Antelope body demensions-for rangeing

07 October 2003, 14:25

<heider>

I will be hunting with a mil-dot and need to know rough height to top of back and depth of body broadside. If anybody has one for a pet, measure it for me will ya.

07 October 2003, 15:09

Mark R Dobrenski

Heider-it is 15"-16" on the hairline to the hairline. Good luck

"GET TO THE HILL"

Dogz

07 October 2003, 19:34

Yukoner

My records show 15" from hair line to hair line as well on a mature buck.

Daryl

07 October 2003, 19:52

RuffHewn

I concur with the other members on body depth and add 36" body length and 8" ear length.

09 October 2003, 04:25

Graylake

the last one that I measured was a antelope doe.

I measured 18" for the chest cavity with the hair on. Didn't measure leg length.

Hope that helps

09 October 2003, 05:10

rukidnme

I did actual field measurements on two antelope.
Both were just a hair over 15" top of back hair to bottom of chest hair.
Granted that is a pretty small sample but seems to agree with what the other posters have seen for the most part.

09 October 2003, 05:15

<Kirk>

It will depend on where and when you are hunting. Yes the animals mentioned that are in the colder climates of Wyoming, Montana and Canada would probably have enough hair to have the 15 to 16 inch measurements, but in the southern states such as Arizona and New Mexico they are not as long haired and will measure in the 13 to 15 inch range through the chest for a mature buck.

The normal body length will run 32 to 35 inches and the ears down here in the south are normally 6 to 7 inches. Hope this helps.

Kirk Kelso

09 October 2003, 06:23

Brent

quote:
Originally posted by heider:
I will be hunting with a mil-dot and need to know rough height to top of back and depth of body broadside. If anybody has one for a pet, measure it for me will ya.

Personally, I think this is a dumb way to estimate range. Sorry to be so blunt, but do you suppose that there might be 10-20% variation in size among the different antelope you might want to shoot? If so, then consider that you will have AT BEST 10-20% error in your estimate from just ranging alone. Add to that all the other estimation errors wind being a good one, mirage, and your rifle and ammo's accuracy are others, etc, etc.

At long ranges, which is where this even matters, these issues are critical. You need to do better than this. I have found that reading the ground inbetween you and the target to be considerably more reliable - but it requires a lot of practice and may be useful only out to some maximum distance that depends on how dilligently you practice.

Brent

09 October 2003, 11:37

rukidnme

Brent I think you are being kind of hard on the guy.
Bracketing the animal with a known body size is a reliable method of range finding if you have a solid rest.
Some might say much more reliable that "reading the ground" which sounds a lot like giving it your best guess.
If you have a high power scope this method can get you pretty close out to 500 yards.
If you have a good rangefinder that is better of course but bracketing is a good alternative method if you don't have a rangefinder.
A flat shooting rifle is a definite aid.

I have been using this method for rangefinding on deer and antelope for years (well before the advent of affordable rangefinders) out to 500 yards and never missed an animal due to an incorrect yardage estimation.

Reading the ground sounds good but in practical application the conditions are rarely ideal for doing so. Even more rare is the individual who can do so consistently accurately at any distance even under ideal conditions.

09 October 2003, 19:27

sscoyote

Been taking kids out antelope hunting for a few years now. Last weekend we measured 2 12" bucks the boys took here in So. CO. Both were 15" back - brisket, and varied about 2 " from front of brisket to back of hindquarter at 32+34".

Another quick note. we were watching some antelope aways from us. I grabbed one of the guns that i'd worked up some plex calculations for on his 6.5-20 Leu. His scope had to be set on 8.2X for MPBR of 300 yds. post-post of plex. I bracketed a doe that fit exactly between the post + x-hair (calculated to be 450 yds.) My Leica read 446. I've used this system, and i've become a firm believer in its potential (especially as a backup for the laser).

Leupold's Vari X III scopes are specifically deigned for this ranging system (Pentax + Burris use it also), but any 2nd focal plane reticle with at least one additional reference point built into it can easily be calibrated for a std. target measurement for multiple downrange zero's and rangefinding.

[ 10-09-2003, 10:36: Message edited by: sscoyote ]