-
- Species
- Whitetails
- Rut Reporters
- Deer Camp
- Big Game
- Small Game
- Birds
- Special Methods
- Bow Hunting
- Conservation
- Heroes of Conservation
- Hero for a Day
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
- Land for Sale
-
- Species
- Bass
- Trout
- More Freshwater
- Saltwater
- Catchbook
- Special Methods
- Fly Fishing
- Hook Shots
- Conservation
- Heroes of Conservation
- Hero for a Day
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
- Land for Sale
-
- Health & Fitness
- F&S Adventurer
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
-
- Rifles
- Shotguns
- 2nd Amendment
- SHOT Show
- Outdoor Skills
- Total Outdoorsman Challenge
New Mexico Gives Up Giant Mule Deer
Recent Comments
- Tre Arnold on Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Final Round (269)
- Tre Arnold on Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Final Round (269)
- Csk21 on Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Final Round (269)
- brickman on Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Final Round (269)
- brickman on Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Final Round (269)
Categories
- Ammunition (4)
- Big Game Hunting (41)
- Bird Hunting (15)
- Bow Hunting (241)
- Cover Packages (9)
- Deer Hunting (574)
- DIY (1)
- Fishing (3)
- Fishing Gear (1)
- Fly Fishing (1)
- Gear (31)
- Great Plains (3)
- Guns (23)
- Hunting (495)
- Hunting Gear (30)
- Mid-South (2)
- North Central (18)
- Northeast (2)
- Optics (2)
- Optics (4)
- Rifles (18)
- Rut Report (23)
- Shooting Gear (7)
- Shotguns (4)
- Small Game (6)
- South (2)
- South Central (2)
- Survival (1)
- Trout Fishing (1)
- Venison: America's Meat (11)
- West (2)
Recent Posts
- A Deer Hunter May Be First to Tag a Minnesota Timber Wolf
- Call Better: Try These Two Turkey Yelps
- Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Final Round
- Looking For a New Line of Work? Think About Taxidermy
- Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Round 3
- Good Stuff: Gear Keeper Rangefinder Holster Lets You Stay on the Move
- Creators of Deer Antler Velvet Spray Sue MLB
- World Record Muley Divides Family for Decades
- Bowtech Insanity CPX Buck-Scoring Contest, Round 2
- Hang-and-Hunt: Hang a Treestand in 7 Minutes
Archives
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- February 2005
Syndicate
Whitetail 365
in your Inbox
September 10, 2009
New Mexico Gives Up Giant Mule Deer
By Scott Bestul
I’m always envious of Western hunters, primarily because—in most cases—they get to start earlier than the rest of us! I adore mulie and elk hunts for a number of reasons, but near the top of the list is that I only have to wait ‘til late August or early September to venture to that gorgeous country.
For this reason (combined with my gushing affection for mule deer), the picture above got me pretty excited yesterday. The monster mulie here may take the place of the top typical buck from the state of New Mexico. Well-known for its primo elk hunting, the Land of Enchantment is obviously no slouch when it comes to deer!
I don’t have a lot of information on this buck, other than it was shot by a hunter using the services of guide Cooper Moore. Apparently Cooper had been playing cat-n-mouse with this giant for two full seasons before client John Gisi was able to make things happen. The velvet mulie sported a 40” spread and is expected to net around 220” B&C. Wonderful buck!!
ADVERTISEMENT
Today on Field & Stream
Loading...
Visit Our Sister Sites at Bonnier Corporation
| Enthusiast | Kiteboarding | QUAD | SKI | Skiing | Scuba Diving | Sport Diver | TransWorld Ride BMX | TransWorld Business | TransWorld Motocross | TransWorld SKATEboarding, | TransWorld SNOWboarding | TransWorld SURF | WakeBoarding | WaterSki | Warren Miller Entertainment | WindSurfing |
|---|---|
| Travel | Caribbean Travel & Life | Destination Weddings & Honeymoon | Islands | Meeting Traveler | Resorts & Great Hotels |
| Lifestyle & Shelter | Florida Travel & Life | Garden Design | Home Ft. Lauderdale | Home Miami |
| Luxury | SNOW | Spa |
| Marine | Boating Life | Cruising World | Fly Fishing in Salt Waters | Power Cruising | Marlin | Motor Boating | Sailing World | Salt Water Sportsman | Sport Fishing | Yachting | NewBoats.com | UsedBoats.com | YachtBroker.com |
| Outdoor | Field & Stream | Outdoor Life | SHOT Business |
| Parenting | Babytalk | Parenting |
| Science | Popular Science | Science Illustrated |
| Saveur | Saveur |
| Working Mother Media | Working Mother |
| Entertainment / Events | World Entertainment Services | World Sports & Marketing |
Fieldandstream.com is part of the Field & Stream Network, a division of Bonnier Corporation.
