IA Born

I'd offer to help you, Lance, but I'm going to be busy helping my daughter with her soon-to-be-hers Unit 1 early rifle bull tag! I put my wife in for the hunt and she got drawn, so she's signing it over to our daughter! I told her the news when I got home from work and said it was Junior Decker's way of still watching over her. She smiled big and then went ape-$h!t crazy hugging and thanking me and her mom!

That is a beautiful tribute, DIY, and we've probably sat on the same stool and crossed paths in there. Junior was a great man. When we moved to Flagstaff almost 10 years ago, I decided to get back into archery, so I checked out BBA based on a Phoenix friend's recommendation. Junior was extremely helpful and I'll never forget him telling me "I'm not in this to make money. I'm doing this because I want to help get people into archery." Junior gave so much to the archery community in northern Arizona and he was a big supporter of the local conservation groups. BBA regulars were family. He always had a hug for my daughter and treated my son like a friend and a young man. They both got so much swag, its unreal. He always had time for kids and he always made them feel special. My wife never complained when I spent money there because she knew how well we were all treated, including when she finally bought her first bow. I know my daughter will take this news hard when my wife picks her up from school this afternoon. Yes, RIP, Junior. You will be missed more than words can ever express.

You've got lots to be proud of, Sean, and he's got a great future!

I wish my schedule would have worked out to join you in New Mexico! We leave for Kansas for my daughter's hunt in 19 days. Then we regroup and head down to Happy Jack for the youth hunt and camp there, where she is supposed to be the "Guest of Honor" for the NWTF JAKES program. I'll be taking her out and mentoring other kids as well. Last night, her custom call from Albert Paul got here a full month earlier than planned!

I'm in my kid's school parking lot laughing hysterically! I quit drinking, but first round is on me! It's not just early cervids, there are still fanged deer in Asia! Elk ivories are the vestiges of their fanged days! I like the pool idea! I'll opt out, though, to keep it fair. I have access to all the evolutionary cladograms!

So I just looked real quick in one of my old vertebrate taxonomy books and the split between rodentia and ungulates was in the Cretaceous Period, over 65 million years ago. I'd say that qualifies as "very, very far back in prehistory", if you believe in that sort of thing. Can we get back to discussing rambilly ewenanny AudadBarbary SheepRams?

I wish I could say I followed the advice of "don't push him" and "don't force it", but I did the exact opposite with my son when he was 7. I had the archery elk tag in 6B and asked him to go deer hunting with me to scout for my hunt. At first he said yes all week and then, when it was time to gear up, he decided to be his usual homebody, despite his older sister encouraging him to go and telling him how much fun he'd have. He and I had a knock-down drag out argument right there in the garage. I threatened to ground him for a week and take away everything he cared about for the rest of the weekend. Parenting fail, right?? He ended up going with me and we hiked the half-mile into the stock tank I was scouting. We sat in an oak thicket and pulled dead oak twigs off the tree next to us and had light saber fights for two hours. It was so hot, I wasn't worried about the commotion, but I'd stop and look/listen every so often. As it was getting closer to sunset, we bagged it early and hiked back up to the truck. On the drive home, we passed a big herd of elk off the side of the road and he got to see the herd bull in my binos. After that night, he has bugged me every season to go and he couldn't wait to take hunter ed when he turned nine. He got a 100% on his test this past February and hugged me in front of the whole class. Now he's chomping at the bit to get out! I knew then and I know now it wasn't the best approach, but I took a gamble on the personality I knew. It paid off, but I got lucky. Like others have said, start the scouting trips and make them fun. I'll bet he comes around If you're near Flagstaff and want some help, I can grab my son and try meet up with you, unless I'm off scouting for my daughter's bull tag!

