Elk antler growth ?

[jrod]

I live in Newark Ca, and decided to take the wife and kids on a walk this morning. So we went to a local regional park (Sunol), to enjoy this great weather. I took my 10x50's because there is a lot of game to check out. On the way to the park there is thousands of acres of off limits water dept. property and often times there are tule elk, i think they are tules, hanging out near the road. On the first hill I spotted some elk, SWEET. So i got my binocs out and this bull is huge. He had 6 cows with himn already and he bugled twice in two minutes. What i was stunned about was he was a giant 6x6, and real wide. i have never shot an elk before but what ive seen in the mags and vids I would say he was 330 BC or better. I couldn't get a picture, just had my cell phone. He was about 600 yards out and on private property. Here it is June 12 and this guy is done growing and compleetely out of velvet. I spotted these elk in Feb. also and they still had last years head gear on. Do they lose these giant racks or what? So in 4 months he grows that much antler. THe deer around here are still in velvet and arent done groing. Any one know, because I sure don't. Has anyone else in the eastbay seen these things, they have been there for years.

 

[Z-man]

I've seen both already out here in CO. Some nubs and some hard horned.

I'm not an expert on antler growth, maybe someone else is a bio.

 

[SoJo]

could be that the weather climate where you saw that big bull (I live in san Jose) may be that they start growing earlier?? Dunno...could be a stag elk? But with all the cows?? Again, dunno...or it's just that not abnormal to see both nubbies and full racked out bulls already.

 

[DFGELK]

Those were tule elk for sure. Although it is unusual to be hard horned at this time of the year it is not out of the question. Many of the tule elk groups will shed their antlers in January and start growing new ones right away. I usually see many of them start to lose some velvet in July but these are just generalities and things change a little from year to year and animal to animal. Hope that helps.

Joe

 

[jrod]

Thanks for the input fellers. I was just curious because this thing is huge. That is some amazing antler growth for 5 months time. I could probably sit there and watch those things grow at that rate. SoJo you should take a ride out there early one saturday and see these things, they are usually right off the road. I have even seen some gnarly nontypicals out there also, and a few shooter blacktails. I wish the SFWD would let me get at em.:toast-yellow:

 

[suavegato]

I had read somewhere that the new antler growing in is part of what helps to push the old one out. Of course, the vascularization had long since stopped and the cuticle starts to release but the point being, the new one grwoing in, helps push the old one out, so they are always in a constant state of antlers... Either growing, hard or new growth in a big cycle...

 

[SoJo]

SoJo you should take a ride out there early one saturday and see these things, they are usually right off the road. I have even seen some gnarly nontypicals out there also, and a few shooter blacktails. I wish the SFWD would let me get at em.:toast-yellow:

I heard that there were Tule's out there. What park of Sunol do you exit? Before the Hwy 84 exit towards Livermore? I take it that it's the opposite side of where the golf course is?