Copyright © 2012 Bonnier Corp. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Comments (38)
A beautiful Monster of a Mule deer....a once in a lifetime buck!!!!!! Sounds like he earned it the hard way as well!!!!
Wow!
Holy mother of ... What a pig!!!!
Any idea on how much it weighs? Honestly the body size was the first thing that caught my eye, then I happened to take a gander at the rack and was "slightly" impressed.
That is an absolute beautiful deer! I have to agree and say Mule deer hunting is by far my most favorite animal to hunt.
That must be from the northeast part of the state that is where the majority of the monsters live. I should know I've been hunting most anywhere else here in NM, and other that some big desert Mule Deer around the state the best big deer hunting in the state is in and around Rio Arriba county. In fact some areas of the state have a rather dismal herd. Must have stuck him with a bow cause that is the only season open, and it opened Sept. 1. I don't have to worry though I don't get to hunt bucks this year cause NM gives more tags to out-of-staters than ANY OTHER WESTERN STATE thanks to the state government being nothing but a money grubbing mess.
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!1
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!
thats really nice
Sorry, I never believe an internet picture until the full story comes out from several sources. My email box is full of new record book animal pictures all the time. The vast majority (99%) turn out to be false.
What a BEAutiful buck... I plan on saving some money over the next few years and going out west to go mule deer hunting... I want to go on my own without a guide, and I think I would be able to handle the after kill chores on a mulie much better than with an elk...
I would also like to comment on something i have seen discussed in alot of comments in this blog...
Some hunters talk about wanting to kill older deer to get thier "deteriorating" genes out of the gene pool.. I originally saw it in a blog post last Nov. asking which deer a hunter would shoot when presented with the opportunity of having 2 deer in range at the same time.. one young and one old, but both mature...
I am currently taking an advanced level biology course on genetics... Anyway..
A deer's genes do NOT change as a deer ages... A buck will pass on the same set of antler genes as a 1 1/2 year old as it would as a 4 1/2 or 9 1/2...
An living organisim's DNA does not change as it ages(unless there is a mutaion) ... If it did, it would be like saying humans have healthier babies when the father is 20 instead of 40... The ACTUAL health of a mammals mother can effect the health of its offspring, but the mother's and father's DNA passed on is the same regardless of age...
Ask and biologist or doctor and they will tell you the same thing...
Wow that's a beast! I'd like to hear the story on that hunt!
This buck isn't a once in a life time trophy, this is better than that. Holy Smokes!
That is a pretty nice deer for sure. I don't think I would have passed him up either!!
Truly, an awesome buck ! Especially these days when they are harder to find than an honest politician! Congratulations!
One nice buck for sure.
dgmartin, WHAT in hell is an honest politician?
I'm on my way out to my deer camp in north west mi. to make sure all is set for the oct. 1/st. opener. With three tags i should do ok.
Good luck to all.
Don
northern_mi_hunter-there is research available that says in humans, the older a female is when getting pregnant, the higher the risk of a child with downs syndrome, and the older a male is, the higher the risk of a child born with forms of dwarfism. However, in the case of deer, I believe the rationale for taking older bucks is that they have had a chance to realize their full antler potential. I'm told that after 5 1/2, antler growth begins to decline (much like human bone structure, joint structure, memory, etc), but I do agree that that doesn't mean they can't pass on their huge genetic potential. I wouldn't shoot a 2 1/2 year old buck, but anything above that is fair game. Pun intended.
That is a monstrosity. Dang that think is big.
Huge buck!
Thats awesome! biggest I've ever seen! Why are you in the picture leaning back so much???? don't worry I do the same thing.
WOW! I am going to have to go there some day!
aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh wooooooooowwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!! is that thing real, or are them guys just realy small guys???
I can't believe the symmetry on that beast with all of those kickers and hangers. Beautiful.
Is that a big sort of club point coming off the deer's right antler (pictured left) ?
thats like a mule deer that you only see in your dreams.
Tremendous buck, mine usually run just over half that size although I do see larger ones later in the year when the season is closed. We all know how that goes.
NICE BUCK!!! But don't you love how those guys are leaning as far as they can backwards and keep that rack out at arms length to make it look bigger! Come on, get up close to it and let us see how big it really is!