One of things I loved when I started the process to convert to Catholicism five years ago, was that my priest and the RCIA instructors all knew my science background and convictions. They were great in pointing out to me that the Bible was written by man. The same man you point out being wrong before. My priest even sat me down and showed me how the Catholic Church now supports evolution. I've been a scientist long enough to know exactly how wrong man has been before and there is a reason Homo sapiens is my least favorite species to work with. I've also read some pretty darn stupid stuff about evolution, and I've seen that stupid stuff from both believers and non-believers. I've always loved that Charles Darwin was a devout Christian, but stuck to his beliefs in evolution, particularly natural selection. That has certainly helped me find peace with my religious and scientific beliefs. Adaptation is evolution and at least we can agree that horses never had gills, man was not an ape, and a fish was not a rabbit. Beyond that we can agree to disagree and I will always respect your beliefs and convictions, as well as simply respecting the person you are, buddy! You aren't the first, and you certainly won't be the last person I've disagreed with over science and religion. Besides, now we've both digressed from the original post's intentions and I'll still be there to help you pack an elk out! The funny thing is, I've always known NA elk as Cervus elaphus, but I have an old field guide that has them as Cervus canadensis! I didn't know about SCI recognizing them as conspecific, but then I also don't follow SCI much. That's awesome! As for your observations as hunter with where all you've hunted them, the only thing I can say is that genetics never lie! I'm going to have to contact the geneticist I was in that class with all those years ago and see if I can get that paper again. Mongolia, though...that's a bucket list trip, but for different reasons: taimen on the fly!!

I'm originally from the midwest, too. The first time I showed my dad Coues whitetail does (mature does, by the way) when he was down visiting, he was all excited to see yearling deer up close. I had to point out they were mature does. That's how much smaller they are than our midwestern whitetails! And don't even ask about scoring them out here vs scoring them back in the Midwest. You're likely to get more backlash than you'll ever want!

For the sake of argument, elk and red deer/stag are genetically identical, which is why they can produce viable, fertile offspring. If you took the DNA from a North American elk and a European red deer/stag, you couldn't tell the two apart by species. I sat in on a conservation genetics class almost 10 years ago and we discussed the paper and the species' genetics. I wish I still had that paper. Technically, they should have the exact same scientific name. Taxonomically, they should probably be subspecies, but it will likely never get published or recognized as such because of the record books. Evolving on separate continents for 10,000 years is what has lead to differences in antler growth and vocalizations, but they are still genetically identical. We don't call bull elk stag and cow elk hinds because we do our own thing compared to Europe/Asia. Its like "orthopedic" in NA and "orthopaedic" in Europe. Bill is correct in that Audad are more genetically akin to goats than sheep and I doubt any interbreeding would result in viable offspring, thus making them true hybrids, but arguing over common vernacular is kind of mute. Its kind of like when people tell me they've seen chicken hawks or timber rattlesnakes here in Arizona. Rather than trying to correct everyone and sound righteous (like I used to 20 years ago), I just start talking about it with them. heck, the biologist/taxonomist in me has even learned to start saying "Coos" when referring to those little whitetails! Having said all of that, I'm with Hoghutr and DesertBull in that hunting and harvesting a nice rambilly is one of my bucket list items! But for those of us that don't have any idea it is interesting conversation and enlightening knowledge wise!!! Like others have said, looks incredibly interesting and fun to hunt and would love for my wife to stick a tag in my Christmas/Birthday stocking!!! It must be late and two long days of being the single dad with my wife out of town must have caught up to me. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to take that as a compliment for contributing, or a "shut the #$@! up!" My intention was to contribute to the very interesting conversation and enlightenment. As you can probably tell, I love genetics, especially when it comes to conservation and what we do. Like Phil Cramer said earlier, I still call them rams and ewes and always have. Like you and others, I just want to hunt one! At one time, I almost had my wife talked into letting me put in for an Ibex tag in NM. Those are definitely goats! Absolutely not the shut up version, some of you guys truly know your stuff and some of us truly are clueless, I mean, a Javelina is for sure a pig right .For example, one of the best three way cross breed of pigs is Hampshire boar to a York sow then come back and breed that offspring with a Duroc and you have one of the best meat pigs on the market!!! But hey they are all pigs right??? Honestly was meaning that some of these topics like when you were helping us dissect the different snakes......I was very interested in the information you provided. I don't read much but I do read CWT every day I am in internet range and I have learned tons from the different sides that people present so don't "shut the #$@! up!" Now to show my ignorance on the subject I am assuming the AOUDAD is an imported critter right? Thanks! That's what happens when you're trying to get two kids to two different places at the same time while the next day's carefully laid out schedule changes. I also call javelina pigs even though I know better! Pretty sure they're rodents (my personal favorite to correct)! And, yes, they are nonnative and were imported. I believe the New Mexico population was the result of audad (also Barbary Sheep) escaping from a private ranch somewhere north of Carlsbad. Texas...oh, Texas. I think Texas has more nonnative, introduced game animals than native ones! My brother-in-law in Laredo actually turned me on to Audad hunting, but he wants to get his the old-fashioned Texas way. He wants to pay good money to sit over a feeder and wait for a good one to come in, same as how he wants to get a 7x7 elk someday. SMH... I know your the scientist but since you also think the world is like a billion years old.. I think they declassified javelina and know longer think they are a rat. The javelina is native to the Western Hemisphere while true pigs are native to Eastern.. So my question is why is it not just called a western hemisphered wild pig? Oh and i still wanna kill one of those sheep goat things! Especially now that I know they don't taste like a sheepgoat Earth is actually more than a billion years old, my friend! I was joking about the javelina/rodent thing. People try to tell me all the time that they are rodents and it makes me laugh. Javelina are not even in the pig family, which is why they aren't called a western hemisphered wild pig. Taxonomically, they are in the same order as pigs (Artiodactyla), but a different family. Their closest relatives are, in fact, pigs and hippos. Yes, you read that right: hippopotamuses (hippopatami?). No North American relative, but the Tayassuid family is known from the fossil record from all continents except Australia and Antarctica, so they were native almost all over at one point. And I still want to hunt an Audad/Barbary Sheep and shoot a nice Ram/billy, too!

