2022 shed thread

Ok, so not 2022, but I found this shed on the Roan Plateau a few years back in an area of the state that has no known whitetails, but has been privately owned oil and gas land for the past 80 years. Made me wonder what else is lurking up there. Thought it was pretty cool.

From that one picture, I'd say that's 100% a mule deer antler.
 
Ok, so not 2022, but I found this shed on the Roan Plateau a few years back in an area of the state that has ano known whitetails, but has been privately owned oil and gas land for the past 80 years. Made me wonder what else is lurking up there. Thought it was pretty cool.
From that one picture, I'd say that's 100% a mule deer antler.
Really? I didn’t think so, but maybe
 
Ok, so not 2022, but I found this shed on the Roan Plateau a few years back in an area of the state that has ano known whitetails, but has been privately owned oil and gas land for the past 80 years. Made me wonder what else is lurking up there. Thought it was pretty cool.

Really? I didn’t think so, but maybe

The beam shape doesn't look right for a whitetail. Also, a whitetail having that much tine length with such short browtines and little mass is possible, but not very likely. A fork on the G3 of a whitetail isn't super common either, but a mule deer having an extra inline is.

If I picked that antler up in a spot with both species, I'd be like 75% sure it was a mule deer. With adding in that it's an area that predominately mule deer that erases any doubt for me.

Just my opinion though, and obviously you've held it and I haven't. Do you have other pictures of it?
 
The beam shape doesn't look right for a whitetail. Also, a whitetail having that much tine length with such short browtines and little mass is possible, but not very likely. A fork on the G3 of a whitetail isn't super common either, but a mule deer having an extra inline is.

If I picked that antler up in a spot with both species, I'd be like 75% sure it was a mule deer. With adding in that it's an area that predominately mule deer that erases any doubt for me.

Just my opinion though, and obviously you've held it and I haven't. Do you have other pictures of it?
Well, there goes my Bigfoot hiding with a pet whitetail theory. Makes much more sense and I don’t have much whitetail background, and your theory makes way more sense. I have it out in the shop, I’ll grab some more pics tomorrow. Thanks for the insight
 
As weird as it sounds, this little "swoop" in the main beam is one of the first things that caught my eye. Every young mule deer I have on my wall that I'm looking at right now has that, and none of the whitetail do.

Screenshot_20230215_184139_Chrome.jpg
 
And here I was going to say that it appears to be a white-tail. I've seen more WTs with short eye-guards than I have Mule deer with their g3 coming off the main beam (ala white-tail) versus coming off the g2.
 
Ok, so not 2022, but I found this shed on the Roan Plateau a few years back in an area of the state that has no known whitetails, but has been privately owned oil and gas land for the past 80 years. Made me wonder what else is lurking up there. Thought it was pretty cool.
I am betting that is a mule deer antler.
The best way to tell is the pattern of the beading near the burr and browtine. Whitetails will almost always have pronounced beading that runs in long lines up the Mainbeam and Browtine. Mule deer have beading that runs in shorter lines that and a more haphazard pattern. There are however exceptions to every rule.
Regardless of species, it is one cool looking antler.
 
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For those finding fresh elk drops, say what state. Sounds like the far southwest is earlier?
 
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