Ha yeah thats a old trick in the books. When you shoot a buck and send a pic on the cell phone or e mail and you hold it out it makes it look alot nicer for sure... But still a very great deer... Congrats!
looks to me like the camera man is standing in a wash out ,deers back legs are hanging in it pictures straight up out of it ,lol nice deer tho
well i have seen a couple pictures of that buck, and he was taken in Taos county, high country with the governers tag.. shot with a rifle.. and it is that big... the body is massive and the rack is impressive..any deer with 40" and all those kickers.please. great job on a beautiful deer.
I have heard from a very reliable source that this hunt was NOT guided by Cooper Moore but by G.T. Nunn. Cooper Moore took it upon himself to claim the deer as his own.
220 hun? what a load of.... this deer is at least 260.maybe a 220 main frame plus 45" of trash.it shows the gentic potenial of unit ?? im not telling but i know where this deer was killed.and it wont make the top 6 in new mexico. but all the top 6 were killed 40 to 50 years ago. congrads to john on a real PIG !
For your information, the buck scored 270. I WAS THERE! G.T. Nunn, Frontier Outfitters, was the outfitter, and it was taken on opening day with a rifle. (The client bought the NM Governor's Tag).
GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT!!!
Cooper Moore never actually said he was the outfitter. He and G.T. are friends. Coop just passed the pics along to his friends and then it got out of hand and people started assuming.
Pretty shotty reporting, Scott.
Dirk
First- watchindeer365: I think if you killed a deer this size, you would probably pose any way you could to show him off.
Second, I think it would do the author well to consult the record book before writing the article (however brief it may be), because it doesnt take much research to find that this buck, however HUGE, is not the largest taken in the state of NM. Also, his "expectations" of a net score of around 220 is a gross estimation.
That is actually my cousin G.T. NUNN that guided this hunt its all true. buck does score 260 and the hunter had the governors tag so he could use a rifle. and it is actually the largest typical buck if he scores it typ, in NM SO Ashleyt do some more research! And yes jeepdude THE biggest mule deer in the state are in Rio Arriba county i grew up there and in the past 3 years i have personaly seen 5 bucks that score over 200 come out of there.
Oh and the Author is wrong in some cases the same hunter tried to shoot this buck last year but by the time they got on him Fog set in and they couldnt find him after that But it was G.T. who found the buck.
Awesome Buck! Amazing how genetics work.
I wonder how many more inches it could have put on if it had finished the velvet phase...
Post a Comment
That must be from the northeast part of the state that is where the majority of the monsters live. I should know I've been hunting most anywhere else here in NM, and other that some big desert Mule Deer around the state the best big deer hunting in the state is in and around Rio Arriba county. In fact some areas of the state have a rather dismal herd. Must have stuck him with a bow cause that is the only season open, and it opened Sept. 1. I don't have to worry though I don't get to hunt bucks this year cause NM gives more tags to out-of-staters than ANY OTHER WESTERN STATE thanks to the state government being nothing but a money grubbing mess.
A beautiful Monster of a Mule deer....a once in a lifetime buck!!!!!! Sounds like he earned it the hard way as well!!!!
Holy mother of ... What a pig!!!!
What a BEAutiful buck... I plan on saving some money over the next few years and going out west to go mule deer hunting... I want to go on my own without a guide, and I think I would be able to handle the after kill chores on a mulie much better than with an elk...
I would also like to comment on something i have seen discussed in alot of comments in this blog...
Some hunters talk about wanting to kill older deer to get thier "deteriorating" genes out of the gene pool.. I originally saw it in a blog post last Nov. asking which deer a hunter would shoot when presented with the opportunity of having 2 deer in range at the same time.. one young and one old, but both mature...
I am currently taking an advanced level biology course on genetics... Anyway..
A deer's genes do NOT change as a deer ages... A buck will pass on the same set of antler genes as a 1 1/2 year old as it would as a 4 1/2 or 9 1/2...
An living organisim's DNA does not change as it ages(unless there is a mutaion) ... If it did, it would be like saying humans have healthier babies when the father is 20 instead of 40... The ACTUAL health of a mammals mother can effect the health of its offspring, but the mother's and father's DNA passed on is the same regardless of age...
Ask and biologist or doctor and they will tell you the same thing...
Wow!
Any idea on how much it weighs? Honestly the body size was the first thing that caught my eye, then I happened to take a gander at the rack and was "slightly" impressed.
That is an absolute beautiful deer! I have to agree and say Mule deer hunting is by far my most favorite animal to hunt.
