Judging an Oryx
International
My father in law and I are going Oryx hunting next month in NM and I was wondering if anyone had any tips on field judging them?
Thanks!!
I am going in Novemeber and the hunt coordinator has sent tons of stuff....judging...everything .... I will send you some golden info he has sent me i you don't have it also look in for thread I put up called something like "NM oryx Insane:" for lots of good info
Look for horn tips that extend up to or past the top of their back when they are feeding. Most adults will range from 32" to 35". The up to their back rule applies to 36" +. Most adult oryx have "the look" to them. A pronounced shoulder hump and long looking horns for when they are standing or walking.
If you want a bull, learn to look closely for the penis 'button'; not immediately obvious til you get a closer view
Field Judging Gemsbok (oryx)
1. The ringed portion of the horn is approx. 18"
2. Males have "U" shaped horns, females have "V" shaped horns. Male horn bases are larger & horns stockier. Female horn bases are slimmer and horns are skinnier than males. Barty1970 photo above provides great illustration of horn shape and mass.
3. In Africa the rule of thumb is a good male will sport 34-36" horns, while females will sport 36"+ horn length. Don't know normal lengths of horn lengths for New Mexico gemsbok.
4. Watch animals when they feed or water. If the horns are well above the back- shoot, its a nice one.
They have very keen eyesight and can go days w/o water. One of the most beautiful animals in Africa.
Table fare is excellent.
They can be mean when wounded and are one of the few animals that I have watched that will not be intimidated at a waterhole by a warthog.
Best of luck on your adventures- very worthy trophy.
Have never hunted them in NM.
In Africa, it's often said, "beware the lone gemsbok." As they are difficult to field judge.
The philosophy I've seen most often employed is locate the biggest herd and shoot the biggest bull/cow in the group.
Young animals will have whitish horns, while mature animals will have darker horns.
Oryx can have any configuration of horn shape and appearance (color), regardless of gender or age - at least the ones you will hunt in the States. The best way to tell bull from cow is 1) outside anatomy - if visible. 2) rings on a bull go anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 up the horn and cows normally stay in the 1/4 range 3) bulls will have more massive horns than cows. Unless in a group, it can be more difficult to discern
Horns will be proportionate with age, so use the 2.5 times face length with extreme caution. You may just end up with a sub-adult (juvenile).
I by no means am an "expert" but being involved with several oryx hunts and kills and numerous others coming into the meat shop, well, take it for what it's worth.
Good luck and have fun! I would rather hunt oryx than just about anything else.
Young bull- non shooter, note whiteish horns
Young bull- a non shooter
A juvenile - save for last day last couple of hours...
and the horns are pretty dark
A fair bull- depends on which day of the hunt
Record book female 41"+ change- this photo and the above photo
Record book female- another angle
Just remember guys (who are oryx hunting in NM), the genetics and quality will differ than that of The Dark Continent.
another angle of female recordbook
This really puts things into perspective as to height. I am 5'9" and horns come to my reading glasses that are high on my chest.
#5 SCI- with a bow
I cannot compete with an African experience, as I have never been.
But, your hunt in NM will be fast and furious, or done by a stock that will likely not work. Your shot avg will also be in the 300 yd neighborhood. As they stare at you, if they do, pay attention to the swishing tail as that is the signal they are getting ready to boogie - quick fast and in a hurry. They will run in a straight line which will make it easy to head them off if you know the terrain or can get ahead of them. Also, be very mindful of the game laws. Military Police and Game and Fish will be very present on the hunt. Don't be overly picky as the population has gone down considerably since I went the first time in '01. The likelihood of you getting a young to mid size adult (horn length 28 to 34 inches) is fairly good.
great pictures guys....picked up a few good clues.... the penis buttion is good... great info thanks again
Thank u for all the help. We will be hunting a private ranch that boarders the missile range and armendares ranch and we have the entire month of august to hunt. I may hold off on young bulls till the latter part of the hunt. Thanks again for the info and pics. I'll keep y'all posted on the hunt.
I would love to stick one with my bow spot and stock but do realize my chances are very slim, gonna give it a go the first weekend though.
Cows vs bulls, if there's enough space between the horns to fit a horn, it's a cow.
Cows have longer horns but less mass. Bulls are shorter but have more mass.
Almost all the gemsbok in the book are cows because their horns are longer. That being said, my outfitter wouldn't let us shoot cows. So when I asked him "How do I judge a good one?" he said "Listen to your guide, he'll be right next to you".
