Buck Harvest and ARs
Question: “I deer hunt in Texas in areas that have antler restriction regulations on whitetail bucks. Am I allowed to take more than one 13 inch or larger (spread) buck in Texas?”
Response: The short answer to your question is, YES. A hunter can shoot more than one whitetail buck with an inside spread greater than 13 inches in Texas. However, there are some stipulations that hunters need to adhere to in order to remain legal. The remainder of this article discusses the details of the antler restrictions and deer hunting regulations in Texas.
Texas Deer Hunting License
A Texas deer hunting license comes with 5 white-tailed deer tags, 3 of which can be used for bucks or does, and the remaining 2 tags are for antlerless deer only. As a result, it’s important to pay attention to which tag a hunter uses when tagging a deer.
A hunter has the option of using all 5 whitetail tags on antlerless deer or harvesting some combination of 5 deer with no more than 3 of them being bucks with a standard deer hunting license. Straight forward.
Texas Antler Restrictions
At the time of writing, there are 112 counties in Texas that have antler restrictions in place that regulate whitetail buck harvest. There are only 2 types of legal bucks in these counties, (1) bucks that have an inside spread between the main beams of 13 inches or greater, and (2) bucks with at least 1 unbranched antler, so most likely spikes or 3 point bucks.
In these counties, the bag limit is 2 (legal) bucks, but no more than 1 may have an inside spread between the main beams of 13 inches or greater. A hunter does have an option to shoot 2 unbranched antlered bucks in these counties, as well. Probably more than many of you needed to know?
Deer Hunting Regulations
The hunter’s question above asks generally about buck harvest in Texas, but I suspect he is specifically asking about buck harvest in within additional antler restriction counties. Fortunately, deer hunting regulations in Texas are established based on county bag limits.
These county-based regs works to the benefit of a hunter that may hunt white-tailed deer in several counties within the state. A hunter can shoot up to 5 whitetail in any number of counties as long as he or she does not exceed the bag limit for any one county.
Basically, a hunter can shoot up to 3 bucks with an inside spread between the main beams of greater than 13 inches in 3 different antler restriction counties within the same hunting season. The fact that this option exists is why there is a harvest log on the back of a deer hunting license in Texas.
The log allows a hunter to record up to 3 harvested bucks and denote whether the deer were taken in antler restriction counties or not, as well as if the bucks were greater than 13 inches. The white-tailed deer log found on the back of a hunting license is also used by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) game wardens for compliance with county bag limits for white-tailed deer.
Note: If you shoot even a single deer in Texas you DO want to complete the harvest log. If you get checked by a game warden, even while out fishing later in the year and you have deer tags missing, they will refer to that log on the back. If it’s not completed, then you will more than likely receive a citation for the lack of compliance.
I hunt in Edwards County, a non antler restricted county in Texas. Does this mean I can take any buck with antlers regardless of the inside spread? I’m asking because of an 8 point buck I’ve seen but haven’t shot because the antlers do not extend past the ears. I’ve asked around and I’ve been told it’s legal in this county. I’d prefer to get an answer from the experts.
Mike, the white-tailed deer bag limit in Edwards County is 5 deer, no more than 2 bucks. Yes, any deer with antlers is a legal buck in your county regardless of antler size, points or inside spread.
So I can shoot one 13″ buck in Lavaca county and one 13″ in Goliad County?
Kenny, the answer to your question is yes. You can shoot a buck with an inside spread of 13 inches or greater is 2 counties… actually, in 3 counties.
An annual hunting license includes 3 tags that can be used on buck or antlerless deer. Since the bag limit for white-tailed deer is set by county in Texas, a hunter can shoot 3 bucks greater than 13″ inches in 3 different counties with antler restriction regulations.
What is the best way to determine if a buck’s antlers are 13 inches or greater? I hunt in the Pineywoods where the bucks are big, but the antler spread is questionable if it’s 13” or not.
Bob, the best strategy in the field is to use the ear tip to ear tip spread as a guide. Even TPWD’s guide shows/suggests that a buck is 13 inches from ear tip to ear tip when the ears are in an alert position. From my experience, this is generally a good rule of thumb on 2-3 year old bucks. Older bucks and larger-bodied deer found in managed areas will generally have a larger ear tip to ear tip spread, so using the measurement between the ears as a guide may mislead a hunter into thinking the buck is too small.
Even with knowing there is some variances, the best way is to use the ear tip to ear tip spread. I’ve also seen bucks with small ears, but if the antlers are at least as wide as the ears then at least you’ve got a fighting chance with the game warden should the inside spread come up short (since TPWD says to use them for reference).
Hello, I shot a buck in Smith County (inside spread 13″ or greater) can I go to San Augustine County and shoot another?
Kade, the answer to your question is yes. You can go to another county and shoot another buck larger than 13 inches since the deer hunting bag limits are by county.
Can I shoot a 13 or better in Bosque County and also a 13 or better in McLennan County??
Chris, the answer to your question is yes. The deer harvest regulations are by county. If you look at the back of a Texas deer hunting license you will notice that there are 3 rows for buck harvest specifics. Each of these rows allows a hunter to denote if the buck has a 13 inch or greater inside spread. A hunter can actually shoot 3 bucks greater than 13 inches in 3 different antler restriction counties in Texas… as long as they have permission to hunt on those various properties!
can I shoot a spike and 13 or better buck in bosque and a 13 or greater in mclennan county? total of three bucks
Can I shoot two bucks in the same day (morning or evening) in two different counties with 13 spreads
Allen, the answer to your question is yes. There are 3 buck tags on a Texas hunting license. The deer hunting bag limits are set by county. If you hunt in 3 Texas counties with antler restrictions regulations, then you can shoot one buck in each county with an inside antler spread greater than 13 inches. The important point being that each buck must be harvested in a different county. Does not matter if it happened throughout the season or on the same day, which would be one hell of day!
Is it legal to shoot a Buck in Tyler county of 13” and a buck in Newton county of 13”?
Patsy,
Without looking up the regulations for these Texas counties I’ll assume they are antler restrictions counties, so the answer to your question is yes. Bag limits are set by county, so you can tag two bucks with a greater than a 13-inch inside spread in two different counties.