For the sake of argument, elk and red deer/stag are genetically identical, which is why they can produce viable, fertile offspring. If you took the DNA from a North American elk and a European red deer/stag, you couldn't tell the two apart by species. I sat in on a conservation genetics class almost 10 years ago and we discussed the paper and the species' genetics. I wish I still had that paper. Technically, they should have the exact same scientific name. Taxonomically, they should probably be subspecies, but it will likely never get published or recognized as such because of the record books. Evolving on separate continents for 10,000 years is what has lead to differences in antler growth and vocalizations, but they are still genetically identical. We don't call bull elk stag and cow elk hinds because we do our own thing compared to Europe/Asia. Its like "orthopedic" in NA and "orthopaedic" in Europe. Bill is correct in that Audad are more genetically akin to goats than sheep and I doubt any interbreeding would result in viable offspring, thus making them true hybrids, but arguing over common vernacular is kind of mute. Its kind of like when people tell me they've seen chicken hawks or timber rattlesnakes here in Arizona. Rather than trying to correct everyone and sound righteous (like I used to 20 years ago), I just start talking about it with them. heck, the biologist/taxonomist in me has even learned to start saying "Coos" when referring to those little whitetails! Having said all of that, I'm with Hoghutr and DesertBull in that hunting and harvesting a nice rambilly is one of my bucket list items! But for those of us that don't have any idea it is interesting conversation and enlightening knowledge wise!!! Like others have said, looks incredibly interesting and fun to hunt and would love for my wife to stick a tag in my Christmas/Birthday stocking!!! It must be late and two long days of being the single dad with my wife out of town must have caught up to me. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to take that as a compliment for contributing, or a "shut the #$@! up!" My intention was to contribute to the very interesting conversation and enlightenment. As you can probably tell, I love genetics, especially when it comes to conservation and what we do. Like Phil Cramer said earlier, I still call them rams and ewes and always have. Like you and others, I just want to hunt one! At one time, I almost had my wife talked into letting me put in for an Ibex tag in NM. Those are definitely goats! Absolutely not the shut up version, some of you guys truly know your stuff and some of us truly are clueless, I mean, a Javelina is for sure a pig right . For example, one of the best three way cross breed of pigs is Hampshire boar to a York sow then come back and breed that offspring with a Duroc and you have one of the best meat pigs on the market!!! But hey they are all pigs right??? Honestly was meaning that some of these topics like when you were helping us dissect the different snakes......I was very interested in the information you provided. I don't read much but I do read CWT every day I am in internet range and I have learned tons from the different sides that people present so don't "shut the #$@! up!" Now to show my ignorance on the subject I am assuming the AOUDAD is an imported critter right? Thanks! That's what happens when you're trying to get two kids to two different places at the same time while the next day's carefully laid out schedule changes. I also call javelina pigs even though I know better! Pretty sure they're rodents (my personal favorite to correct)! And, yes, they are nonnative and were imported. I believe the New Mexico population was the result of audad (also Barbary Sheep) escaping from a private ranch somewhere north of Carlsbad. Texas...oh, Texas. I think Texas has more nonnative, introduced game animals than native ones! My brother-in-law in Laredo actually turned me on to Audad hunting, but he wants to get his the old-fashioned Texas way. He wants to pay good money to sit over a feeder and wait for a good one to come in, same as how he wants to get a 7x7 elk someday. SMH...