This is a 32" bull, not the biggest, but plent good in my book. I got to watch a fight before I took the winner.
TBB
TBB...that is a really cool picture. The light is hitting everything just right with your bow in there...very cool pic, well done.
I agree that is a great picture! kind of looks like it is alive and just taking care of your bow for you.
Buffalo1 and ORarcheryboy, Great looking Oryx as well
Young bull feeling his Wheaties
Young bull- note whiteish horns and very few rings
There is definitely a shooter in this bunch, but no way to get a shot. Look at the height of the horns
A "sexually challenged" gemsbok
Buffalo1: is that last "non-typical" oryx from Africa? It was my understanding that oryx with odd horns were very rare in Africa; however, here in NM they are VERY common.
Believed to be related to our colder snaps during the winter and damage to the live tissue inner core.
Bull horns will nearly always be absolutely straight, while cows often start to curve a bit toward the ends, and curve is often not the same on both sides.
There are great shots guys and really helping me get a handle on what I am looking at...
smarba,
I honestly don't know what is the cause for deformed horns. I also saw several with broken horns.
I really thought the deformed would be classed as "culls" but, I quickly learned that Europeans love the weirdo racks and they are not "culls" but hot property. Guess it is like some American hunters who pursue "gimped up" antelope racks.
This cow is ~ 40". Best way I know to judge is to look at the size overall. If an adult, the horn ridges will consistently end at very close to 18" from the bases. See if what remains,(mostly smooth horn), is more at least as long as the ridged length. If so that horn is at least 36". You can see that easily from the picture here. There are approximately 4 additional inches to the 36. A quick assessment in a group as they bow their heads for water or feed is see how far over their shoulder hump the horns extend. That should get you quickly focused on which are the shooters. Females are longer,thinner and generally more spindly. Whereas males are slightly shorter, have thicker bases and more mass is carried out. Glassing a penis sheath is the only absolute way to make sure its a male. Most Gemsbok females are heavy with calves during the regular bow season June-Aug and some operations restrict shooting them while they are pregnant. I've seen enough of them to suggest that being more straight or slightly curved is not an accurate indicator of sex but rather intraspecies genetic variations.
Another pregnant cow of near the same length.
This is what a 40" bull from Namibia looks like. I've only shot six gemsbok, and they all look huge to me. I have to trust my PH's judgement- if he says shoot, I do.
Bud,
Wow! That is really a sight right there. I've seen a lot of oryx and that is one of the most impressive sets of horns I've looked at. The mass, the symmetry, the deepness of the rings, the sharp tips, just everything about him. Great animal!
Adventurewriter,
If you see a bull like that in NM he likely won't have two complete ears (he'd be old enough to have experienced some frost bite a few years back). Even so, I would be amazed if a guy could control himself well enough to make the shot! I believe I would be shaking so bad the oryx would have little to worry about. LOL
Yes Jesse I have heard about the shrek ears....I suggested to gilbert that have a 'ear donataion" he told me there are taxidermists at the gate buying capes. So I will have to cross that bridge when I come to it.
Jeeeze these oryx...super hard to kill....hearts and lungs under the shoulder...bulls and cow hard to tell apart....little ones can look big....you only have two days...Broken horns...no ears....long shots over tall brush....super spooky.....can they fly too???? Ha...can't wait....
Here is a 44" Bull taken in the Kalahari on foot
Here's a 41" cow gemsbok I got in Namibia in 2012
[img]http://www.hunt101.com/data/500/medium/Cow_Gemsbok.JPG[/img]
Great the more I look at the better I will get at judging...
Those posted oryx are beasts!!!
INGOZI,
That is an absolute BEAST !!! Congrats
Adventure-
Remember, don't pass up everything looking for an African quality animal. Those kind a fairly scarce on WSMR.
I assume you drew Stallion?
HDE Yes I did draw Stallion...I have a friend who is a NM resident that drew Rhodes. My three helpers are all very experienced On range Oryx hunters So I am am in good hands...
I've hunted the stallion twice. Once for my trophy and the other for a broken horn. I wouldn't hesitate to shoot one with one good long horn and the other broken. You can always have it made to look close to the other horn if you mount it. The average good shooter Oryx on the Stallion is now estimated to be around 34". Which isn't bad. Mine was a young 36" bull that I was extremely happy to get. It's definitely a fun hunt and really neat animals.
