation of biologist are developing. Boone and Crockett Fellows closed the networking loop when they shared results of their research in poster and oral presentations. In doing so, the fellows made their findings available for use in research, management, and policy development and demonstrated that the B&C Club is making a difference in wildlife conservation. n

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB SPONSORED SYMPOSIUM CHALLENGES OF BALANCING STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT AND SCIENTIFIC DECISION-MAKING TO INFORM WILDLIFE POLICY

During the past several decades, The Wildlife Society has become recognized as the organization of wildlife professionals in North America and throughout the world. The wildlife profession is solidly founded in the disciplines of biological, quantitative, and social sciences, yet wildlife professionals also must function within the reality of political and public arenas. Thus, in their efforts to manage and conserve wildlife populations and habitats, wildlife biologists often encounter politically and publicly challenging situations. Sometimes, political motivations or public special interests may interfere with the objective and scientific programs or projects being conducted by wildlife professionals. In these situations, political and public interests may not only question the scientific validity of the wildlife programs or projects, but they may even cast aspersions as to the integrity and motivations of the wildlife professionals who are in charge of the programs or projects. This symposium includes presentations from speakers who have had experiences in the real world working with state and federal agencies and non-governmental organizations that will enable them to address situations where wildlife policy programs have succeeded or failed. These experiences should help symposium attendees to be better prepared to deal with the challenge of having science guide the decision-making process associated with wildlife management. n

Rebecca Humphries

Laura Van Riper

Conservation Decision-Making through Transparency, Inclusion, and Use of Best Available Science—Rebecca Humphries, B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Control of Apex Predators During the Restoration of Endangered Ungulates— Eric M. Rominger, B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Integrating Stakeholder Input and Science in Governance of the Public Trust in Wildlife —John F. Organ, B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER; Shawn A. Riley; Daniel J. Decker

John F. Organ

Effective Implementation of the Endangered Species Act By Engaging Multiple Stakeholders —Nancy E. Mathews Transforming Conflict and Fostering Collaborative Action: Critical Components in the Successful Development and Implementation of Wildlife Policy—Laura Van Riper, B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Moving Feral Cat Management Forward —Christopher A. Lepczyk The Politics of Deer Farming in North Carolina – Lessons Learned—Robert D. Brown, B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER The Art of Deer Management: Finding the Sweet Spot between Biological Reality and Public Acceptance —Jason A. Sumners

Eric M. Rominger

Conservation By Conflict—Sherry L. Barrett Canary in the Marijuana Field: How Wildlife Engaged Stakeholders and Policy in Addressing Environmental Impacts from Marijuana Cultivation in the Western United States— Mourad W. Gabriel

Professors and fellows were able to network and share stories at the University Programs luncheon coordinated by Professor Bill Porter from Michigan State University.

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KESSLER CELEBRATES PINNACLE OF CAREER

DANA KOBILINSKY SCIENCE WRITER AT THE WILDLIFE SOCIETY Reprinted with permission of The Wildlife Society Photos Courtesy of Julie Tripp

WITH ALDO LEOPOLD AWARD

Wini Kessler won the highest honor presented by The Wildlife Society, the Aldo Leopold Memorial Award. She accepted the award at this year’s annual TWS conference in New Mexico. When Winifred “Wini” Kessler learned that she achieved the highest honor bestowed by The Wildlife Society, the Aldo Leopold Memorial Award, she was shocked, she said, and “feeling like a rock star.” “It’s not something I ever pictured myself getting,” said Kessler, who’s been a member of The Wildlife Society since 1973 and served as TWS president in 2012-2013. “It just means so much to me because it comes from the wildlife community itself. It’s great. It says, ‘OK, I’ve had a career well-lived.” Kessler is now the second woman to receive the

award. Lucille Stickel was the last recipient, in 1974. Kessler began studying zoology as an undergraduate at the University of California-Berkeley. While she didn’t know about the field of wildlife biology, her brother told her about a professor at the university who worked on wildlife management. His name was Starker Leopold, the son of Aldo Leopold, the man who pioneered the field of wildlife management. She met Starker Leopold, received advice on what she needed to know for the field, began attending seminars and signed up for a few classes. At the time, the program had no women. “It was kind of uncomfortable,” she said. “I was the only one in a class full of men, and all of the professors were males.” But her mentors, including Starker Leopold, were

Winifred Kessler addressed the group at the B&C University Programs Luncheon.

willing to “take the risk” of working with women, she said. Leopold introduced Kessler to Harald Heady, an ecologist in the range management program who took on three women as master’s students. “They called us ‘Heady’s harem,” she said. Another mentor, Harald Biswell, took her on as a research assistant to study fire ecology. She had great experiences in academia, she said, but finding a job was not so easy. “The jobs I wanted were field jobs that were not open to women,” she said. “That was kind of discouraging.” It was also a big factor in Kessler pursuing her doctorate. “They were not open to me, so I’d get so darn qualified they’d have to accept me,” she said. While she was getting her PhD at Texas A&M University, the field was beginning to accept more women. At 27 years old, she landed her first job, as an assistant professor at the University of Idaho. Since then, she’s held many positions in both academics and government agencies.

She taught at Utah State University, chaired the forestry program at the University of Northern British Columbia and worked with the U.S. Forest Service for 21 years in positions such as Alaska regional ecologist, national wildlife ecologist and Alaska regional director of wildlife, fisheries, ecology and watershed management. Throughout her career, she’s seen the field of wildlife biology accept more women and minorities. She was vice president at the 2011 TWS Annual Conference in Hawaii where the first Women of Wildlife reception was held and was pleasantly surprised at the large turnout. “It was really exciting. I’ll never forget that,” she said. While Kessler is retired, by no means is she slowing down. She’s serving on a number of boards, including the Ducks Unlimited Canada board, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation, the Wildlife and Hunting Heritage Conservation Council and others. She also continues to volunteer for the Boone and Crockett Club, where she became its first female professional member, in 1993. “I’ve had such a great career, and I think I’ve amassed pertinent experience,” she said. “I’ve learned a lot, and now I’m giving back.” n

Wini has contributed to Fair Chase since 2002. Read articles and her column ‘Knowledge Base’ online in the B&C Associates community.

52 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

FAIR FAIR CHASE CHASE | | WI S PN RITN EG R 2 0 17 53

FAIR CHASE IS THE FOUNDATION OF AN OVERALL CONSERVATION ETHIC “The true hunter counts his achievement in proportion to the effort involved and the fairness of the sport.”

©MICHAEL J. OPTIZ

— SAXTON POPE

54 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

A message brought to you by

Conservation was based on the fact that people need and will use natural resources, including wildlife, but this use would now have to be regulated and guided by science. For society to accept this new idea over complete protection, Roosevelt and the Club began to promote another new concept: one called fair chase. PG. 62 THE ORIGINS OF FAIR CHASE

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 55

JOSHUA MILLSPAUGH

THE VALUE OF

BOONE AND CROCKETT PROFESSOR OF WILDLIFE CONSERVATION, W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation at the University of Montana

Sagebrush Country ACTIONABLE SCIENCE IN SAGEBRUSH COUNTRY Sage Grouse Initiative is a onestop-shop for science-based research, outcome-based evaluations, conservation planning tools, and educational materials on the sagebrush ecosystem. Check out these resources at Sagegrouseinitiative.com: n

Science to Solutions: a series of easy-to-read four-page summaries of the latest research on the range.

Interactive Web App: a free online mapping tool powered by Google Earth Engine that provides landscape-level and site-specific habitat data across 11 western states.

Field Guides & Fact Sheets: a suite of useful (and beautiful!) resources for landowner, partners, and the public that describe how to conserve the sagebrush sea.

The American Westâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sagebrush range provides some of the best hunting grounds in the world.

56 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

Stalking through

SAGE GROUSE INITIATIVE BY THE NUMBERS

the sage, I heard a sparrow trill as dawn pinkened the horizon. The pronghorn was grazing on waving bunchgrass as I lifted my rifle. Crack! He fell after a single leap. I inhaled the sharp, clean scent of sagebush as I knelt beside the antelope, appreciative of the wide-open rangeland that fed this animal that would now feed me.

After growing up in the forests of upstate New York, my first impression of the West’s vast sea of sage was “monotonous.” It’s proven me wrong again and again. What looks homogeneous at first glance is actually filled with extraordinary wildflowers, lush riparian areas, and all sorts of wildlife species that are uniquely adapted to live in a harsh, open environment. My favorite part about sagebrush country is the surprising diversity of animals and plants that live there. The more I’ve learned about this dynamic and diverse ecosystem, the more I’ve come to value it—both as a hunter and as a scientist. The American West’s sagebrush range provides some of the best hunting grounds in the world. This ecosystem—which spans 13 western states—shelters and feeds pronghorn, mule deer, elk, and a host of upland birds. It also supports thousands of working ranches and hundreds of rural communities. I’ve conducted wildlife research in many parts of the United States and in several places in South Africa, and I can vouch for the fact that the sagebrush sea is special. I first spent significant time out

West while researching elk in the Black Hills of South Dakota—close to where I shot the pronghorn. After that, I came to know sagebrush ecosystems while overseeing a sage grouse research project that took place on a vast private ranch in southcentral Wyoming. I distinctly remember having lunch one day in the field after tracking sage grouse that morning. We were hunkered in a small aspen grove to catch a break from the high-elevation sun. All of a sudden, I saw movement out of the corner of my eye—an elk! It was an unexpected encounter, as I hadn’t considered seeing elk in this very small patch of forest surrounded by sage. But like 350 other species, elk rely on sagebrush habitat, especially during the winter months when they seek out nutritious sage leaves and other easy-to-access forage on the range. Given 40 percent of sage grouse range overlaps with elk range, it made sense that we saw elk while searching for the West’s iconic upland bird. THE BIGGEST UPLAND BIRD

I’ve had a soft spot for upland birds ever since I was a young

5.6 million acres conserved since 2010

8 million acres projected to be conserved by 2018

More than 1,500 ranchers enrolled in conservation programs

boy, when I hunted pheasants and ruffed grouse with my family. In particular, I’ve always been fascinated by the elaborate mating rituals of grouse species. Communal lekking is one of the most interesting behaviors in the animal world. Needless to say, I was excited to lead a long-term study researching the largest—and most famous—upland bird in the nation: the greater sage grouse. The first time I held a sage grouse, I was blown away: it was bigger than I’d imagined. I was driving across the ranch on an ATV one night with my graduate student and research assistant, searching for a sage grouse to tag. The Wyoming sky was bright with stars above us, and our spotlight uncovered all sorts of nocturnal critters amidst the sage. We finally found one, capturing the wily bird in a hoop-net. Since I’d mainly worked with mammals, putting the small GPS transmitter on the hen was trickier than expected, to say the least. She was quite an armful! Over the next six years, I oversaw two graduate student projects researching different aspects of greater FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 57

SAVING SAGEBRUSH RANGE

The once-vast sagebrush sea is getting chopped up by invasive weeds, energy and housing developments, cropland conversion, encroaching conifers, and more extreme wildfires. Sage grouse are the “canary in the coal mine” that herald how this vital ecosystem is faring. These birds rely entirely on sagebrush-dominated landscapes: it’s their primary food source, their breeding grounds, their chick-rearing sites, their safe zones from hungry predators. Unfortunately, sage grouse populations have dwindled to just 10 percent of their historic numbers. This decline led the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to add the greater sage grouse to its candidate list in 2010 for potential listing under the federal Endangered Species Act. That same year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service launched the Sage Grouse Initiative to focus Farm Bill resources on voluntary, proactive conservation on private agricultural lands.

Although some human-generated intrusions have been linked to the decline of the bird, sustainable ranching can actually improve habitat. I saw first-hand the environmental benefits of wildlife-friendly grazing on the vast Wyoming ranch where I researched sage grouse. Since half of all remaining sage grouse reside on private lands, ranchers are the linchpin for maintaining healthy, intact range that these birds—and all sagebrush-dependent wildlife— rely upon. Through the Sage Grouse Initiative, ranchers, industry leaders, nonprofit organizations, and local, state and federal government agencies are banding together under a shared vision: wildlife conservation through sustainable ranching. Conservation practices put in place on private rangelands include implementing sustainable grazing systems, removing invading conifers, keeping lands intact through conservation easements, restoring and protecting wet meadows, and marking fences to prevent bird collisions.

Elk rely on sagebrush habitat, especially during the winter months when they seek out nutritious sage leaves and other easy-to-access forage on the range.

58 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

SAGE GROUSE INITIATIVE’S PRIVATE LAND CONSERVATION PRIORITIES n

Remove encroaching conifers to prevent the loss of native understory shrubs, grasses and forbs that feed big game animals and upland birds.

Implement prescribed grazing strategies on working lands to promote plant health and range productivity by adjusting timing, intensity, and duration of livestock use.

Control weeds and seed new plants to restore healthy vegetative communities and reduce the risk of large wildfires.

Secure conservation easements to permanently conserve intact, native rangelands that support both people and wildlife.