It is full amount up front. I think it is a great system. No worries about having a credit card screw up during the draw and loosing a tag over it like you can in AZ. You either get a tag or you just gave NMDGF a short term loan that is repaid reasonably quickly. So my wife just let me put in for NM elk (Q unit) with a buddy from back home in Iowa. It was definitely a "charge your card up front" application. I marked the "refund if not drawn" box for my license/stamp combo and the screen said "You will be charged $847.00 for this transaction...", but the receipt that was emailed to me didn't have the license charge on it. My buddy asked me when the draw is and when we'd find out if we're drawn or not. I told him it was good question, but guessed late May/early June. Anyone care to enlighten me? Then I can tell my wife when to expect a refund on the credit card. I sent you a pm. Got it. Thanks, Tommy!

It is full amount up front. I think it is a great system. No worries about having a credit card screw up during the draw and loosing a tag over it like you can in AZ. You either get a tag or you just gave NMDGF a short term loan that is repaid reasonably quickly. So my wife just let me put in for NM elk (Q unit) with a buddy from back home in Iowa. It was definitely a "charge your card up front" application. I marked the "refund if not drawn" box for my license/stamp combo and the screen said "You will be charged $847.00 for this transaction...", but the receipt that was emailed to me didn't have the license charge on it. My buddy asked me when the draw is and when we'd find out if we're drawn or not. I told him it was good question, but guessed late May/early June. Anyone care to enlighten me? Then I can tell my wife when to expect a refund on the credit card.