Butcherboy I am kind of think the same thing on the broken horn...it becomes a numbers game and it sounds like so many are broken...so a good bull wth one good horn might be in trouble...we will see...
This is what 44" long looks like
Nice Tony! That Gemsie need a cape! Supercow!!!
Those are awesome Oryx without a doubt!
My NM 36" Bull, he is a good example of what we have in NM, also just for the record it is not a bow kill hence the ear plugs and gun barrel in the background.
TradbowBob, was that Oryx from NM?
Tony- That is a great gemsbok. Congrats on a great trophy.
meelite- that is a might strong bull. Congrats
mrelite killed that particular bull OFF the White Sands Missile Range which makes his accomplishment exponentially more commendable IMO.
Leaving for my hunt tomorrow afternoon, just wanted to say thanks to those who gave me suggestions and posted pics, it was very helpful. Hopefully I'll be posting pics soon.
Mrelite...those are some nice thick horns...
No, my Gemsbok was from South Africa.
TBB
Thanks again for again for the advice
Nice Oryx!!! Congrads!!
Aaron
Congrats! Glad you were successful! Fun animals to watch and hunt thats for sure.
Come on Bowhunter we need more details than that...come on give it up...that looks like a really good one
Really nice looking oryx. Congrats
Off range or on? either way congrats!!! looks nice and healthy!
We arrived at the ranch first thing in the morning and unhooked the trailer and were going to off load the four wheelers. I went to remove the ramps and realized we had lost one on the drive in which was close to 30 miles of dirt road. Worried that someone would see it on the main road and take it, we turned around and back tracked. Fortunantly we found it but had lost an hour of hunting. Once back on the ranch we immediately began to glass. We could see most the ranch from a high spot and were able to locate three Oryx approximately 1.5 miles away grazing. We looked at the maps and decided to close the distance in the truck then move in on foot. We under up getting a little to close with the truck and they started to move off. Knowing we had the entire month to hunt we left them hoping they would settle down and we would have another chance at em. We went up into some hills and located three more but were not able to get any opportunities at them. It was around noon now so we decided to head back to our trailer grab some food and talk with the landowner about where he had been seeing them. After lunch and our visit with the landowner we decided to familiarize ourselves with the ranch and just drive around glassing as we went. We went several hours without seeing an oryx and were on the property line of the ranch we were hunting when we spotted an antelope on the adjacent property. We were watching him guessing his size. He eventually got tired of being looked over and began to trot off. He stopped and looked back but wasn't looking at us, it appeared he was looking beyond the truck. Seeing this I looked in the direction he was looking and there stood the three oryx we had seen early. I told my father in law (who had first shot) and he immediately exited the truck and was setting up for a shot. They didn't stand long enough and began running away but quartering towards us in the direction of the other ranches fence line. My father n law got back I and we decide to attempt to cut them off with the truck. As we paralleled them they continued to get closer and closer and it was obvious they wanted to get through the fence. My father n law told me he wanted me to shoot! I made sure I heard correctly and sure enough that's what he wanted and I wasn't going to give him time to change his mind. The oryx we now less than 150 yards and we stopped the truck and got out. I picked out the biggest of the two and fired. I heard the tell tell sign of the bullet hitting its mark and watched he slowing and pill away from the other two. She was now moving almost directly away and I fired a second round putting her down.
The following day we went into another area of the ranch and after about 2 hrs of glassing located a broken horned oryx. We watched it for approximately 30 mins and after about the fifth time of my father n law asking how I thought we could close the distance of 1047 yards I asked him if he wanted to attempt to take her he. We began our stalk and she was now on her feet facing directly away from us. We closed the distance to 463 and ran out of cover. My father n law got set up n a solid shooting position and we waited for her to turn broadside. When she did she never stopped moving to give him a shot and went back to her bed. We repositioned in an attempt to get a better shot angle. We couldn't get around as far as we had hoped. I asked my father n law if he was steady enough to take a neck shot and he advised he was. I told him once the wind died to take his shot but only if it was perfect a few seconds later the wind died and he sent the bullet which hit its mark.
Look closely at the pic Barty1975 posted near the top. Does that oryx on the right have a branding on the side, like it says 'SOM'. Or is that a watermark?
That is a great looking cow...how long were her horns??? They look LOOOONG...Is she missing some of her ears????