Enhance and conserve wet, green areas like streambanks, swales, and wet meadows that provide critical wildlife habitat.

sage grouse ecology and management on the ranch. The goal of this year-round study— which was a partnership between private industry, state and federal agencies, non-government organizations, and a university—was to establish comprehensive baseline information about the bird before a wind energy project was constructed in order to better evaluate potential impacts post-construction. In the summer, we measured the type of vegetation used by sage grouse. We also followed broods and monitored chick survival. In the winter, we relied on satellites or fly-overs to track the birds’ movements and survival rate. And in the spring, we monitored attendance on mating leks, as well as the males’ movements among leks. I grew more and more impressed by the birds’ ability to make a living in such an extreme environment where it’s hot in summer, frigid in winter, wide open, and hard to raise young. As if that isn’t enough, sagebrush-dependent wildlife face a bigger risk: the loss of their habitat.

Since 2010, the Sage Grouse Initiative has partnered with more than 1,500 ranchers to conserve over 5 million acres.

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 59

SCIENCE-BASED SUCCESS FOR MULTIPLE SPECIES

Part of the Sage Grouse Initiative’s recipe for success stems from the group’s reliance on applied science to guide project investments. By partnering with reputable scientists from universities and agencies across the nation—including scientists like my colleagues at the University of Montana (UM)—the Sage Grouse Initiative is able to strategically target conservation practices where they’re needed most. Plus, scientists also evaluate the resulting outcomes, helping to ensure conservation investments that yield the most ecological benefits. Co-producing science with organizations like the Boone and Crockett Club allows the Sage Grouse Initiative to do more with less, maximizing Farm Bill dollars. The resulting science-based outcomes and targeting tools we produce together also make it easier for landowners and resource managers to plan and prioritize their next conservation projects. Since sage grouse are considered an “umbrella 60 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

Since 2010, the Sage Grouse Initiative has partnered with more than 1,500 ranchers to conserve over 5 million acres, an area twice the size of Yellowstone National Park. In fact, this collaborative effort has proven so successful that the Natural Resources Conservation Service has since scaled-up its proactive, incentive-based sage grouse conservation model, and is now focusing Farm Bill funds in several other key landscapes across the nation. From salmon to cottontail rabbits, NRCS’ Working Lands for Wildlife is accelerating conservation on working farms and ranches in 30 states and across eight ecosystems.

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB’S RESEARCH PROJECT: RANCHES AS WILDLIFE HABITAT In spring 2017, Christopher Hansen, a doctoral student, and Dr. Joshua Millspaugh at the University of Montana, initiated a research project at the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch (TRMR) in Dupuyer, Montana, to study ranch management approaches that integrate wildlife sustainability with an emphasis on large mammals. Ranch managers play an important role in determining how wildlife habitat is utilized on a ranch. The goal of this research project is to provide information to help the ranch develop policies that guide management of the ranch’s wildlife habitat. Additionally, the project includes developing related K-12 educational opportunities and university teaching modules. Here are details on the study: n

TRMR will serve as one of several study sites in the research project.

Research is non-invasive and uses motion-triggered digital cameras to capture wildlife pictures.

Cameras are moved monthly, and will be run year-round in different habitats to study seasonal changes in wildlife use of TRMR.

Each issue of Fair Chase will contain the best images collected during the previous quarter. (See page 86.)

The project is funded by the Boone and Crockett Club University Program endowment at the University of Montana and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Collaborators include Luke Coccoli and Mike Briggs with the Boone and Crockett Club and co-investigator on the NSF grant, Dr. Roland Kays, a professor at North Carolina State University.

species,” the Sage Grouse Initiative’s win-win conservation model extends benefits to a host of other wildlife, too— which, in turn, benefits hunters who enjoy hunting big game across sagebrush country. For instance, in Wyoming, researchers found that conservation easements funded in part by the Sage Grouse Initiative also protect migratory pathways for mule deer, which also are affected by habitat conversion. One study showed that 75 percent of mule deer habitat is conserved through sage grouse conservation investments. The same goes for elk. Of the 550,000 acres permanently protected by Sage Grouse Initiative-funded conservation easements, 52 percent of the land is within elk

range. In particular, the Sage Grouse Initiative uniquely contributes to elk habitat conservation by protecting lower-elevation sagebrush rangelands that elk use during the winter months. As for pronghorn, University of Montana researchers recently discovered that antelope living along the border of Montana and Canada share their migratory pathways with sage grouse. Once again, Sage Grouse Initiative has costshared conservation easements that keep private working ranches intact to maintain this key migration corridor. These private lands provide stepping stones to adjacent public lands, which ensures these animals can access the habitat they need to survive and thrive on the range.

Researchers from the University of Montana also found that the abundance of songbird species, like the Brewer’s sparrow, increases by 50-80 percent in areas where expanding conifers are removed. Sage Grouse Initiative and its partners have removed juniper and pinyon-pine from over a half million acres in the West, opening up prime sagebrush habitat for all sorts of upland birds and songbirds in addition to sage grouse. Collaborative science like these studies in the sagebrush ecosystem are what teach us more about how the animals use the landscape and illustrate the value of partnerships with ranchers and the Sage Grouse Initiative. HOPEFUL HUNTING ON THE RANGE

This past June, I took my 7-year-old son, Owen, to B&C’s Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch for a weekend of fieldwork setting up wildlife cameras for a project intended to advance approaches for integrating ranching and wildlife management. As we entered a grove of aspen, we spotted a ruffed grouse who was content to sit on a tree branch as we slowly went by. Owen reminded me that I promised to take him and his bird dog grouse hunting again, just like last year. He was already as excited as me about chasing upland birds. I hope Owen also has the opportunity to hunt sage grouse as well as ruffed grouse with his own children someday. Thanks to the success of landscape-level conservation partnerships like the Sage Grouse Initiative, I’m hopeful that day will come sooner than later. Meanwhile, I’ll keep stalking the range for pronghorn, deer, and elk, grateful for the fact that the West still has healthy swaths of its beautiful sagebrush sea. n

Do What You Can “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing ... Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” —Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States of America and founder of the Boone and Crockett Club. You can do the right thing by making a year-end charitable gift to the Boone and Crockett Club Foundation. Your generous gift of cash, appreciated securities, mutual funds, real estate, a unitrust or a gift annuity will help insure the vitality of important programs for years to come. Plus, your gift will save more tax in 2017 and avoid an unintended “gift” to the government.

For more information, please contact: Winton C. Smith, J.D. 1-800-727-1040 wsmith@wintonsmith.com (560.51 1902-110) AND “THEODORE ROOSEVELT COLLECTION, HOUGHTON LIBRARY, HARVARD UNIVERSITY.”

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 61

THE ORIGINS OF FAIR CHASE As the Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s outreach campaign, Hunt Right; Hunt Fair Chase gathers steam this fall it is usually best to start such efforts at the beginning. The following is a post on the campaignâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website, and just the tip of the iceberg. The site is loaded with relevant information, forums and discussions, and is worth the time to join the conversation. We hope you will. www.huntfairchase.com

#HuntRight

Proudly Supported By:

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An ethical code of conduct, that which was viewed as the right way to approach hunting, was a concept that originally developed in Europe. This did not, however, carry over with the settlers to the New World. America was the land of abundance and opportunity. A life of independence, free from servitude and filled with promise, was there for the taking. All one had to do is be resourceful and take. How we hunted did not matter back then. There was no need or room for an ethical approach to hunting. Game was plentiful and hunting was not for sport, but for survival and profit. In time, when enough land was cleared for reliable food crops and domesticated livestock, food security became less of an issue for those living in more populated areas. These same human developments and decades of overharvesting had left wildlife population in scarce supply. Hunters had to venture further and further into the wilderness to bag their game.

The concept of resource use they called “conhunting for sport servation,” and they promoted began to develop regulated hunting as the founat this time, as dation for this new system. The earliest recorded did the need to r e s t r ic t t he usage of the term “Fair Chase” amount of game is in the fifth article of the taken so it could Boone and Crockett Club’s replenish and constitution, adopted in Febthere would be ruary of 1888. At this time in game to hunt history there were no laws tomorrow. This is governing the taking of game when the notion for food or for sport. Waof conservation ter-killing deer (driving deer first began to with hounds or pushers into appear, and along with it an lakes where shooters waited ethical approach to hunting in boats to either shoot, club that showed restraint. or cut the throats of deer) was By the late 1800s, un- a widespread practice, esperegulated sport and commer- cially in the Adirondacks. cial market hunting had taken Another article of the its toll. Wildlife was no longer Club’s constitution declared abundant or even present in that the killing of game while all but the furthest reaches of swimming was an “offense” rema in ing w i lder ness. for which a member may be Sportsmen already knew what suspended or expelled from was happening, but the broad- the Club. Later writings by er public was just beginning Club members Theodore Rooto take notice of the extinction sevelt, George Bird Grinnell, of some species and the near and Aldo Leopold articulated extinction of others. The log- the term “fair chase” to the ical solution was preservation public through books and and protection, which includ- magazine articles. Most noed an end to hunting. Those table of these were the Club’s closest to the situation had a Acorn book series on hunting (1893 – 1933), Leopold’s Sand different idea. Influential sportsmen County Almanac, and Grinwho valued the game they nell’s Forest and Stream magsought and the spirit of the azine—now Field & Stream. chase stepped forward; most Conser vation was notably Theodore Roosevelt. based on the fact that people He formed a group of his need and will use natural refriends into the Boone and sources, including wildlife, Crockett Club in 1887 to ad- but this use would now have dress the rapid decline of big to be regulated and guided by game populations on a nation- science. For society to accept al scale. Their Hunt Right solution was to promote a new system of natural

this new idea over complete protection, Roosevelt and the Club began to promote another new concept: one called fair chase. If hunting was going to be allowed to continue, how it was being conducted and the character of the hunter now mattered. Fair chase became a matter of pride and status. It separated those who hunted for personal reasons from those who hunted for profit, ie., the commercial market hunters who had no code of honor. Fair chase became a part of an overall conservation ethic. It defined a true sportsman as one who could kill game, yet use self-restraint and stand guard to ensure that wildlife populations would never be threatened again. It didn’t mean hunting was a sport like other contests, but rather its participants used a “sporting” approach. Fair chase defined the rules of engagement that elevated sportsmen to being highly respected members of the community, both for their skill as woodsman and providers, but also for their commitment to something greater than themselves. n

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EXCERPT FROM RECORDS OF NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME, 14TH EDITION VOLUME I

NOTEWORTH Y GUNS: FOCUS ON GR A NCEL FI TZ BY ELDON L. “BUCK” BUCKNER BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB Vice President of Big Game Records Photography by Mark Mesenko | Intro and collage styling by Julie L. Tripp

Firearms hold a special place when it comes to telling the history of both hunting and conservation. A special chapter in volume I of Records of North American Big Game 14th Edition showcases several firearms—some recently acquired through the help and generosity of gun enthusiast and long-time Boone and Crockett member, Buck Buckner.

Along with Fitz’s rifle, the Boone and Crockett Club also owns numerous pieces of memorabilia, photographs, correspondence, and manuscripts of Fitz’s that were donated by his family over the years. One of Fitz’s hunting knives, on loan from B&C member Richard T. Hale, is also shown. The knife was handed down to Hale from B&C member Arthur C. Popham, who was close friends of Grancel and Betty Fitz. 64 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

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Following is an excerpt from that chapter… Many sportsmen are also familiar with the name Grancel Fitz. He and his wife Betty oversaw the Club’s big game records program from their New York City loft for years. If you look closely, you’ll still see their names on many of the historic score charts throughout this book. Although he was integral in the development of the Club’s

time. When Pacific walrus became legal, he added that species to his other successes which included record-class heads of 13 different species. Many of his experiences were related in his book North American Head Hunting published in 1957 by Oxford University Press, Inc. However, it was through Grancel’s extensive interest in devising a better big game trophy scoring system that he was most involved

Grancel Fitz with Frank Miller (left) and the impressive Maswa Cape buffalo Fitz dropped with his .375 Magnum in 1962.

current scoring system and very involved with records keeping, he was never a Boone and Crockett Club member. Fitz’s gun of choice was a .3006; however, he had been given a Winchester Model 70 in .375 H&H by his son for his first hunting trip to China. Buckner purchased this rifle and donated it to the Boone and Crockett Club in 2015. Although Grancel Fitz’s profession was photographic illustrator, his avocation was big game trophy hunting and big game records keeping. He lived and worked in New York City, but from 1926 through 1955 made 38 hunting trips in his quest to bag all (then) 24 legal species of North American big game. Thus he became the first man to hunt all the species, but had not succeeded in taking a jaguar at that 66 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

with Boone and Crockett Club. At the time the 1932 and 1939 B&C records books were published, only beam lengths or spread data was used to rank heads. Everyone knew there had to be a better system. In 1935 Dr. James L. Clark, a Club member, originated and copyrighted one system, followed in 1938 by another published in Field and Stream by Grancel Fitz. His system, with detailed discussion and score charts, was also published in the 1939 B&C book North American Big Game. In 1949, Boone and Crockett appointed an independent six-person committee, which included both Fitz and Clark, to design a system. Samuel B. Webb chaired the committee, which combined features of both proposed systems, and sent proposed charts to 250 guides,

taxidermists, noted hunters and scientists to critique. The result was the Boone and Crockett Official Scoring System adopted in 1950 and first used to rank trophies for the 1950-1951 Competition. Grancel’s wife Betty served as secretary for the Records Committee and continued to do so for many years. Grancel Fitz was an active member of the Campfire Club of America in New York and continued hunting and writing for many sporting magazines. One sheep hunting story, published in the April 1948 issue of True was titled “A Grand Slam in Rams” and started the use of that term for the taking of all four North American wild sheep. The 1952, 1958, and 1964 records books all featured dust jacket and individual trophy photos taken by Grancel as well as his usual stories behind the World’s Records. He served as a judge on B&C Awards Panels three times (the maximum allowed); twice as chair. One of Grancel’s lifelong goals was to publish an affordable book on the measuring and scoring of North American big game trophies. He wrote the book and arranged for Outdoor Life to publish it. He died from heart failure as the book’s final editing was being done in May of 1963. FITZ’S WINCHESTER MODEL 70 .375 H&H MAGNUM NO. 384,755

