What would cause this?

[Redarrow]

I shot this bull last season and just got it back today. Any ideas what would cause this? Fighting? The bone is solid, no wiggle to it.

 

[Huntingfanatic]

Probably damaged while he was in velvet

 

[BRTreedogs]

It's in the pedical and doesn't look like it's ever been broken. So it was not part of yearly antler growth.
I'd say genetic defect or damage before or at birth before the skull hardened.

 

[lyingflatlander]

I’ve been meaning to start the same thread. My buddy Ryan shot this bull on our trip to Montana last year. They had a skull of another bigger bull with the same characteristic on the ranch we were on. Elk101 and Randy Newberg have video of bulls with the characteristic as well. Did they break the pedicle when they were spike bulls and they naturally fell forward? That’s my best guess. Genetic anomally? I don’t know... Anyone have any feedback on this?

 

[BRTreedogs]

If it had been broken you would be able to see the healed fracture.
It had to grow like this for some reason.

 

[wytx]

Pedicle injury when he was a spike . The skull is not fully formed yet and it can be fractured at the sutures then heal back in that position. Perhaps he took a hard fall when young and hit that side of the head.
I saw a raghorn go head over heels one time after stepping in a hole at a fair run.

 

[Swede]

I am thinking a damaged testicle is the culprit.

 

[Ftguides]

It's genetic. In certain areas it is common, and then non-existent in others. I have over a dozen skull plates like that, they are all from the same area.

 

[Redarrow]

If it had been broken you would be able to see the healed fracture.
It had to grow like this for some reason.

Thats my opinion too. One of my buddies shot a bull a few years back that had obviously had the pedicle broken at some point. The antler was loose and you could move it around. Thats not the case with my bull.

 

[TC406]

Weird genetics for sure. More odd than just having a drop tine or something, but it looks like he had a wild antler on that side as well. Pics of the whole rack?

 

[BRTreedogs]

Maybe email pics to the biologist in that area???

 

[wytx]

If the skull separates at the suture then it just grows back together. See the shape of the sutures, or squiggly lines behind the pedicle , they do not match the others side. However, genetics could also be the culprit, no doubt.

 

[Redarrow]

Weird genetics for sure. More odd than just having a drop tine or something, but it looks like he had a wild antler on that side as well. Pics of the whole rack?
[/QUOTE]
Here’s a pic, the rack is kind of lopsided in proportion with the skull but otherwise fairly normal looking

 

[TC406]

Good Looking bull, Redarrow! His right eye-guards are definitely funky, but you're right, pretty symmetrical otherwise. I think that funkiness reinforces my belief that it's genetic rather than an old injury though. I wonder if there are other elk that have come out of the area with a similar deal? My buddy got a raghorn with a gnarly drop-tine a few years back, and later that year we saw his grand-daddy up on the front of a barn in town.

 

[jragsdal]

It's in the pedical and doesn't look like it's ever been broken. So it was not part of yearly antler growth.
I'd say genetic defect or damage before or at birth before the skull hardened.

I agree with this.


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[Gumbo]

This type of anomaly seems pretty common among elk, at least in my area. I've seen a handful of bulls on the hoof like this and a bunch of dead ones. To me it looks like an old injury.

 

[chindits]

Not all bulls are pretty

 

[lyingflatlander]

Just a follow up. I made contact with Justin Paugh who is a big game biologist in region 5 where my friend killed his bull. He didn’t rule out that the weird pedicle position could be genetic, but felt it was most likely related to injury to the pedicle in early spring when the new pedicle is starting to grow. He further stated that he typically sees 2 or 3 bulls like this on his winter count surveys in the range we were hunting in. He couldn’t give a definite answer as there are a few possibilities but felt injury is most likely the culprit.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Interesting. So no we know we dont know Haha.

 

[Travis Hobbs]

I have seen both old and young bulls with similar antler configurations. This young bull is growing an antler basically out of the middle of his forehead... imo it had to be genetic on this bull as an injury to move his pedicle that much would have for sure resulted in death I would think.