Do you guys know of any websites or where to go to look for information on how to judge African animals? I will leave it all up to my PH to tell me to shoot of course but I would like to know the little things to look for in the animals on how to judge them better. I think it is more fun if you can learn what makes up a good trophy and makes the hunting more enjoyable when you can start to learn how to judge them better.
Thanks

nube,

For your first time trust the PH the time window you have between shooting and judging is very small unless it is at a long distance.

What usually happens if a potential trophy is spotted is that the shooting sticks is setup for you and you then aim at the animal the Ph will then judge.

If it looks good and the PH says shoot dont think twice.

nube: Safari-Hunt is giving you the best advice. No problem studying game, but there is nothing that compares to field experience. A seasoned PH will amaze you at how quick he/she can judge an animal, even running. Each animal has it's own set of characteristics that measure their maturity. Many factors will come into play in determining the trophy quality of an animal, but one thing for sure: when your game hits the ground, take time to enjoy the moment. There's your trophy of a lifetime...the overall experience and AFRICA! Good hunting, LDK

I am certainly no expert on this but I do know that it takes a while to get good at this. To me greater kudu are especially difficult to judge on the hoof. Animals that are alone are more difficult than ones in groups.

Make a list of all the animals you plan to hunt and just work on these. Learn what the SCI or Rowland Ward minimums are. Look at skulls and horns or mounts if you can. Learn some reference measurements to help you, like an average distance in inches between the ear tips (wildebeest 25" or so) or the average length of the face (gemsbok 16" or so) to help you judge the horn length in the field. Look at as many photos as you can in magazines, books, and on the web to become familiar with the horn differences between males and females and immature and adult animals (This will help, but nothing beats time around the real thing!

Look for mass on the horn bases and study the differences in body details, condition, muscle mass, extra sagging skin, between adult males and younger males or females.

Measure every animal you get a chance to. Then start guessing before you measure and see how you are doing. Making a game of this can be fun and educational. I do the same thing with distances and a range finder. The best tips will come from your PH.

My advice would be to judge your hunt in the experience of the hunt itself rather than just mere inches........

But of course, it's always a good idea to remember the f**k factor. - That's when the PH looks at an animal through his binos and says FFFF****K! which is when you shoot the animal ASAP.....

I understand what you guys are saying but I just want to be able to identify certain things to look for. I will never be as good as a PH for this but I think it adds more to the hunt if I can actually see the differences between an average animal and one that may be better. Things likeear length compared to the horns and that sort of thing. I will have a great hunt either way but I like to be able to sort of know what may be good and what may not be all that great. Just wondering if there are some inside tips or a book to look at or something fun like that.
Thanks

Books rarely will give you what your looking for. Neither will outlines of animal horns in record books. What you need other than details of life cycle, average horn length is video. Any of the live feed camera sites that have been posted here (one as recent as the last day or two) will be an excellent way to learn how to judge the young from old. Sent you a PM for life cycle info from my web site.
Good hunting,
David

You are right on the big money, Shakari!! The F word is the same in all languages and it might be one of the few words you understand when you listen to your PH and the trackers talk in a foreign tongue. So, when your PH gives you a BIG FFFF--K!! YOU HAD BETTER START SHOOTING IMMEDIATELY!

quote:

Originally posted by shakari:
But of course, it's always a good idea to remember the f**k factor. - That's when the PH looks at an animal through his binos and says FFFF****K! which is when you shoot the animal ASAP.....

Steve

I like that ...