Though Fitz was an international hunter of great experience, he was not a gun enthusiast as such. He took all 25 species of (then) legal North

American big game with the same rifle—a Remington Model 305 bolt-action .30-06—custom stocked by Griffin & Howe of New York with an early Hensoldt 2-¾x scope sight. In the spring of 1958, Grancel made his first overseas hunt in India on assignment from Outdoor Life. His son gave him the Model 70 .375 in case he encountered elephants or wild cattle in Indochina later in the trip. A tiger was the primary game he sought, and he missed a difficult shot with his old .30-06 on the first tiger seen. On a subsequent drive, Grancel had the .375 in hand and made a running shot on a tiger that measured 8 feet 7½ inches in length. The hunt story appeared in the February 1959 issue of Outdoor Life. In 1962, Grancel made his first and only trip to Africa while on another Outdoor Life assignment, this time after lion and Cape buffalo in Tanganyika (now Tanzania). Although he never found a good lion to shoot, he used the .375 to bag a heavy-bossed old bull toward the end of the hunt. The story “Grancel Fitz’s Lost Trophy” was published in the September 1963 issue of Outdoor Life. Grancel’s rifle is still in pristine original condition. It is standard grade, made in 1956, equipped with a receiver sight and a flattopped gold-faced post front sight replacement for the original bead. A small gold shield is inletted in the toe of the stock inscribed “Grancel Fitz New York.” A base for G&H side mount for scope has been added. n

This is just one of the many stories of guns and owners featured in Records of North American Big Game. Don’t miss looking over the photographs and reading details about the rest of the firearms as well as the stories about the men who used them. See page 42 for details about ordering a Collector’s Edition of the new records book.

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FAMILY RESPECT My 2016 story is different from most. It started back in 2013 when my boys and I started hunting a different area that I believed had elk in it but wasn’t exactly sure, so we decided to check it out. Yep, the elk were definitely in the area, but due to lack of public land, having access to hunt them was going to be very challenging. As we got a feel for the area, we kept bumping into a certain landowner who was very concerned about trespassing and any illegal activity taking place on his land. He was never mean to us, nor did it bother me or my sons to get long lectures or to listen to his stories. I told them to think of how they would feel about all the people invading their private property if they owned land around this public area. So we treated him with respect and friendship. We mostly stuck to hunting our original areas (on public land), but once in a while we would go back to this small special spot and give it a try mainly just for something different. In 2015 I didn’t draw an elk tag, but I helped my sons nonetheless. (It’s hard calling them “boys” still—both of them are taller than me and well over the 200-pound mark!) One night my favorite team was playing Sunday night football so I stayed home, but I told my sons it was worth a shot to try that special spot. As I watched the football game, I noticed that it was getting pretty late. Finally, they both walked through the door; they said they got tied up listening to that landowner again. We had a chuckle. This is where my 68 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

BEYOND THE SCORE

Tyrone R. Robinson Photos Courtesy of Author

story gets different than most and makes a huge impact in my life! The next evening the phone rang, and my wife answered. On the other end of the line just happened to be the landowner of now one of my most-cherished places on this earth. He stated that he was very impressed with our two sons, and because they have always listened to his stories and treated him with respect, he invited them to hunt on his property for the rest of the season. Wow! They showed some excitement, but I was doing just about everything to contain myself from shooting to the moon. They had no idea what an exceptional opportunity they were getting. They would soon find out. I asked the landowner if I could tag along with my sons and he and his wife said, “You bet.” I knew they should get a bull of some kind. There were so many bulls in there, and a couple of big ones, too. The season was dwindling away, and we learned that hunting is still just that: hunting—even on private land. Nothing in life is guaranteed. As I kept watching my sons try and try again at all those elk, the landowner and his wife both stated I could hunt, too. I explained that I hadn’t drawn a tag that year but truly appreciated the offer. The 2015 season ended with a few missed opportunities for my sons, but I can’t even describe how cherished all the memories are. In 2016, all four of us drew elk tags—even my daughter, who had not shown much interest up to that point. We went out and visited that

wonderful landowner and received permission to hunt again. We sat and chatted several times; it truly was amazing how much information he knew about elk in general. We set up blinds and did some scouting like every other hunter. The major difference was we were hunting exclusive private land. The beginning of the season started out kind of slow with not much elk activity. A couple herds here and there were roaming the place, but nothing really big like the year before, nor were there as many elk. I was a little concerned, but as we continued to visit the landowner, he reassured us that this is typically how each year starts off until the rut kicks in. I did not care about size of the elk for my three kids, because just harvesting a bull is quite the accomplishment, especially with archery equipment, and they all understood. But I knew the opportunity we had been given, and since I have harvested three bulls over the years with my bow, I told everyone I was holding out for a big bull. On Saturday, September 10, my son, Hunter, and I went out to hunt from the blinds we had set up earlier. A late start that morning greeted us with the sights and sounds of elk all around us as

I stopped the truck. I dropped Hunter off then got back in my truck to head to another spot. But as I was traveling, I had a feeling it was too late. I saw a few elk heading up the canyon toward Hunter, and I could tell that one bull was a monster. I so badly wanted to tell him somehow to wait for the big bull, but first, it’s against the law, and second, he’s never shot an elk (he was only 15!), and he doesn’t need to pass anything up. So I sat and watched the huge bull in awe and I told myself I really need to hold out for him if I could. Over an hour had passed and sure enough Hunter got to a high spot and sent me a text to come help him out because he had shot a bull. I instantly texted back, “Was it the big one?” He said no, he had already shot a small sixpoint before that bull had come by at 50 yards—though he got a few pictures. I thought that was too bad, but quickly forgot about it because we were on a blood trail after my son’s first bull ever. What a God-given morning; a day I’ll never forget. Five days later on Thursday, September 15, I had taken off work that morning to try my luck again. I had had the chance to be picky, passing up many bulls in search of my monster. This morning

I just soaked it all in because I knew what a truly amazing gift I had been given by such a wonderful man. I sat excitedly. I watched and listened as elk came in, and then I heard a different, low-pitched growl.

This column is dedicated to the system that supports the public hunting of public wildlife for all fair chase sportsmen, and the stories and trophies that are the result. Theodore Roosevelt strongly believed that self-reliance and pursuing the strenuous activities of hunting and wilderness exploration was the best way to keep man connected to nature. We score trophies, but every hunt is to some extent a way of measuring ourselves.

proved to be no different when an elk herd began watering right in front of me. I just soaked it all in because I knew what a truly amazing gift I had been given by such a wonderful man. I sat excitedly. I watched and listened as elk came in, and then I heard a different, low-pitched growl. That’s exactly how Hunter described it to me the morning he shot his elk. I was sure that’s what I heard, but I looked all around me and could not see the bull making that growl. I can’t hear very well, so they have to be close for me to hear them. Then I heard it again and saw him come out of the canyon of trees heading straight for the other elk. I readied myself and ranged the trail he was traveling down at 44 yards. As he got within range, I pulled my bow, but he must have noticed because he veered off and stopped at 60 yards. I knew the distance because I had previously ranged certain spots all around me just in case one came in too fast to range; this has worked for me in the past and paid off this time again. Sixty yards was my max, and there he stood, so I let one go. The arrow connected him in the back part of the ribs. He took off and ran 200 yards into the trees, standing sickly. I couldn’t believe it had all happened. I don’t usually get all that excited while hunting anything—I’ve spent 30-plus years in the field and have had many, many close encounters. I have truly been very blessed. A bull has to be big to get me going. This one was just that…big…I knew it! I tried to text Hunter, but the reality of what just happened began to set in. My legs started to shake along with my

hands a bit. It took me what felt like five minutes but more likely 30 to 40 seconds to type; “I got the big one!” I love to prank on occasion, so Hunter texted back and said, “Did you really?” I said yes and sent him a photo of the bull standing. I asked him to miss school, gather stuff up, and drive out with Mom to give me a hand. After photos and stopping by to chat with the landowner and show him the magnificent animal he knew he had on his land, we headed to town. Boy, does news travel fast. We never texted or called anyone, but people had seen it on the trailer. Let’s just say people were waiting for us as we arrived in town at the taxidermist! After all the visits with the landowner, I knew it was a battle for him to allow elk hunters on his land. He holds such a high respect and love in his heart for the elk. He may not hunt them all that often, but he studies and spends more time with them by watching them and picking up sheds than anybody else I know. My family and I have a very, very high respect and love in our hearts for him and his wife. They both are in my thoughts and prayers often. I can never say thank you enough. n Tyrone R. Robinson took this typical American elk, scoring 383-3/8 points in Carter County, Montana, in 2016.

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WELCOMING A NEW DIRECTOR

TROPHY TALK

JUSTIN SPRING B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director of Big Game Records

Let me start by saying how honored I feel to be given the opportunity to serve as the second director of Big Game Records for the Boone and Crockett Club. Since starting with the Club in 2008, I have been working closely with Jack Reneau, ensuring both a smooth transition and uniformity in scoring procedures and applications. The success of the Records Program is directly tied to consistency, and every step has been taken to ensure nothing is lost in this shift. While I have held the title of director since the beginning of 2016, Jack has been available for guidance as I slowly took over the reins of the day-to-day operations of the Records Program here in Missoula. He is greatly missed, but he has assured me he is always a phone call away and that he still intends to serve the Club as a Professional Member and as a member of the Records Committee.

The one question I get the most is, “How did you get a job with Boone and Crockett?” I thought it appropriate to include the answer in my first Trophy Talk column so you all know where they found this guy. After graduating from Northland College in 2006, my wife (girlfriend at the time) and I both had degrees in fish and wildlife biology and began the search for employment in the field. After graduation in spring 2006, I returned to Alaska for my fifth season as a fishing guide for king salmon, and we spent a few months at my wife’s childhood home on Lake Vermillion in northern Minnesota. A few weeks helping a family friend in construction made it readily apparent I was not cut out for that line of work—though it put a couple dollars in our pockets. Through this job I met some folks headed to Alaska for an unguided moose hunt. Turned out they had some room and could use some help around camp. The

few dollars I had made were nearly all squandered on this trip which was supposed to last two weeks but was cut short at one. Lack of time and moose convinced me to get on a plane and head back to the lower 48 to head west to where I grew up in southern Oregon. While I was gone, Rebecca had procured us a couple leftover buck antelope tags in Wyoming, so I flew from Anchorage to Denver where she was waiting. With all our possessions in the truck, we headed for Wyoming for a few days and managed to harvest our first-ever antelope. A rainstorm rendered the roads undriveable, so I dropped the antelope head with a taxidermist and headed to the coast with some meat in the truck. We were now officially in debt but not due to student loans; rather, a taxidermy bill. When we got back to Oregon, I got hired right away by a small contract logger, while

Justin and Rebecca are both B&C Official Measurers and attended their first Big Game Awards banquet in 2010 in Reno, Nevada, where the Club hosted its first Field Generals Luncheon to honor all of our Official Measurers.

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Rebecca was having minimal success in her job search. She felt bad—as though she wasn’t contributing. But I assured her, “Think about if I was unemployed. Would I sit at home, or would I be out hunting?” She smiled and proceeded to kill her first ducks, a Roosevelt’s elk, and a mighty fine Columbia blacktail her first year in Oregon. She even let me in on the action as I filled a tag or two as well. Soon enough she was hired by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The next two years we were both able to expand our professional experience in our field of study working for Idaho Department of Fish and Game and Plum Creek Timber as well as side work with some wildlife survey contract companies working with marbled murrlets, spotted owls, and the native fish of the Pacific Northwest.

RECENTLY APPOINTED OFFICIAL MEASURERS

I would like to congratulate and welcome the 58 new Official Measurers, representing the US and Canada, who successfully completed one of three Official Measurer training workshops held this summer. All are qualified to immediately begin scoring trophies for all 38 categories of North American big game recognized by the Club.

Justin and his dad with his B&C Rocky Mountain goat.