For the sake of argument, elk and red deer/stag are genetically identical, which is why they can produce viable, fertile offspring. If you took the DNA from a North American elk and a European red deer/stag, you couldn't tell the two apart by species. I sat in on a conservation genetics class almost 10 years ago and we discussed the paper and the species' genetics. I wish I still had that paper. Technically, they should have the exact same scientific name. Taxonomically, they should probably be subspecies, but it will likely never get published or recognized as such because of the record books. Evolving on separate continents for 10,000 years is what has lead to differences in antler growth and vocalizations, but they are still genetically identical. We don't call bull elk stag and cow elk hinds because we do our own thing compared to Europe/Asia. Its like "orthopedic" in NA and "orthopaedic" in Europe. Bill is correct in that Audad are more genetically akin to goats than sheep and I doubt any interbreeding would result in viable offspring, thus making them true hybrids, but arguing over common vernacular is kind of mute. Its kind of like when people tell me they've seen chicken hawks or timber rattlesnakes here in Arizona. Rather than trying to correct everyone and sound righteous (like I used to 20 years ago), I just start talking about it with them. heck, the biologist/taxonomist in me has even learned to start saying "Coos" when referring to those little whitetails! Having said all of that, I'm with Hoghutr and DesertBull in that hunting and harvesting a nice rambilly is one of my bucket list items! But for those of us that don't have any idea it is interesting conversation and enlightening knowledge wise!!! Like others have said, looks incredibly interesting and fun to hunt and would love for my wife to stick a tag in my Christmas/Birthday stocking!!! It must be late and two long days of being the single dad with my wife out of town must have caught up to me. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to take that as a compliment for contributing, or a "shut the #$@! up!" My intention was to contribute to the very interesting conversation and enlightenment. As you can probably tell, I love genetics, especially when it comes to conservation and what we do. Like Phil Cramer said earlier, I still call them rams and ewes and always have. Like you and others, I just want to hunt one! At one time, I almost had my wife talked into letting me put in for an Ibex tag in NM. Those are definitely goats!

For the sake of argument, elk and red deer/stag are genetically identical, which is why they can produce viable, fertile offspring. If you took the DNA from a North American elk and a European red deer/stag, you couldn't tell the two apart by species. I sat in on a conservation genetics class almost 10 years ago and we discussed the paper and the species' genetics. I wish I still had that paper. Technically, they should have the exact same scientific name. Taxonomically, they should probably be subspecies, but it will likely never get published or recognized as such because of the record books. Evolving on separate continents for 10,000 years is what has lead to differences in antler growth and vocalizations, but they are still genetically identical. We don't call bull elk stag and cow elk hinds because we do our own thing compared to Europe/Asia. Its like "orthopedic" in NA and "orthopaedic" in Europe. Bill is correct in that Audad are more genetically akin to goats than sheep and I doubt any interbreeding would result in viable offspring, thus making them true hybrids, but arguing over common vernacular is kind of mute. Its kind of like when people tell me they've seen chicken hawks or timber rattlesnakes here in Arizona. Rather than trying to correct everyone and sound righteous (like I used to 20 years ago), I just start talking about it with them. heck, the biologist/taxonomist in me has even learned to start saying "Coos" when referring to those little whitetails! Having said all of that, I'm with Hoghutr and DesertBull in that hunting and harvesting a nice rambilly is one of my bucket list items!

He's excited! We're looking at those metro pig tags around Phoenix in December. That way he can hunt right after he turns 10. I love the 36s, but they are too far for us for a weekend with us being up here in Flagstaff.

Thanks for the tip on the gaiters! I'm definitely going to look into those! And I've definitely hunted enough blinds in south Texas to know to look first, but I've had a couple where the last 2-3 just wouldn't leave. I had to look up what a hickory chicken was. Growing up, we just called them morels. They are the only mushroom I'll eat, but I doubt I'll be searching too much for them with everything else going on those few days we're there. 3 weeks from tomorrow, we drive down to Phoenix to spend the night before our 0520 flight!

So you can still put him in for all hunts! Congrats! My son and I are going to start working with our bows again soon so I can get him that OTC metro pig down down south and head out after he turns 10 at Christmas this year. I don't care if we get one or not, I just want to get him the experience. Then he'll (hopefully) have the youth javelina tag for January 2018!

