Bucks Or Does

It is hard to manage a deer herd on 500 acres but you can have some impact. I would point out a couple of things:

1) Generally you will see more small bucks and does even in a well balanced herd because the big bucks didn't get big by being visible. A camera census may help.

2) I doubt the smaller bucks are breeding the does. You may see them chasing the does but if there are dominant bucks around the does will find them.

Typically the QDM managers I know use a combination of camera census, written hunter reports and harvest information to determine the deer density, sex ratio and percentage of older age class bucks. Then they set the harvest goals for the club. A QDM club I belong to requires that every deer harvested be checked in, aged and scored at the club or face a fine. That club requires a 100 inch minimum antler score before it is harvested or pay a fine. Generally that protects all the bucks under 3.5 years old.

My 2 cents would be to hammer away at the does and let all the under age bucks pass. Determine what's the minimum age buck you want to harvest and wait for him. I would also try to recruit the adjoining land owners to protect the young bucks.

Well you have decide if you want to manage QDMA or the trophy way. They are simular but still very different. As far as Qdma it would be best to get all of their info from them (LOTS OF INFO). The trophy way is diff. 500 acres is a big property but not in the whitetail world. At this time I'm hunting around 20 properties totaling around 4100 acres. Each is of coarse diff. My way might not be the right way but it really works for me. I shoot small does and trophy bucks only. Here is why. Trophy bucks are attracted to the more mature does because mature does have a stronger estrus than a young doe. They have twins versus singles. If your property has many mature does then it will attract many mature bucks from all over the area. The mature bucks and does will force the smaller bucks out of the area. Your neighbors will cull those animals for you. Harvest as many small does as you can and you will see a big difference in 2 to 3 years. There is no way you can tell if a buck is going to become a super buck until he is 3 1/2 years of age just the same he will be a nice buck to most hunters. Some may say your land won't be balanced but trust me the surrounding properties will keep that from happening. There is a down side. You will be hunting around the most educated deer in the woods so you will have to be at the top of your game on scent control, wind, and your approach. Try to keep your buck harvest to 130 to 140 or better. In time you will even get to the point of holding out for better. I do not know where you are from so you might have to adjust these marks accordingly. This method works but it will take seasons to see the benifits. There is no quik fix. This is not just oppinion but fact. You have to have anyone else hunting there do the same or it won't work.