As I had since turning 12, we applied that May for all the tags Oregon had to offer. During this time, like many young professionals breaking into their fields, we were both on the lookout for any job opportunities and applying for anything we thought we may qualify for hoping to stay employed in our field. During these job searches, I found the Boone and Crockett Club looking for an assistant director of records with the majority of the skills being a background in wildlife. About 98 percent certain I stood no chance, I still applied and had nearly forgotten about the application. I had been planning a fall 2008 trip to southeast Alaska for Sitka blacktails with a couple good friends, my dad, and Rebecca. Plus, when Oregon draw results came out, not only had I drawn a once in a lifetime Oregon mountain goat tag, but I also drew an archery elk tag to hunt the Starkey Experimental Forest. I started quickly calculating how all this could be accomplished within our budget. The Boone and Crockett job was nearly out of my mind as I sat in the orientation class for my goat tag in The Dalles, Oregon. They were starting the class and introducing all the biologists and volunteers there to assist including B&C’s Vice President of Big Game Records Eldon “Buck” Buckner. He was there to discuss scoring sheep and goats. I took a mental note and turned to Rebecca and said, “I wonder if they ever filled that job? I need to talk to him.” We proceeded through the orientation until lunch, and as I made my way through the lunch line, I realized Buck had been sidetracked and was at the end of the line. All the seats in the lunch room were nearly gone. Rebecca and I made a power move to procure four seats near where Buck would have to walk past after getting his food. The plan was executed perfectly; as Buck walked past, I introduced myself and asked him to sit down with us for lunch. He did, and though I embarrassed myself a bit as I confused his title slightly, he sat and chatted about the hunt and got to know Rebecca and I. The following Monday my phone rang with a Missoula number and a phone interview was scheduled. Soon after this interview, I called back to thank them for the opportunity, and they asked

Dave P. Atamanchuk - Humboldt, SK April G. Atkinson - Garnett, SC Ryan J. Bartholow - Sundre, AB Gregory K. Batts - Zebulon, NC Travis Bennett - Eastover, SC Kevin C. Bertin - Vegreville, AB Yvonne E. Bertin - Vegreville, AB Larry R. Boyd - Red Deer, AB Mark G. Buller - Waldheim, SK Cody G. Cadrain - Meota, SK Mark M. Carroll - Union, SC Patrick L. Cloninger - Clemson, SC Kara V. Day - Richmond Hill, GA Donald D. Dwernychuk - Drumheller, AB Jeremey A. Edwards - Hudson Bay, SK James L. Fowler - Conway, SC Bob M. Graham - Edmonton, AB Brent M. Gust - Kindersley, SK Michael Hansen - Brookville, KS John H. Harrelson - Hope Mills, NC Michael E. Hofer - Fort Macleod, AB Andrew F. Hook - Union, SC Michael B. Howze - Albany, GA Ronald K. Johnson - Big River, SK Barry A. Johnston - Watrous, SK Dallas I. Kaiser - Red Deer County, AB Cameron Kirzinger - Leroy, SK Cody M. Langford - Fort Valley, GA Paul R. Legrand - Regina, SK

Leduc, Alberta July 30- August 3, 2017

Kevin Lowrey - Gainsville, GA Robert T. MacDonald - Edmonton, AB Ross H. Mann - Victoria, BC Rupert H. Medford - Troy, NC Theron E. Menken - Fort Valley, GA Joshua M. Michel - Estevan, SK Dustin Miller - Leader, SK Maurice G. Nadeau - Bonnyville, AB Neil N. Napora - Mannville, AB Marshall G. Nelms - Fitzgerald, GA R. Victor Nilson - Morinville, AB Jake D. Oates - Florence, SC Colleen Olfenbuttel - Pittsboro, NC Rod Payne - Fort Macleod, AB Daniel K. Ray - Morganton, NC Larran M. Rayment - Ardrossan, AB Andre J. Reed - Hanna, AB Brendon A. Reiter - Middle Lake, SK Jonathan G. Shapka - St. Paul, AB Chad C. Sherman - Fort Quappelle, SK Warren Smith - Lloydminster, AB Craig P. Stolle - Campbell River, BC Jesse M. Thomas - Mcrae, GA John H. Thrift - Swainsboro, GA James W. Tomberlin - Ronda, NC Tammy L. Wactor - Clemson, SC Tyler E. Warren - Edmonton, AB Brent Womack - Summerville, GA Colin G. Woods - Creighton, SK

Garnett, South Carolina August 21-25, 2017

Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan - August 4-8, 2017

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TROPHY TALK to schedule an in-person interview. Before long I was on a plane to Missoula. The in-person interview went well. When I got asked the question, “How many days a year do you hunt?” All of a sudden it hit me that I might have a chance at landing this job. Not that the question was hard to answer but it caught me flat footed compared to the normal interview questions I had been preparing for. In reality, I might have reduced the number I gave on days hunted as I didn’t want to give the impression that was all I did and I also didn’t know the exact number, but apparently it was what they wanted to hear. After I got back home from the Missoula trip, I called to thank them for the interview and they offered the job to me. While many folks would probably have been concerned with salary negotiations, moving expenses, etc., my heart sank as they read to me the offer—they wanted to me to start September 1. As soon as they finished, I said it all sounded great but was there any way I could push my start date back a couple weeks as I had a once in a lifetime goat tag. All I could hear on the other end of the phone was chuckles and Buck says to me, that’s just fine Justin, we will see you October 1. At the time, I knew a fair amount about the work of the Club but the nine years since that point through research and being part of the Club I have found nearly all of my hunts are directly the result of the work of Club members if not Theodore Roosevelt (TR) himself. The Rocky Mountain goat I took that year was a result of transplants

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Associate Sign-Up Incentive Program from Olympic National Park to the Wallowa National Forest, which, albeit consolidated from its original name, were both set up by TR. The Starkey Experimental Forest was created by former Boone and Crockett Professor, Chief of the U.S. Forest Service, and Club member Jack Ward Thomas, and the list goes on. I have been told by a few of the students from workshops that my enthusiasm for both the records program and the work of the Club shows through, and I am proud to hear this. To me, the opportunity to work for an organization such as Boone and Crockett and to be able to help fight to keep wildlife and its habitat at a point where everyone, both hunters and not, can see and appreciate what we have is truly a one of a kind opportunity. While some worry about the future of hunting, I am positive about it. With this position, I get the opportunity to teach and work with some of the frontline soldiers in the battle for wildlife and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. These soldiers are our Official Measurers. Listed on these pages are the names of the most recently appointed in the workshops taught in Leduc, Alberta; Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan; and Garnett, South Carolina. They join a force of OMs touching more hunters from more walks of life and locations than any other similar-sized organization. It is truly an honor, and I look forward to many years supporting this mission. n

We have an exciting new program exclusively for our Official Measurers! August 1, we launched the rolling Associate Sign-Up Program and are encouraging Official Measurers to ask every trophy owner they come in contact with or anyone else they know who has a passion for hunting and conservation to join the Club as an Associate.

Each time an OM signs up a B&C Associate we’ll put a credit by their name. HERE’S THE BREAKDOWN 3 Associates – $25 off any item in the B&C store 5 Associates – Buck Knife 10 Associates – B&C Boyt sling 25 Associates – OM Wool Vest 50 Associates – Sitka Gear (value up to $350)

75 Associates – Yeti cooler and rambler package (value up to $500) 100 Associates – Congratulations! YOU’LL RECEIVE A KIMBER RIFLE! NOTE: Limit to one rifle per year, three rifles per Official Measurer.

Current Associates! Would you like to give an Official Measurer credit for your renewal? Let them know when it is your time to renew and they will provide their OMID number to include with your renewal so they will receive credit.

Leader Board *As of October 17, 2017

Stanley Zirbel. . . . . . . . . . 6 Ralph Stayner. . . . . . . . . . 4 Daniel A. Doughty III. . . . 3 Don Biggs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Richard A. Bonander. . . . 1 Dean H. Cook . . . . . . . . . . 1 L. Victor Clark. . . . . . . . . . 1 Chad A. Coburn. . . . . . . . 1 Tim Donnelly. . . . . . . . . . . 1 Mark A. Erspamer . . . . . . 1 Ronnie Gadberry . . . . . . . 1 Daniel Hollingsworth. . . . 1 Gary R. Howard . . . . . . . . 1 Chris Lacey. . . . . . . . . . . . 1

John Legnard. . . . . . . . . . 1 Jerry E. Lunde. . . . . . . . . . 1 Toby Montgomery . . . . . . 1 Skip Moore. . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Rob Newton IV. . . . . . . . . 1 John Ohmer. . . . . . . . . . . 1 Ron G. Pesek. . . . . . . . . . . 1 Richard A. Pflanz. . . . . . . 1 Ryan Rauscher. . . . . . . . . 1 Tim Rozewski . . . . . . . . . . 1 Jeffrey L. Schneider . . . . 1 Darrel Sudduth. . . . . . . . . 1 Brent Trumbo . . . . . . . . . . 1 Gary Wegner. . . . . . . . . . . 1

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artifacts and milestones that celebrate conservation efforts. Visitors will experience the story of conservation from the Native Americans to Lewis and Clark to Teddy Roosevelt and the wildlife management practices championed by hunters and anglers that helped shape the conservation movement.

The wildlife galleries were inspired by Johnny Morris’ lifetime spent in nature and his deep admiration for fellow hunter and angler conservationists like Roosevelt and Audubon. These conservation heroes, through time spent hunting and fishing, grew to appreciate the vital importance of wildlife habitats and management. The creation of the Wonders of Wildlife Museum and Aquarium, located in the heart of America, Springfield, Missouri, establishes a destination accessible to tens of millions of people who may never have the opportunity to travel to the great museums in New York or Washington DC. Guests can get closer to record-setting game animals than ever before, stand in awe observing nature’s most striking exotic animal habitats, and discover the origins of the conservation movement with historic

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FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 73

JACK STEELE PARKER

GENERATION

NEXT FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

BLACK BEAR 21 2/16

Itasca Co., MN

Austin C. Storlie

2016

J. Lunde

2016 2016

G. Taylor S. Sanborn

The Boone and Crockett Club would like to celebrate young hunters who have embraced the outdoor way of life and embody the spirit of fair chase hunting. The following is a list of the most recent big game trophies accepted into Boone and Crockett Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 30th Big Game Awards Program, 2016-2018, that have been taken by a youth hunter (16 years or younger). All of the field photos in this section are from entries that are listed in this issue and are shown in bold orange text. This listing represents only those trophies accepted since the Fall 2017 issue of Fair Chase was published.

TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK 366 1/8 387 364 6/8 378

Fergus Co., MT Julia S. Gremaux White Pine Co., NV Bryce T. Larsen

TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL 127

136 6/8

Skagit Co., WA

Christopher D. Danilson 2016

J. Reneau

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER 175 185 7/8 167 7/8 181 4/8

Brown Co., OH Schuyler Co., MO

Alexis D. Roller Justin R. Rodenberg

2016 2016

A. Cramer D. Roper

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER 228 3/8 233 2/8 185 3/8 191 7/8

Wapello Co., IA Harrison Co., IA

Tyler T. Knott Skyler L. Tessum

2016 2016

L. Streiff G. Hempey

PRONGHORN 82 6/8 83 6/8 Uintah Co., UT Makenzie M. 2016 D. Nielsen Weatherspoon DESERT SHEEP 171

171 4/8

Mohave Co., AZ

Hunter W. Hulburd

2016

M. Golightly

Skyler L. Tessum Makenzie M. Weatherspoon

Bryce T. Larsen 74 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

Hunter W. Hulburd Justin R. Rodenberg

Alexis D. Roller

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FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 75

RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES

30 BIG GAME AWARDS TH

LISTING AND PHOTO GALLERY

The following pages list the most recent big game trophies accepted into Boone and Crockett Club’s 30th Big Game Awards Program, 2016-2018, which includes entries received between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2018. All of the field photos in this section are from entries that are listed in this issue and are shown in bold green text. This listing represents only those trophies accepted since the Fall 2017 issue of Fair Chase was published. SPONSORED BY

B&C Associate Calvin E. Hunt took this typical whitetail deer, scoring 167-3/8 points, on a hunt in Howard County, Indiana, in 2016. “This great buck was killed in the rain, on a dark cold November afternoon hunt. The hunt was from a ladder stand overlooking a thick creek line with heavy woods behind. This was during the heart of the rut in Indiana. The buck answered to a few doe bleats by coming in with his head high looking for the doe.”

76 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

TOP TO BOTTOM

While on a 2015 bow hunt near Riding Mountain, Manitoba, B&C Associate M. Robert Delaney took this black bear, scoring 20-5/16 points.