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!1
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!
thats really nice
Sorry, I never believe an internet picture until the full story comes out from several sources. My email box is full of new record book animal pictures all the time. The vast majority (99%) turn out to be false.
Wow that's a beast! I'd like to hear the story on that hunt!
Truly, an awesome buck ! Especially these days when they are harder to find than an honest politician! Congratulations!
One nice buck for sure.
dgmartin, WHAT in hell is an honest politician?
I'm on my way out to my deer camp in north west mi. to make sure all is set for the oct. 1/st. opener. With three tags i should do ok.
Good luck to all.
Don
northern_mi_hunter-there is research available that says in humans, the older a female is when getting pregnant, the higher the risk of a child with downs syndrome, and the older a male is, the higher the risk of a child born with forms of dwarfism. However, in the case of deer, I believe the rationale for taking older bucks is that they have had a chance to realize their full antler potential. I'm told that after 5 1/2, antler growth begins to decline (much like human bone structure, joint structure, memory, etc), but I do agree that that doesn't mean they can't pass on their huge genetic potential. I wouldn't shoot a 2 1/2 year old buck, but anything above that is fair game. Pun intended.
That is a monstrosity. Dang that think is big.
That is a pretty nice deer for sure. I don't think I would have passed him up either!!
Huge buck!
Thats awesome! biggest I've ever seen! Why are you in the picture leaning back so much???? don't worry I do the same thing.
I have heard from a very reliable source that this hunt was NOT guided by Cooper Moore but by G.T. Nunn. Cooper Moore took it upon himself to claim the deer as his own.
220 hun? what a load of.... this deer is at least 260.maybe a 220 main frame plus 45" of trash.it shows the gentic potenial of unit ?? im not telling but i know where this deer was killed.and it wont make the top 6 in new mexico. but all the top 6 were killed 40 to 50 years ago. congrads to john on a real PIG !
For your information, the buck scored 270. I WAS THERE! G.T. Nunn, Frontier Outfitters, was the outfitter, and it was taken on opening day with a rifle. (The client bought the NM Governor's Tag).
GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT!!!
Cooper Moore never actually said he was the outfitter. He and G.T. are friends. Coop just passed the pics along to his friends and then it got out of hand and people started assuming.
Pretty shotty reporting, Scott.
Dirk
This buck isn't a once in a life time trophy, this is better than that. Holy Smokes!
WOW! I am going to have to go there some day!
aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh wooooooooowwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!! is that thing real, or are them guys just realy small guys???
I can't believe the symmetry on that beast with all of those kickers and hangers. Beautiful.
Is that a big sort of club point coming off the deer's right antler (pictured left) ?
thats like a mule deer that you only see in your dreams.
Tremendous buck, mine usually run just over half that size although I do see larger ones later in the year when the season is closed. We all know how that goes.
NICE BUCK!!! But don't you love how those guys are leaning as far as they can backwards and keep that rack out at arms length to make it look bigger! Come on, get up close to it and let us see how big it really is!
Ha yeah thats a old trick in the books. When you shoot a buck and send a pic on the cell phone or e mail and you hold it out it makes it look alot nicer for sure... But still a very great deer... Congrats!
looks to me like the camera man is standing in a wash out ,deers back legs are hanging in it pictures straight up out of it ,lol nice deer tho
well i have seen a couple pictures of that buck, and he was taken in Taos county, high country with the governers tag.. shot with a rifle.. and it is that big... the body is massive and the rack is impressive..any deer with 40" and all those kickers.please. great job on a beautiful deer.
First- watchindeer365: I think if you killed a deer this size, you would probably pose any way you could to show him off.
Second, I think it would do the author well to consult the record book before writing the article (however brief it may be), because it doesnt take much research to find that this buck, however HUGE, is not the largest taken in the state of NM. Also, his "expectations" of a net score of around 220 is a gross estimation.
That is actually my cousin G.T. NUNN that guided this hunt its all true. buck does score 260 and the hunter had the governors tag so he could use a rifle. and it is actually the largest typical buck if he scores it typ, in NM SO Ashleyt do some more research! And yes jeepdude THE biggest mule deer in the state are in Rio Arriba county i grew up there and in the past 3 years i have personaly seen 5 bucks that score over 200 come out of there.
Oh and the Author is wrong in some cases the same hunter tried to shoot this buck last year but by the time they got on him Fog set in and they couldnt find him after that But it was G.T. who found the buck.
Awesome Buck! Amazing how genetics work.
I wonder how many more inches it could have put on if it had finished the velvet phase...
Post a Comment