Aging Roe Bucks from video?

AlasdairM

Well-Known Member
Is it possible to tell the approximate age of a buck from a video. I went to check my trail cam which is in a patch of forestry on a bit of land I shoot. I was surprised to see this guy wander in front of the camera, I had not been to this area of the estate until the start of this year so don't know what he looked like last year. I can tell a yearling buck but after I have no idea how to age them. Anyone any ideas how old he might be? Hope the videos work have not tried it on here before..........


 
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Not sure, can't see the coronets which is a good indicator of age,can't see his face, can't see him walking can't see him stood upright, so not a lot to go on, I would say he was middle aged, possibly later middle age if I was pushed.
 
If you can get hold of any of G Kenneth Whitehead or Richard Prior's books the answer would be yes.

Mostly you can tell from the size of neck, belly and general deportment - a bit like humans really ;) Certainly it's possible to tell a youngster from an old 'un - youngsters just look, well, thin.

I am at work at the moment but will try to grab a copy of the relevant book when I get home.

willie_gunn
 
If you can get hold of any of G Kenneth Whitehead or Richard Prior's books the answer would be yes.

Mostly you can tell from the size of neck, belly and general deportment - a bit like humans really ;) Certainly it's possible to tell a youngster from an old 'un - youngsters just look, well, thin.

I am at work at the moment but will try to grab a copy of the relevant book when I get home.

willie_gunn

Agreed but that was my point you can see very little on the video , if you can see his stance and movement you can age him as far young, middle aged or which is all you need to know from a cull point of view,a saggy belly like in humans can be an indication of age , I would say how the neck is held rather than the size is a good indication of age, the older a buck is the lower his head and neck will be held as he walks, a really old buck will walk with his neck horizontal pretty much in line with his back.

Antlers which is what you can see most of in the video, are not a great indicator of age though there are some clues tines become blunt in old age and from about six years onwards the outside edge of coronets start drooping becoming more pronounced with passing years.
 
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Agreed but that was my point you can see very little on the video.

Then we're in danger of violent agreement :D

I found the books

Firstly "Roe Deer Management & Stalking" by Richard Prior (Roe Deer: Management and Stalking: Amazon.co.uk: Richard Prior: Books)

To precis his comments;

Young - light body, thin neck, legs proportionately long, weak hind-quarters
Middle Age - thick body, straight back
Old Age - heavy forepart, thick & short neck, strong hindquarters, almost straight line from antlers to hindquarters when walking

On the next page he then goes on to show a photo of an old buck with a "saggy" back!

He also has a line drawing recognition guide on page 56.

Then in "Practical Deer-Stalking", by G Kenneth Whitehead (Practical Deer-stalking: Amazon.co.uk: G.Kenneth Whitehead: Books), he talks about the Vorberg system, which looks at facial coloration. It is probably the only time I've seen this mentioned and I can't find any information about it from a quick Google search, so I will have to dig some more.

The only other comment I'd make is that the buck in the video has quite a pronounced sternum, which I've always presumed to be an indication of a younger buck, as when they get older it seems to become more rounded as they carry more weight.

willie_gunn
 
Difficult to say on that one but as has been said body indicators are a much better clue.
He's not a yearling ( neck too big ) and he's not old ( neck not big enough ) so he's middle aged, in the 3-5 year old range. A promising youngster.
Give him another year or two.
 
Looks a clean buck with comformation to him so middle age is where I would hazard a guess. you will have get a better look at him with you bins before trying to age him but its only guess work .what matters is ,is he no the cull plan or not if so then when he is dead get someone who knows what they are looking at to have a look at his teeth I believe that's the only way for sure
 
I would go young to middle age and if it was on my patch I would leave him unless I saw better. .
 
In clean antler and still part winter coat, must be oldish, a youngster would be in full summer coat.
 
In clean antler and still part winter coat, must be oldish, a youngster would be in full summer coat.

Maybe they are in your neck of the woods, but the change hasn't reached Berkshire.

I've yet to see any roe in full summer coat - both the young bucks I've shot in the last two weeks were still 50:50 at best. Our washing machine filter has got the deer hair to prove it!

The yearling doe I watched with a client for 20 minutes on Tuesday evening was probably not even that.

willie_gunn
 
Mature buck, ( I would guess about 4 years old) however the only way you can more or less tell the age of any deer is by the teeth and taking a cross section of the back molar which will give a more firm indication of its age.
 
Marcher if you look at the location you will see it is Aberdeenshire and we are way south of that and still have most deer in winter coat. But it is guess work and shows how hard it is to do a proper management plan on your ground.
I would suggest he is rounded in the rear parts and has a good covering of meat over the flanks. Old beasts tend to wither a fair bit. That said its a nice deer and nice to see on your ground.
 
From the photos I'd note the thick neck, the thickness of the front shoulder, the grey face, the roundness of the belly and think old middle age.....but enough of the spaniel ;)
she is a little round in the belly she is on a diet but she is so greedy and the kids don't help ,that's probably why she finds the deer so quick she thinks she is going to be able to eat them LOL
 
Thanks for the help, he was a possible for the cull plan but only if he was thought to be older but from feedback here he will be left of a year or two. A friend said because he had the start of a 7th point it meant he was old but I did not think this was right so thought to ask here for a better idea, will probably go check the camera again tonight its in a slightly different position but might have caught him again. There is little sign of the change to summer coat here but I will keep an eye to see how his coat changes in comparison the others.
willie_gunn - I have ordered the Richard prior book I have his sporting answers book but not that on yet. I guess from your name you are from up the north somewhere, my family come from Thurso I was born there but we moved when I was wee.
 
willie_gunn - I have ordered the Richard prior book I have his sporting answers book but not that on yet. I guess from your name you are from up the north somewhere, my family come from Thurso I was born there but we moved when I was wee.

The book is excellent. Even though I bought it years ago I still refer to it often.

On my name you guessed wrong. I am South London born and bred, although when asked in the census I put myself down as "half-breed Irish Wop" ;)

The willie_gunn comes from my favourite salmon fly - I have them in every possible size and configuration!
 
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