BEAR & COUGAR FINAL SCORE

LOCATION

BLACK BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 23-10/16

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

21 13/16 Lycoming Co., PA Paul S. Mahon 2015 D. Aumen 21 11/16 Dunn Co., WI Robert J. Higbie 2015 J. Lunde 21 11/16 Latah Co., ID Scott D. Lynas 2016 J. Peek 21 9/16 Pike Co., PA Darren J. Compton 2016 R. Kingsley 21 8/16 Juneau Co., WI Alan J. Rhinerson 2016 J. Ramsey 21 7/16 Polk Co., WI Adam M. Jarchow 2016 J. Lunde 21 7/16 Polk Co., WI Warren M. Magler 2016 K. Zimmerman 21 6/16 Dunn Co., WI Robert J. Higbie 2011 J. Lunde 21 4/16 Oconto Co., WI Zachary J. Manders 2007 S. Zirbel 21 3/16 Mahnomen Co., MN Terry A. McCollum 2016 J. Zins 21 2/16 Belleisle Creek, NB Sean D. Moffett 2014 W. Hanson 21 2/16 Swan River, MB Jordan H. Peters 2015 D. Wilson 21 2/16 Whitemouth Shawn D. Seelig 2017 S. Zirbel Lake, MB 21 2/16 Sullivan Co., PA Landon R. Faidley 2016 G. Block 21 1/16 Clinton Co., PA Ryan E. Grieb 2016 D. Lynch 21 1/16 Douglas Co., NV Melodie L. Nicholes 2016 L. Clark 21 1/16 Eagle Co., CO David P. Lucero 2008 B. Smith 21 1/16 Pamlico Co., NC Battle L. Burnette III 2014 H. Atkinson 21 Becker Co., MN Jordan M. Ketter 2016 C. Kozitka 21 Craven Co., NC Preston J. Harris 2016 H. Atkinson 21 Delaware Co., NY Timothy M. Donovan 2016 B. Mortensen 20 13/16 Dunn Co., WI Jean Burger 2015 S. Ashley 20 13/16 Pine Co., MN Halie R. LaTourelle 2016 J. Lunde 20 12/16 Cibola Co., NM Katherine J. Hoeppner 2016 S. Grabow 20 11/16 Jones Co., NC Lawrence G. 2013 D. Boland Fitzpatrick 20 10/16 Douglas Co., WI Chris M. Iwaszko 2012 J. Lunde 20 10/16 Gunnison Co., CO Barry W. Singleton 2015 G. Glasgow 20 10/16 Langlade Co., WI Michelle J. Weber 2015 S. Zirbel 20 10/16 Waupaca Co., WI Samuel D. Holbrook 2016 S. Zirbel 20 9/16 Hubbard Co., MN Trent L. Wilson 2016 J. Zins 20 8/16 Humboldt Co., CA Jared M. Guy 2016 K. Evanow 20 6/16 Trempealeau Co., WI Aaron M. Greenwold 2012 R. Case 20 5/16 Marathon Co., WI Nathan H. Krueger 2016 T. Heil 20 5/16 Riding Mt., MB M. Robert Delaney 2015 S. Johns 20 4/16 Florence Co., WI Terry D. DeBauche 2016 S. Zirbel 20 4/16 Price Co., WI Mark A. Zullner, Jr. 2016 M. Miller 20 3/16 Essex Co., VT Picked Up 2013 C. Smiley 20 3/16 Hampshire Co., WV Trevor S. Cooper 2012 C. Teets 20 3/16 Morris Co., NJ William J. Jimeno 2016 D. Chanda 20 3/16 Rivière Ken H. Taylor 2016 M. Jerome Waswanipi, QC 20 3/16 Tobique River, NB Wiley G. Brown 2016 H. Giger 20 3/16 Sawyer Co., WI Kenneth D. Henson 2015 D. Boland 20 2/16 Aroostook Co., ME John P. Hubka, Jr. 2016 C. Cook 20 2/16 Sierra Co., CA Larry T. Jacobsen 2015 T. Humes 20 1/16 Lake of the Robert J. Pietrowski 2015 S. Grabow Woods Co., MN 20 Whiteshell Prov. Mitch J. Johnson 2016 R. Dufault Park, MB

This Alaska brown bear, scoring 28-6/16 points, was taken by Lew G. Groth while hunting near Uganik Bay, Alaska, in 2016. He was shooting a .375 H&H. Chad Lenz took this cougar, scoring 14-11/16 points, in 2016 while bowhunting near Crooked Creek, Alberta.

GRIZZLY BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 27-13/16 25 12/16 24 9/16 23 13/16 23 12/16 23 11/16 23 3/16

Kantishna River, AK Arlan M. Buckmeier 2016 Buckinghorse Leszek Pazura 2016 River, BC Bowron River, BC Thomas R. Sheldon 2015 Kitsumkalum Daniel Fournier 1995 River, BC Bowron River, BC Tyler Patterson 2016 Siksikpuk River, AK Marvin H. McCloud III 2005

A. Jubenville C. Zuckerman C. Hill R. Berreth R. Berreth J. Baichtal

ALASKA BROWN BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 30-12/16 28 6/16 27 14/16 27 12/16 27 26 12/16 26 12/16 26 8/16

Uganik Bay, AK Volcano Bay, AK Alaska Pen., AK Olga Bay, AK Kodiak Island, AK McArthur River, AK Alinchak Bay, AK

Lew G. Groth Daniel G. Slavek III Dennis M. Potter Terry G. Gerber Chris S. Jahnke Leo H. Goss Todd D. Hoftiezer

2016 2016 2015 2009 2016 2016 2016

C. Cordes D. Razza S. Godfrey K. Lehr C. Pierce G. Mefford S. Zirbel

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 77

ALASKA BROWN BEAR CONTINUED 26 5/16

King Salmon Creek, AK

David S. Wood

2016 J. Ohmer

COUGAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 16-4/16 15 13/16 15 6/16 15 4/16 15 2/16 15 14 15/16 14 11/16 14 11/16 14 9/16 14 9/16 14 8/16

Goose Lake, AB Alder Flats, AB Knife Creek, BC Carbon Co., WY Union Co., NM Lindley Creek, BC Crooked Creek, AB San Juan Co., UT Johnson Co., WY Douglas Lake, BC Park Co., MT

Joel L. Knapp 2016 James E. McCannell 2017 Earl Nikirk 2017 Grant D. Rothenberger 2017 Jeffrey A. Hale 2015 Peng Fu 2016 Chad Lenz 2016 Steven D. Miller 2017 David O. Conrad 2016 Matthew P. Goll 2012 William D.C. French 2016

J. Graham D. Powell R. Berreth B. Wilkes G. Fujak T. Milne C. Dillabough K. Zimmerman K. Lehr J. Sanesh R. Burtis

PACIFIC WALRUS - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 147-4/8 109 110

St. Lawrence Island, AK

Unknown

2017 C. Brent

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

ELK & MULE DEER FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 442-5/8 409 1/8 458 2/8 Lake Diefenbaker, SK 407 3/8 417 3/8 Jackson Co., CO 380 3/8 385 6/8 Garfield Co., UT 378 1/8 389 7/8 White Pine Co., NV 377 398 1/8 Lincoln Co., NE 373 379 5/8 Campbell Co., WY 371 1/8 380 2/8 Rosebud Co., MT 368 5/8 379 4/8 Gallatin Co., MT 364 1/8 393 3/8 Powell Co., MT 361 6/8 367 5/8 Fremont Co., WY

Theresa L. Busse

2016 R. Schaal

Picked Up Ralph A. Spencer Jason S. Bickler Jonathan D. Andreasen Joshua S. Shein, Sr. Samuel J. Murfitt David C. Klatt Jack Frederick Eric V. Seidler

2016 2014 2016 2016

W. Hepworth T. Adams F. King R. Dierking

2016 2016 2016 1923 2016

R. Bonander J. Pallister F. King J. Spring J. Hindman

NON-TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 478-5/8 431 7/8 442 3/8 Powder Garth W. Sessions 2016 F. King River Co., MT 427 1/8 437 7/8 Umatilla Co., OR Delwyn M. 2015 D. Morris Henderickson 395 4/8 420 2/8 Okanogan Co., WA Jarred-Michael 2016 L. Carey Erickson 390 3/8 402 3/8 South Lon M. Schwartz 2016 M. Halirewich Saskatchewan River, SK 388 3/8 401 5/8 Moffat Co., CO Clay J. Evans 2015 B. Wilkes ROOSEVELT’S ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 404-6/8 386 2/8 395 6/8 343 1/8 353 1/8 331 7/8 343 1/8 323 3/8 330 4/8 314 331 4/8 302 6/8 330 2/8

Memekay River, BC Humboldt Co., CA Nimpkish Lake, BC Sucwoa River, BC Vancouver Island, BC Vancouver Island, BC

J. Mark Gittins Brian K. Yeoman Kira M. Iskra Susan M. Bender M. Blake Patton

2016 2016 2013 2014 2016

C. Veasey R. McDrew A. England F. Pringle R. Skinner

Cory J. Smith

2016 D. Eider

TULE ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 379

TOP TO BOTTOM:

This typical Columbia blacktail deer, scoring 129 points, was taken by W. David E. Evanow in Siskiyou County, California, on a hunt in 1996. Yvette M. Rowley was on a hunt in White Pine County, Nevada, when she harvested this typical mule deer, scoring 191-4/8 points. She was shooting a 7mm Remington Mag. B&C Associate Mark J. Gutsmiedl took this typical Sitka blacktail deer, scoring 104-1/8 points, in 2016. He was bowhunting near Hydaburg, Alaska.

78 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

350 7/8 378 1/8 Inyo Co., CA Charles D. Trover 2016 C. Lacey 303 2/8 318 Mendocino Co., CA Michael A. Zacharias 2016 D. Biggs

TYPICAL MULE DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 226-4/8 202 1/8 200 2/8 197 6/8 197 4/8 196 2/8 194 6/8 191 4/8 191 4/8 191 4/8

206 1/8 203 2/8 203 2/8 200 211 4/8 211 3/8 208 197 7/8 203 1/8

Sonora, MX Sheep River, AB Sonora, MX Gila Co., AZ Mesa Co., CO Nye Co., NV Elmore Co., ID Beechy, SK White Pine Co., NV

Curtis W. Borcherding 2017 E. John W. Adkins 2016 Frank D. Brienzi 2017 Blake R. Owens 2016 Unknown 1980 Daniel N. Gilbert 2016 Nicholes R. Watson 2015 Sam W. Peterson 2016 Yvette M. Rowley 2016

R. McPherren W. Paplawski J. Arnold R. Grace R. Hall S. Sanborn R. Atwood M. Halirewich C. Lacey

TYPICAL MULE DEER CONTINUED 191 2/8 191 1/8 190 3/8 190 1/8 187 6/8 186 6/8 185 2/8 185 1/8 185 1/8 183 4/8 181 2/8

200 5/8 196 2/8 193 7/8 218 7/8 196 6/8 191 6/8 190 5/8 210 196 5/8 190 4/8 194

Converse Co., WY Grand Co., UT Scott Co., KS Chilako River, BC Jefferson Co., OR Chip Lake, AB Pershing Co., NV Bingham Co., ID Garfield Co., CO Oldham Co., TX Logan Co., KS

Richard R. Robinson Kent W. Carter Quinten R. Wheeler Alexander Kozak Justin J. Smith Ronald R. Lehman James D. Jurad Leon D. Clark Picked Up D. Neil Crites David F. Meyers

2016 2016 2016 1966 2016 2016 2016 1972 2012 2016 2016

G. Adkisson W. Phifer K. Meier R. Berreth T. Rozewski D. Bromberger L. Clark R. Atwood D. Waechtler O. Carpenter K. Meier

TOP TO BOTTOM:

This typical American elk, scoring 380-3/8 points, was taken by B&C Associate Ralph A. Spencer while hunting in Garfield County, Utah, in 2014. He was shooting a 7mm Remington Mag. In 2016, B&C Associate Cory J. Smith harvested this 302-6/8-point Roosevelt’s elk while on a hunt on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. He was shooting a .300 Winchester Short Mag.