It just gets better! Last Thursday, the property manager contacted me via Facebook. Syd is going to have about 400 acres mostly to herself to hunt. He said the landowner is "...a gruff, grouchy old buy...but has a heart of gold. Sydney will own him within 10 minutes." Knowing her, that's probably true! He sent me the following picture of two big toms from last year that weren't harvested. The birds are, in fact, Rio/Eastern intergrades, but are heavy on Rio in looks the past few years, which makes sense from the pics I've seen. The big thing that caught our attention is the mention of lots of ticks on the property. That is probably Sydney's kryptonite. She HATES ticks and I don't blame her. Everyone is excited to have Sydney out there! Yesterday, her assigned guide called me to touch base, get to know each other a little, and answer any questions. Her guide is a woman and she's excited to take Sydney out. We'll be mostly hunting out of blinds, if not entirely. I'll get a seat in the back of the blind, which I can live with. I'm just thankful to be there for the ride! Apparently, there is another hunter who has access to this property, but Sydney has top priority for all spots. All I can do is shake my head in wonderment. Melinda told me that she'll be giving Sydney a homemade turtle shell slate call when she gets there. Syd doesn't know this and won't know it until we get there! Melinda brought up the tick issue again and will be getting her custom camo clothes that are waiting for her and will spray them down with permethrin a couple days before we get there. I'll be finding some locally this week or ordering it quickly for my clothes. We started talking about weather conditions up there and how it can all change. I have "El Dorado, KS" bookmarked on my NOAA Weather App, so I can track the weather as it gets closer to time and know how to pack. That conversation with Melinda lead to another question for the Director of the Kansas Governor's One Shot Turkey Hunt, so I fired off an email last night before bed. The response this morning had me shaking my head again. I thought the custom camo clothes would be pants, shirt, and a hat. No, she's getting a pair of boots and a jacket, too! We're still planning to take her weather appropriate boots to Kansas with us to avoid blisters from boots not broken in, but I'm amazed at what all she's getting outfitted with on this hunt. We still don't have any word on what the gun she gets is, but a friend in the know told me "You'll be jealous!" Three weeks from tomorrow, we drive down to Phoenix and catch our plane three weeks from Wednesday!

Correct. I got it backwards recently in planning for my son turning 10 in December. Youth have to be 10 on the day the hunt starts in order to apply for the hunt. I certainly don't like it, but I don't see it ever changing.

The post regarding Sydney is now up on the KS Governor's One Shot Facebook page. Flood it!! I noticed those spurs, too. Hooks! The long legs suggested Rio to me, but this area is full of both eastern and Rios and most birds, I'm told, are an intergrade between the two. Syd has already made it clear that she's not picky. As soon as I show her this bird, I know she's going to be even more excited. If she passes on this for a first bird, even I will have a talk with her about standards!

We realized that 4 weeks from yesterday, we fly to Kansas and 4 weeks from today, we'll (she'll) be out hunting turkeys! There is all kinds of excitement in the house right now. Her shotgun has been reconfigured from upland bird hunting back to turkey hunting and, knowing me, I'll start organizing gear shortly. I sent an email to the director of the Kansas Governor's One Shot Turkey Hunt asking if she knew which particular Federal turkey load Syd would be using or have access to so we could pick some up and pattern it before the hunt. Federal is a sponsor, so she has to use their ammo that is supplied. Her shotgun is patterned and sighted in with HeviShot Magnum Blend (5,6,7) and that's my preferred load, but, as was explained to me in Nashville, it looks kind of bad when we're not using the sponsor's supplied ammo. To be fair, Janet completely understood me being a Federal wildlife agent and why I use the non-lead ammo, but I can put that aside for this hunt. On that note, two other things happened during this email exchange. She told me that they will be announcing Sydney's accomplishment on their Facebook page after lunch and she asked me to share it with my friends. Her goal is to have over 700 likes for Syd's post before the hunt. For those of you on FB, please check it out and help spread the love (likes)! Here is the FB link to the KS Governor's One Shot Turkey Hunt: https://www.facebook.com/KSOneShot/?fref=ts The other thing that happened was Janet sending me a text that was forwarded to her. Its a pic of a big tom on the private property Sydney will be hunting. The texts said "This is one of the birds on the property where Syd is hunting." and "There are several like him. The landowners are so excited to have her hunting there." I can't wait to show Syd these texts and this picture when I get home from work! The bird!

My wife and I are discussing our options on this. No promises, but stay tuned.

Yep. Waterfowl/migratory bird regs are Federal. No limit for turkeys or other upland birds in Arizona.

Very nice, Phil! Congrats!!