NON-TYPICAL MULE DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 355-2/8 266 5/8 264 1/8 257 6/8 240 7/8 239 5/8 238 5/8 231 7/8 230 6/8 229 3/8 224 3/8 220 7/8 218 215 5/8

271 2/8 271 6/8 260 2/8 247 6/8 252 3/8 245 1/8 237 3/8 244 6/8 234 233 225 5/8 222 6/8 221 6/8

Davis Co., UT Noel Christensen Franklin Co., ID Dale F. McKay Camas Co., ID Tony W. Smith Archuleta Co., CO Frank N. Halbert Rio Arriba Co., NM Kendra R. White Deer Lodge Co., MT William H. VanPool Oneida Co., ID Wayne E. Jones Unknown Unknown Brown Co., NE Raymond C. Guth Coconino Co., AZ Robert K. Talbot Grand Co., CO Neil A. Layton Peace River, AB Keith A. Pedersen Elmore Co., ID Jason P. Spence

1964 1941 2015 2016 2016 1974 1984 1900 2016 2016 1959 2016 2015

J. Ramsey R. Hatfield B. Ward G. Adkisson K. Tator K. Lehr R. Hatfield J. Ramsey D. Ehrig I. Mcarthur R. Newman D. Loosemore R. Hatfield

TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 182-2/8 131 157 2/8 Polk Co., OR 129 136 4/8 Siskiyou Co., CA 128 134 5/8 Lane Co., OR 125 2/8 128 5/8 Trinity Co., CA

Christopher J. Fishback W. David E. Evanow Alexis R. Robbins Donald A. Dunn

2016 T. Rozewski 1996 K. Evanow 2016 T. Rozewski 2016 G. Hooper

NON-TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 208-1/8 163

173

Trinity Co., CA

Cory J. Hoffman

2016 G. Hooper

TYPICAL SITKA BLACKTAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 133 121 1/8 106 5/8 104 1/8 103 5/8 103

122 4/8 111 109 5/8 109 2/8 109

Kodiak Island, AK Larsen Bay, AK Hydaburg, AK Frazer Lake, AK Uganik Island, AK

Tad B. Covault Tyler A. Hoffman Mark J. Gutsmiedl Preston E. Mease Zachary R. Werle

2016 2016 2016 2016 2016

L. Lewis R. Spring S. Zirbel R. Black A. Jubenville

NON-TYPICAL SITKA BLACKTAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 134 123 1/8 129 4/8 Uyak Bay, AK

Carston R. Terry

2016 D. Shirley

WHITETAIL DEER FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 213-5/8 191 6/8 194 2/8 189 4/8 216 4/8 186 192 1/8 184 5/8 202 4/8 183 5/8 208 3/8 182 2/8 197 2/8 181 186 2/8 180 7/8 187 3/8 180 188 179 6/8 197 6/8 179 1/8 183 3/8 178 7/8 192 3/8 178 5/8 186 2/8 178 4/8 192 4/8 177 5/8 183 2/8 177 3/8 196 7/8 177 3/8 194 7/8 176 4/8 189 1/8 175 7/8 189 2/8 175 2/8 177 7/8 175 2/8 181 3/8

Boone Co., IA Jennings Co., IN Boone Co., IA Franklin Co., OH Coles Co., IL Ogle Co., IL Dimmit Co., TX Putnam Co., IN Turtleford, SK Bath Co., KY Page Co., IA Franklin Co., VA Brown Co., NE Peoria Co., IL Zavala Co., TX Bolloque Lake, AB Rappahannock Co., VA Marshall Co., IN Shawnee Co., KS Allegan Co., MI Hamilton Co., OH

Larry G. Oien 2016 Eric W. Pettit 2016 Shawn C. Hornberg 2016 Phillip T. Seymour 2017 Todd Wiessing 2016 Benjamin C. McKean 2016 Gregory W. Wessels 2016 Jody Marsteller-Davies 2016 Craig W. McKee 2015 Christopher Skaggs 2016 Kevin R. Neal 2016 Rodney A. Wingfield 2016 Kaycie L. Davis 2016 John O. Landsverk 2016 Alberto Bailleres 2017 Terrence A. Vachon 2016 Cleanthis D. Costa 2016

C. Coburn J. Hooten C. Pierce A. Cramer T. Walmsley A. Crum K. Krause S. Petkovich D. Harrison W. Cooper C. Pierce D. Boland W. Vodehnal M. Staser J. Stein B. Daudelin D. Lees

John A. Davis Joel R. Morrison Trent A. Smith Christopher J. Young

J. Bogucki J. Lunde R. Banaszak A. Cramer

2016 2016 2016 2017

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 79

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER CONTINUED

TOP TO BOTTOM:

Devin U. Beck took this typical Coues’ whitetail deer, scoring 110-5/8 points, in 2017 while hunting in Sonora, Mexico. This typical whitetail deer, scoring 168-6/8 points, was taken by John T. Overcast in Flathead County, Montana, in 2016. He was shooting a 30-06 Springfield. In 2016 while on a hunt in Sonora, Mexico, Kurt D. Grosser harvested this non-typical Coues’ whitetail deer, scoring 120-3/8 points.

80 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

174 5/8 177 5/8 Cottle Co., TX J. Nathan Tyler 2016 174 2/8 181 3/8 Goodhue Co., MN Heather J. Hauschildt 2016 174 2/8 178 6/8 Sauk Co., WI Garrett M. Shear 2016 173 2/8 176 2/8 Boone Co., NE Ervin C. Wulf 2016 173 2/8 180 2/8 Lesser Slave Christopher M. Samis 2016 River, AB 173 198 3/8 Jackson Co., IN Michael D. McIntosh 2016 173 179 2/8 Stoddart Creek, BC Colby J.W. McDermott 2016 172 5/8 183 6/8 Berrien Co., MI Brian L.K. Arny 2016 172 5/8 183 5/8 Fulton Co., OH William P. Sliwinski 2016 172 5/8 178 Wicomico Co., MD Thomas L. Wingate 2016 172 4/8 184 4/8 Scott Co., IN Joe R. Kimmick 2016 172 3/8 194 3/8 St. Mary’s Co., MD Charles A. Wallace 2016 172 1/8 179 6/8 Switzerland Co., IN Stephen J. Niemeier 2016 172 184 3/8 Madison Co., IA Samuel W. Shoffner 2016 171 6/8 191 2/8 Slave Lake, AB Munir A. Mughal 2014 171 5/8 183 1/8 Pine Co., MN Douglas R. Fore 2016 171 1/8 184 Scioto Co., OH Jason A. Koito 2016 171 1/8 174 5/8 Washington Co., MN Bart L. Martinson 2016 170 7/8 191 Brown Co., OH Cody L. Mock 2016 170 6/8 182 6/8 Marathon Co., WI Ryan P. Beran 2016 170 5/8 184 2/8 Green Lake Co., WI David L. Kummerow 2016 170 5/8 177 Knox Co., IL Joseph S. Bloise 2016 170 4/8 174 3/8 Pottawatomie Scott R. Kemp 2016 Co., KS 170 3/8 190 7/8 Fayette Co., IN Terry L. Beard II 2016 170 3/8 183 1/8 Monroe Co., WI Donald J. Bechel 1974 170 3/8 177 2/8 Wabasha Co., MN Joshua W. Moechnig 2016 170 2/8 171 4/8 Grant Co., KY Matthew D. Thomayer 2015 170 2/8 193 1/8 Juneau Co., WI Randy B. Roeck 2013 169 7/8 190 5/8 Addison Co., VT Leon Grant 1910 169 7/8 172 4/8 St. Charles Co., MO Gordon J. Prinster 2016 169 5/8 179 5/8 Coles Co., IL Eli B. Heicher 2016 169 3/8 187 1/8 Webb Co., TX David C. Walker 2016 169 180 2/8 Sherburne Co., MN Joseph D. Hemmer 2016 168 7/8 182 6/8 Dunn Co., WI Donavon E. Baskin 2016 168 6/8 175 5/8 Delaware Co., IN Derek A. Hoffheins 2016 168 6/8 181 1/8 Flathead Co., MT John T. Overcast 2016 168 4/8 185 2/8 Lincoln Co., MO John S. Newberry 2016 168 3/8 171 5/8 Uvalde Co., TX Charley D. 2016 Holloway, Jr. 168 2/8 194 Bolivar Co., MS L. Pittman 2016 Edwards, Jr. 168 1/8 176 Jefferson Co., WI Dawn J. Traub 2016 168 1/8 171 6/8 Winona Co., MN William A. Simpson 2015 168 178 2/8 Russell Co., KY Christopher L. 2016 Robinson 167 7/8 172 3/8 Lapeer Co., MI Warren N. Walton 2015 167 6/8 174 4/8 Crawford Co., OH Matthew R. Weithman 2016 167 5/8 172 6/8 Daviess Co., MO Joshua M. Terhune 2016 167 5/8 182 4/8 Trempealeau Co., WI Scott M. Etzel 2016 167 4/8 190 1/8 Madison Co., IN Jamin P. McQuitty 2016 167 3/8 173 5/8 Greene Co., IN J. Eric Wagler 2013 167 3/8 182 2/8 Howard Co., IN Calvin E. Hunt 2016 167 3/8 173 3/8 Pine Co., MN Bobby A. Utecht 2015 166 6/8 180 6/8 Anoka Co., MN Blake R. Carty 2016 166 6/8 174 4/8 Bolivar Co., MS L. Pittman 2016 Edwards, Jr. 166 6/8 190 6/8 Carroll Co., IL Christopher S. Barger 2016 166 6/8 169 2/8 Starke Co., IN Jeremy E. Crittendon II 2015 166 6/8 179 4/8 Williamson Co., TN Eric A. Austin 2016 166 5/8 198 2/8 Pike Co., MO Brent E. Potter 2016 166 1/8 173 4/8 Decatur Co., IA Eric D. VanGilder 2016 166 1/8 180 2/8 Schuyler Co., IL Christopher S. Dellger 2016 166 169 4/8 Chase Co., KS Jason C. Feyereisen 2016 165 7/8 187 1/8 Clinton Co., MI Luther J. Clark 2016 165 7/8 173 Hutchinson Co., SD Greg Horstman 2016 165 5/8 167 3/8 Lincoln Co., OK Kyle W. Goeller 2016 165 5/8 172 3/8 Spencer Co., KY Darrell C. Turner 2016 165 5/8 182 1/8 Winneshiek Co., IA Denise L. Buddenberg 2016 165 4/8 176 1/8 Morgan Co., MO Nicholas P. Schaben 2016 165 3/8 168 5/8 Buffalo Co., WI Hunter T. Hurlburt 2016 165 3/8 175 7/8 Grant Co., WI Greg M. Carl 2016 165 3/8 176 7/8 Keokuk Co., IA Daniel C. Etter 2016 165 2/8 179 4/8 Anoka Co., MN Picked Up 2017 165 2/8 182 Vernon Co., WI Frederick N. Oftedahl 2016 165 1/8 172 3/8 Grant Co., WI Ryan D. Gehrke 2012

K. Witt W. Bowman B. Ihlenfeldt R. Krueger D. Butler R. Graber D. Turchanski B. Hagy L. Loranzan W. Johnson B. Eickholtz S. Keithley J. Hooten S. Grabow B. Rudyk J. Olson D. Boland K. Fredrickson A. Cramer T. Heil M. Miller G. Block M. Cooper T. Wright C. Fish W. Bowman G. Jenkins C. Pierce D. Coker J. Detjen D. Good J. Newport J. Lunde S. Fish S. Petkovich J. Williams J. Detjen Y. Patterson C. Neill S. Godfrey C. Pierce D. Weddle J. Ohmer L. Loranzan R. Bergloff P. Barwick R. Graber S. Petkovich S. Petkovich M. Harrison J. Lunde C. Neill S. Zirbel J. Bogucki K. Shepard J. Detjen S. Rauch S. Zirbel S. Zirbel B. Hagy T. Norwick G. Moore T. Gentry K. Fredrickson L. Lueckenhoff C. Fish A. Crum S. Grabow W. Bowman J. Lunde S. Zirbel

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER CONTINUED 165 174 6/8 Clay Co., IN Joseph L. Eckerman 2016 165 170 4/8 St. Clair Co., MO Aaron H. Wosoba 2015 164 6/8 176 Bracken Co., KY Nathaniel M. Sandlin 2016 164 6/8 167 Washburn Co., WI Elmer Haskins 1945 164 5/8 172 3/8 Onondaga Co., NY Paul A. Skrupa 2016 164 4/8 171 3/8 Howard Co., MO Thomas C. King 2016 164 4/8 172 Queen Anne’s Jeffrey K. Wolfe 2016 Co., MD 164 4/8 168 3/8 Tyler Co., WV Terry K. Collins 2016 164 4/8 182 3/8 Washburn Co., WI Scott R. DeVoe 2017 164 2/8 172 5/8 Dane Co., WI Thomas F. Lankey 2016 163 6/8 175 4/8 Knox Co., OH Harley J. Hanna 2016 163 6/8 166 7/8 Ripley Co., IN Edward L. Graber 1988 163 5/8 183 5/8 Pueblo Co., CO Steven P. Passig 2016 163 4/8 174 4/8 Iowa Co., WI Robert G. Poole 2016 163 2/8 171 7/8 Breckinridge Co., KY Christie N. Tucker 2016 163 2/8 165 2/8 Dunn Co., WI Mark G. Buchner 2013 163 1/8 165 6/8 Warren Co., IN Frank M. Turner II 2016 163 168 Scotts Bluff Co., NE Dick J. Bentley 2016 162 5/8 188 7/8 Wabasha Co., MN Thomas W. Tentis, Jr. 2016 162 4/8 180 5/8 Comanche Co., KS M. Robert Delaney 2016 162 4/8 165 4/8 Owen Co., IN Andrew C. 2016 Whittington 162 4/8 175 5/8 Ozaukee Co., WI Michael S. Mueller 2016 162 4/8 167 1/8 Sheboygan Co., WI Picked Up 2016 162 3/8 167 Issaquena Co., MS B. Austin Blakeney 2016 162 2/8 194 6/8 Grant Co., IN Matthew B. Shaw 2016 162 2/8 173 1/8 Medina Co., OH Jeffrey D. Filip 1994 162 1/8 172 Butler Co., OH Steven E. Bulach 2016 161 7/8 177 5/8 Stearns Co., MN Jeffrey A. Schemmel 2016 161 6/8 169 York Co., ME Peter E. Doucette 2016 161 5/8 168 3/8 Manitowoc Co., WI Logan S. Hubbartt 2016 161 4/8 169 Benton Co., IA Deborah S. Swain 2016 161 3/8 179 6/8 Kanabec Co., MN Leroy D. Gall 2016 161 2/8 169 7/8 Ellis Co., OK George M. Moore 2008 161 2/8 168 7/8 Juneau Co., WI Tony J. DuFrane 2016 161 2/8 181 3/8 Martin Co., IN Jack M. Hiatt 2016 160 7/8 165 1/8 Belmont Co., OH Austin D. Kemp 2016 160 7/8 168 7/8 Ellis Co., KS Darrell P. Irby 2016 160 6/8 185 Buffalo Co., WI Benjamin C. Bublitz 2016 160 5/8 169 6/8 St. Croix Co., WI Paul D. Wolf 2015 160 4/8 167 4/8 Madison Co., NY Gary C. Sweatland 2016 160 4/8 166 3/8 Richland Co., WI David L. Halverson 2016 160 3/8 171 2/8 Anoka Co., MN Richard L. Jones 2016 160 3/8 163 6/8 Rockcastle Co., KY Joshua D. Prewitt 2016 160 2/8 167 6/8 Oakland Co., MI William L. Cousins 2016 160 1/8 173 6/8 Goose Lake, AB Greg L. Bond 2016 160 1/8 171 Parke Co., IN Arin G. Witherell 2014 160 178 Grayson Co., KY Jeffery L. Lindsey 2016 160 166 3/8 Prince William Eric R. Bethune 2016 Co., VA

S. Petkovich J. Cussimanio D. Weddle K. Zimmerman J. Folta J. Hindman W. Jones J. Westfall K. Zimmerman B. Ihlenfeldt A. Cramer R. Graber R. Rockwell J. Lunde T. Smith J. Lunde R. Graber M. Dowse W. Bowman D. Razza J. Bogucki M. Miller M. Miller C. Neill R. Karczewski R. Stephen L. Loranzan S. Grabow H. Libby S. Zirbel L. Briney J. Lunde D. Polk J. Lunde J. Hooten A. Cramer J. Dreibelbis S. Fish J. Lunde J. Dowd J. Lunde J. Lunde W. Cooper J. Ohmer D. Bromberger G. Howard S. Johns M. DeAngury

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 333-7/8 262 273 4/8 Miami Co., IN Richard W. Eldridge II 2016 245 2/8 251 Comanche Co., OK Travis A. Ocker 2016 239 1/8 245 1/8 Clay Co., KS Jordy B. Crimmins 2016 238 4/8 247 5/8 Riley Co., KS Brian D. Griffin 2016 237 243 7/8 Union Co., OH Ryan A. Piper 2016 234 1/8 237 3/8 Columbiana Co., OH Ronald B. Westover 2016 226 3/8 241 Collin Co., TX Cody R. Griffin 2016 224 5/8 235 6/8 Montgomery Co., IL Picked Up 2017 222 2/8 228 7/8 Westlock, AB David W. Futoransky 2016 217 1/8 226 1/8 Fulton Co., IL Kody A. Neumoyer 2016 216 1/8 223 Oklahoma Co., OK Brad G. Julian II 2016 216 1/8 219 1/8 Rusk Co., WI Dennis M. Arndt 2016 215 3/8 222 7/8 Palo Alto Co., IA James L. Klepper 2016 213 3/8 219 5/8 Campbell Co., KY Erik P. Heller 2016 211 4/8 218 3/8 Republic Co., KS Unknown 2004 210 5/8 216 5/8 Taney Co., MO Benjamin P. 2016 Humphries 210 2/8 216 1/8 Madison Co., AL Leonard C. Jarrett 2017 210 215 7/8 Christian Co., IL Carl A. Michel 2016 208 5/8 216 Unknown Unknown 1900 207 214 Pickaway Co., OH T. Wayne Vickers 2016 206 4/8 211 Fairfield Co., OH William E. Brubach 2016 206 1/8 215 1/8 Greene Co., IN Cory A. Darden 2016 204 6/8 211 7/8 Montney, BC Sean M. Davidson 2016

S. Petkovich G. Moore L. Lueckenhoff T. Lovin L. Loranzan R. Pepper K. Witt T. Walmsley B. Daudelin D. Lynch G. Moore K. Zimmerman S. Grabow D. Weddle R. Henicke T. Donnelly L. Konyndyk S. McCoy J. Straley A. Cramer A. Cramer J. Bogucki R. Petrie

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Craig A. Pyhtila took this non-typical whitetail deer, scoring 197-1/8 points, in 2016 while hunting in Tompkins County, New York. He was shooting a 12 gauge shotgun. This non-typical Sitka blacktail deer was taken by B&C Associate Carston R. Terry on a hunt near Uyak Bay, Alaska, in 2016. The buck scores 123-1/8 points. He was shooting a .270 Winchester.

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 81

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This Shiras’ moose, scoring 171-2/8 points, was taken by Tristan J. Persico in Granite County, Montana, on a hunt in 2016. B&C Associates Danny J. McArthur and Garth A. McArthur both harvested Rocky Mountain goats during the 2015 season while hunting near Toby Creek, British Columbia. Danny’s goat scores 49-4/8 points and Garth’s scores 48-6/8 points. While on a 2016 bow hunt near Chismania Lake, British Columbia, B&C Associate Ernesto M. Santana took this Canada moose, scoring 190-5/8 points.

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER CONTINUED 204 4/8 217 3/8 Graham Co., KS Austin D. Heier 2016 P. Riese 204 3/8 217 7/8 Stearns Co., MN Daniel W. Schutte 2016 C. Ferrell 204 215 7/8 Doniphan Co., KS James A. Barnette 2016 L. Barr 203 7/8 213 7/8 Muskingum Co., OH Eric C. Ford, Jr. 2016 R. Blaisdell 203 4/8 208 4/8 Mahoning Co., OH David M. Brown 2016 R. Pepper 203 2/8 208 3/8 Phillips Co., AR Karen R. Little 2016 B. Sanford 203 209 3/8 Jackson Co., MO Picked Up 2015 R. Krueger 201 7/8 212 2/8 Todd Co., MN Zane W. Packard 2016 M. Harrison 201 213 6/8 Greene Co., IN James P. Bright 2016 S. Petkovich 201 205 Highland Co., OH Paul A. Gaines 2005 A. Cramer 200 1/8 203 Daviess Co., IN Picked Up 2016 S. Petkovich 199 6/8 203 4/8 Smith Co., MS Austin L. Ashley 2016 R. Dillard 199 204 1/8 Harlan Co., NE Christopher S. Brown 2015 T. Baine 197 3/8 201 1/8 Marshall Co., MN Ronald M. Trontvet 1987 R. Dufault 197 2/8 198 7/8 St. Francis Co., AR Matthew W. Bingham 2016 J. Harmon 197 1/8 204 1/8 Tompkins Co., NY Craig A. Pyhtila 2016 G. Dennis 196 7/8 206 4/8 Lee Co., IL Craig B. Walter 2016 A. Shofner 196 6/8 200 6/8 Allegheny Co., PA Richard A. Sneddon 2016 D. Razza 196 5/8 205 1/8 Marion Co., KY Joseph G. 2016 G. Howard Buckman, Jr. 196 202 1/8 La Salle Co., TX Paul E. Duderstadt 1978 C. Mitchell 195 7/8 204 5/8 Jackson Co., IL Rodney W. Usrey 2016 C. Cook 195 6/8 202 6/8 Allamakee Co., IA Gene E. Averhoff 2016 T. Kalsbeck 194 7/8 204 1/8 Meigs Co., OH Mattew J. Douds 2016 A. Cramer 194 7/8 201 2/8 Lac la Nonne, AB Bradley H. Carlin 2015 D. Bromberger 194 4/8 202 3/8 Ripley Co., IN Stephen B. Sembach 2016 J. Hooten 193 1/8 198 5/8 Somerset Co., ME Jeffrey A. Simmons 2016 A. Wentworth 192 6/8 199 4/8 Breckinridge Co., KY William H. Jones 2016 D. Weddle 192 2/8 199 1/8 Phelps Co., MO Tony L. Lortz 2011 B. Vandeloecht 192 201 2/8 Lucas Co., IA Brett A. Rohweder 2016 J. Nordman 191 3/8 206 1/8 LaPorte Co., IN Trevor J. Draves 2016 J. Bogucki 191 199 4/8 Wabash Co., IN Tyler J. Bickel 2016 R. Graber 191 206 2/8 White Co., AR Christopher D. Cypert 2016 D. Doughty 190 4/8 193 Knox Co., IN Chadwick A. Cooper 2016 R. Graber 189 7/8 196 3/8 Hughes Co., OK Jerry S. Keeney 2016 T. Cartwright 189 3/8 197 7/8 Adams Co., WI Matthew G. Ornes 2016 P. Jensen 188 6/8 192 1/8 Chariton Co., MO Kalen S. Linneman 2016 B. Ream 188 5/8 198 3/8 Morrison Co., MN Todd A. Bliese 2016 J. Lunde 188 2/8 195 7/8 Hocking Co., OH Fabiola B. Gerken 2016 J. Hill 188 2/8 197 1/8 Putnam Co., MO Ben J. Wilmoth 2016 D. Ream 188 196 6/8 Peoria Co., IL Kenneth A. Ferch 2016 A. Shofner 187 5/8 194 1/8 Harrison Co., IA Matthew L. Cross 2016 C. Smiley 187 3/8 196 1/8 Mahaska Co., IA Collin L. DeBruin 2016 S. Grabow 187 2/8 195 1/8 Pembina River, AB Tony W. Barker 2016 B. Daudelin 187 1/8 193 6/8 Monroe Co., IN Casey L. Vincent 2016 J. Bogucki 187 194 4/8 Caswell Co., NC Picked Up 2015 H. Atkinson 186 5/8 194 5/8 Benton Co., MO Adam J. Wood 2016 B. Harriman 186 192 4/8 Clarion Co., PA James L. Hartzell 2016 D. Bastow 185 7/8 194 6/8 Last Mountain Travis A. Sutter 2016 J. Lorenz Lake, SK 185 4/8 188 4/8 Martin Co., IN McKenzie R. Roark 2016 R. Graber 185 3/8 189 2/8 Henry Co., IA Trevor F. Shanahan 2016 B. Mormann

TYPICAL COUES’ WHITETAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 144-1/8 126 6/8 122 2/8 122 116 2/8 111 6/8 110 6/8 110 5/8 110 1/8 109 4/8 108 1/8 102 100

129 5/8 136 130 5/8 120 4/8 115 6/8 113 3/8 113 7/8 113 1/8 110 6/8 114 4/8 103 2/8 105

Pima Co., AZ Cochise Co., AZ Greenlee Co., AZ Chihuahua, MX Pima Co., AZ Chihuahua, MX Sonora, MX Sonora, MX Pima Co., AZ Sonora, MX Santa Cruz Co., AZ Cochise Co., AZ

Mark Hardy 2016 Hannah G. Mackenzie 2016 Devin U. Beck 2015 R. James Molina 2017 Chris A. Rognlien 2016 Lee Frudden 2017 Devin U. Beck 2017 James H. Rinehart 2017 Jacob F. Bushong 2016 James H. Rinehart 2017 Jacob L. Bowden 2016 William A. Keebler 2016

P. Dalrymple P. Dalrymple P. Dalrymple R. Tone D. May P. Dalrymple P. Dalrymple W. Hepworth M. Zieser W. Hepworth P. Dalrymple C. Goldman

NON-TYPICAL COUES’ WHITETAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 196-2/8 117 5/8 127 2/8 Sonora, MX

Kurt D. Grosser

Share your field photos with us! Follow: @BooneandCrockettClub Tag: #booneandcrockettclub 82 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

2016 D. Caughey

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MOOSE AND CARIBOU FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

CANADA MOOSE - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 242 200 6/8 203 200 3/8 206 4/8 197 1/8 202 7/8 193 3/8 197 5/8 190 5/8 193 3/8 189 6/8 198 1/8 186 2/8 190 1/8 185 6/8 192 5/8

Consolation Daniel Fournier Creek, BC Glacier Lake, BC Michael G. Vargyas Archies Brook, NS M.W. & L.D. Olson Gravel Lake, SK Tyler J. Gilbert Chismania Lake, BC Ernesto M. Santana Chowade River, BC Gerald L. Weich Codroy Valley, NL Charles E. Priddle Dease Lake, BC Bruce H. Perryman

2016 R. Berreth 2015 2016 2016 2016 2016 1964 2016

J. Sanesh W. Hingley A. England T. Milne R. Berreth G. Lesser D. Pawlicki

This woodland caribou, scoring 326 points, was taken by Jeffrey Young near Granite Lake, Newfoundland, on a hunt in 2016. He was shooting a 30-06 Springfield. B&C Associate David R. Watts was on a hunt in Hudspeth County, Texas, when he harvested this pronghorn, scoring 87-6/8 points. He was shooting a .300 Weatherby.

ALASKA-YUKON MOOSE - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 266-4/8 228 4/8 225 7/8 224 222 3/8 215 1/8 214

234 5/8 232 1/8 228 6/8 225 5/8 228 2/8 215 2/8

Jackson Creek, AK Dwight D. Jones Kantishna River, AK Joseph A. Head Yukon River, AK Colin T. Busch Yukon River, AK M. Troy Nesbit Mackenzie Mts., NT Terry G. Gerber Koyukuk River, AK John R. Scranton

2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 1996

D. Hart A. Jubenville D. Nielsen S. Kleinsmith K. Lehr B. Novosad

SHIRAS’ MOOSE - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 205-4/8 171 2/8 164 4/8 163 6/8 159 7/8 153 2/8 152 4/8 151 1/8 150 4/8 149 2/8 141 7/8 141 1/8

176 1/8 166 5/8 165 7/8 163 6/8 154 5/8 156 155 2/8 152 6/8 151 144 2/8 144 6/8

Granite Co., MT Flathead Co., MT Benewah Co., ID Flathead Co., MT Flathead Co., MT Weber Co., UT Lincoln Co., MT Flathead Co., MT Clearwater Co., ID Bonneville Co., ID Sheridan Co., WY

Tristan J. Persico Luke R. McAdams Dustin G. Derrick Sandy P. Swanson Jeremy R. Redfern Mark J. Gutsmiedl Justin P. Bertch Carrie E. Schuster Brandi J. Polumsky Larry R. Newton Craig J. Bashore

2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016

J. Spring O. Opre S. Wilkins D. Conrad J. Kolbe S. Zirbel B. Milliron J. Reneau S. Wilkins B. Ward B. Novosad

MOUNTAIN CARIBOU - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 459-3/8 407 4/8 416 3/8 Ice Lakes, YT 384 404 1/8 Consolation Creek, BC

Thomas W. Kitzerow 2016 C. Pierce Daniel Fournier 2016 R. Berreth

WOODLAND CARIBOU - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 419-5/8 359 6/8 367 7/8 Middle Ridge, NL 326 344 1/8 Granite Lake, NL 322 7/8 336 Sam’s Pond, NL

Russell W. Davis Jeffrey Young Mark J. Gutsmiedl

2016 R. Teal 2016 J. Anstey 2016 S. Zirbel

BARREN GROUND CARIBOU - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 477 378 7/8 390 5/8 Etivluk River, AK

Roy E. Bartz

2016 T. Spraker

HORNED GAME FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

PRONGHORN - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 96-4/8 87 6/8 87 4/8 86 2/8 86 2/8 85 84 6/8 84 6/8 84 83 4/8 83 2/8 83 83 82 6/8 82 4/8 82 2/8 82 2/8 82 2/8 82 2/8 82 81 4/8

88 6/8 88 3/8 87 3/8 87 7/8 86 5/8 85 3/8 85 2/8 84 3/8 84 2/8 84 84 7/8 83 2/8 83 2/8 82 6/8 82 5/8 83 82 3/8 83 83 82 4/8

Hudspeth Co., TX David R. Watts 2016 Mora Co., NM Richard D. Meritt 2016 Sweetwater Co., WY Douglas A. Wesley 2016 Yavapai Co., AZ Louie Kitcoff 2016 Socorro Co., NM Shannon M. Allen 2015 Mora Co., NM Grant A. Medlin 2016 Socorro Co., NM John D. Teeter 2016 Carbon Co., WY Heather C. Rhamy 2016 Carbon Co., WY Christopher B. Denton 2016 Mora Co., NM Deborah R. Meritt 2016 Rio Grande Co., CO Jeffrey M. Weesner 2016 Sublette Co., WY Ron S. Anderson 2016 Converse Co., WY Christopher M. Rhamy 2016 Logan Co., KS Matthew S. Peek 2015 Coconino Co., AZ Dale S. Parrish 2016 Niobrara Co., WY Michael D. Johansen 2016 Sweet Grass Co., MT Rodney S. Johnston 2016 Yavapai Co., AZ Dale S. Parrish 2000 Carbon Co., WY Amber L. Smith 2016 Mora Co., NM John D. Ickes 2016

O. Carpenter M. Ledbetter R. Stayner R. Stayner J. Smith T. Adams R. Stayner B. Wilkes R. Stayner M. Ledbetter C. Chastain B. Dampman B. Wilkes L. Fox D. Richardson J. Plesuk F. King D. Richardson B. Wilkes O. Carpenter

Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation

1. Publication Title: Fair Chase 2. Publication Number: 1077-3274 3. Filing Date: 9/29/2016 4. Issue Frequency: Quarterly 5. Number of Issues Published Annually: Four 6. Annual Subscription Price: $35.00 7. Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication: Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801-2753 Contact Person: Karlie Slayer Telephone: 406/542-1888 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters of Publisher: Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801-2753 9. Full Names and Complete Mailing Addresses of Publisher, Editor, and Managing Editor: Publisher - Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801-2753 Editor - Doug Painter, Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801-2753 Managing Editor - Karlie Slayer, Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801-2753 10. Owner: Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801-2753 11. Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Security Holders: None 12. Tax Status: Has Not Changed During the Preceding 12 Months 13. Publication Title: Fair Chase 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data: Winter 2017 15. Extent and Nature of Circulation – Average No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months and No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date (respectively): a. Total Number of Copies: 37,525 and 7,600 b. Paid Circulation (1) Mailed Outside-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541: 4,451 and 4,074 (2) Mailed InCounty Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541: 0 and 0 (3) Paid Distribution Outside the Mails Including Counter Sales and Other Paid Distribution Outside USPS: 0 and 0 (4) Paid Distribution by Other Classes of Mail Through the USPS: 30,669 and 528 c. Total Paid Distribution: 35,120 and 4,602 d. Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (1) Free or Nominal Rate Outside-County Copies Included on PS Form 3541: 1,332 and 1,766 (2) Free or Nominal Rate In-County Copies Included on PS Form 3541: 0 and 0 (3) Free or Nominal Rate Copies Mailed at Other Classes Through the USPS: 20 and 25 (4) Free or Nominal Rate Distribution Outside the Mail: 320 and 482 e. Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution: 1,672 and 2,273 f. Total Distribution: 36,792 and 6,875 g. Copies Not Distributed: 733 and 725 h. Total: 37,525 and 7,600 i. Percent Paid: 95.45% and 66.94% 16. Publication of Statement of Ownership: X If the publication is a general publication, publication of this statement is required. Will be printed in the Winter 2017 issue of this publication.

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 83

PRONGHORN CONTINUED 81 83 4/8 Coconino Co., AZ Andrew J. Leiendecker 2016 M. Golightly 81 81 7/8 Luna Co., NM Kendra K. Holder 2016 J. Edwards 80 6/8 81 1/8 Elko Co., NV Garrett T. Newland 2016 R. Stayner 80 6/8 81 5/8 Elko Co., NV Rafael Betancourt, Jr. 2016 L. Clark 80 4/8 80 7/8 Natrona Co., WY Mark A. Carter 2015 A. Cramer 80 2/8 81 7/8 Churchill Co., NV Kristin M. Nelson 2016 T. Lammel 80 2/8 82 2/8 Coconino Co., AZ James C. Prigge 2016 G. Fabian 80 2/8 82 Lincoln Co., CO Samuel A. 2016 W. Keebler Heffelfinger 80 2/8 81 4/8 Utah Co., UT Chan S. Hardman 2016 W. Norton 80 80 4/8 Bowman Co., ND Michael D. Biewer 2014 J. Plesuk 80 80 6/8 Lincoln Co., WY Roland L. Turpin 2016 B. Penske 80 81 6/8 Sioux Co., NE Zachary R. Beyant 2016 S. Woitaszewski

BISON - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 136-4/8 123 4/8 126 1/8 Custer Co., SD

Jonathan D. Stettler 2016 W. Norton

ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOAT - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 57-4/8 52 4/8 52 7/8 51 4/8 51 4/8 49 4/8 49 5/8 48 6/8 49 1/8

Revillagigedo Island, AK Hyak Mountain, BC Toby Creek, BC Toby Creek, BC

Marvin H. McCloud III 2016 J. Baichtal Jody D. Jenkins Danny J. McArthur Garth A. McArthur

2015 E. Swanson 2015 E. Swanson 2015 E. Swanson

MUSK OX - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 129 116 112 2/8 107 4/8 106

116 7/8 117 111 4/8 107 1/8

Tuktoyaktuk, NT Patrick B. Partin Great Bear Lake, NT Jason R. Becker Kent Pen., NU Nicholas J. Erway Nelson Island, AK Frank S. Noska IV

2016 2007 2017 2017

W. Cooper T. Rogers R. Brugler C. Brent

BIGHORN SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 209-4/8 196 4/8 192 6/8 192 1/8 188 3/8 187 5/8 185 3/8 182 2/8 182 1/8 181 3/8 180 1/8 179 3/8 176 5/8

197 5/8 193 1/8 193 2/8 188 5/8 187 6/8 186 182 5/8 183 182 5/8 181 1/8 180 1/8 177

Fording River, BC Blaine Co., MT Hill Co., MT Mount Berry, AB Blaine Co., MT Fergus Co., MT Taos Co., NM Cadomin, AB Yavapai Co., AZ Granite Co., MT Cougar Creek, AB Blaine Co., MT

Wayne T. Hunt Britton W. Ceynar William J. Muzyl Darwin J. Hunter Richard E. Chase Michael H. Getman Trey D. Sullivan Joshua C. Allen Randell L. Spray Tyler A. Hoffman Derek D. Olson Carl F. Hayden

2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016

G. Markoski J. Pallister F. King D. Butler J. Brown G. Taylor D. May W. Paplawski M. Zieser J. Spring B. Daudelin J. Reneau

DESERT SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 205-1/8 177 5/8 178 5/8 Dona Ana Co., NM James E. McIsaac 2016 D. Hart 175 175 1/8 Clark Co., NV Nick J. Uhart 2016 V. Trujillo 174 7/8 175 7/8 Coahuila, MX Charlene R. Winkler 2017 D. Stemler 173 6/8 174 Coahuila, MX Sue A. Kinney 2017 C. Lacey 172 2/8 173 2/8 Clark Co., NV Arthur L. Walsh 2016 G. Tsukamoto 171 1/8 173 4/8 Clark Co., NV Christopher J. 2016 C. Lacey Carrigee 170 4/8 171 3/8 Clark Co., NV Anthony C. Marich 2016 S. Sanborn 170 171 Sonora, MX Grant A. Medlin 2016 E. Barrett Mena 168 2/8 168 5/8 Chihuahua, MX Richard A. Bonander 2017 T. Atkinson 165 2/8 165 7/8 Sonora, MX Carean Goss 2016 G. Mefford

DALL’S SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 189-6/8 166 1/8 166 7/8 Peters Creek, AK John J. Murray 162 5/8 163 1/8 Talkeetna Mts., AK Brandon W. Sipes

2016 F. Noska 2016 C. Brent

STONE’S SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 196-6/8

TOP TO BOTTOM:

B&C Associate Frank S. Noska IV took this musk ox, scoring 106 points, in 2017 while on an archery hunt near Nelson Island, Alaska. In 2016 Randell L. Spray harvested this bighorn sheep, scoring 181-3/8 points, while bowhunting in Yavapai County, Arizona. This desert sheep, scoring 175 points, was taken by Nick J. Uhart in Clark County, Nevada, in 2016. He was shooting a 7 mm Remington Mag.

84 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

174 2/8 172 2/8 167 164 2/8 161 1/8

174 4/8 172 6/8 167 1/8 164 6/8 161 2/8

Tuchodi Lakes, BC Besa River, BC Muncho Lake, BC Bug Lake, BC Toad River, BC

Jacques Franke Eugene Zimmerman Carean Goss Brad R. Barker Leo H. Goss

2016 2016 2016 2014 2016

R. Berreth D. Turchanski G. Mefford T. Humes G. Mefford

FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 17 85

CAUGHT ON CAMERA The distribution of wildlife throughout the year is relevant to private lands management, providing hunter access to wildlife, and ensuring the sustainability of wildlife populations. In collaboration with staff at the Boone and Crockett Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch, the Boone and Crockett Club University Program at the University of Montana has initiated a project to better understand the conservation implications of sustainable ranch management on big game communities on the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains in Montana. By using motion-triggered trail cameras, and a rigorous study design, we will assess big game distribution as it relates to land ownership and management strategies, habitat features, and the presence of other wildlife species. A unique component of the research is the integration and consideration of sustainable ranch management techniques and how ranching relates to big game distributions. Ultimately, the research goals are to better understand how wildlife distribution changes throughout the year and to help inform management and policy related to the important role ranch management plays in wildlife sustainability. Trail cameras are being used to answer these research questions because they are non-invasive, relatively inexpensive, and effective at monitoring far-ranging and elusive species. Trail camera photos are also a great education tool. Thus, another component of the study will be the development of teaching modules for K-12 and university students related to ranch management and wildlife sustainability. n

86 FA I R CH A S E | WI N T E R 20 17

PHOTOS FROM THE THEODORE ROOSEVELT MEMORIAL RANCH Dupuyer Montana

One camera caught Mike Briggs, Ranch Manager, working with the scenic background of the eastern edge of the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

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