Kudu bulls - when do they get careful?

[Ds J]

Hi Folks, we have many kudus in our area. I often see them early mornings when driving to church on the gravel roads, or in the evenings when returning home from work.

Mostly one sees bunches of cows and calves. The young bulls stay with the cows for a while, and then they vanish.

Some questions:

- When do young bulls leave the herds?

- When do they start becoming "invisible" and secretive?

- Is it possible to shoot out all the bulls in an area? If so, what happens then?

This last question is my concern. Many farmers try to keep the cows, and shoot mostly bulls.

[Treeman]

Here near us, one area, Kommadagga, the farmers near Annes Villa shot for cash, hunted the kudu almost gone. A few farmers resisted and even stopped hunting. The most of the area that does hunt ethically are of old english stock, no sunday hunts and bulls only - this has created a problem - seldom see a bull that's more than 2 years old, 3 at the outside. The culture of bulls only can deplete the bull population.

It does seem that as long as there are cows, the outlying areas will feed new bulls to area.
Problem is though, the boom of game farms have completely cut of natural paths. If you take game farms + populated areas + cultivated land, the natural movement of game is truly at great risk of being totally blocked.

[Againstthegrains]

Treeman is right, the obvious answer, is that they just get shot. In our national parks you always see bachelor herds, but never in hunted areas. Invariably when a herd of kudu show up, it is cows and youngsters, sometimes with a bull. If there is a bull among them, he is usually the first to get shot. Unless its a farm where the bulls are trophy price, and then they parade around in front of you showing all shot angles, knowing that they cost over R20K and you can't afford them How they can tell you are not a wealthy American tourist I never know. It is a general consensus that if there are fertile cows around on a farm, a bull will always find them.

[Newton]

So ...
What does a in his prime breeding trophy KUDU bull sell for at game auction ?

[Newton]

Some stats

Vleissentraal

[Newton]

bulls only - this has created a problem - seldom see a bull that's more than 2 years old, 3 at the outside. The culture of bulls only can deplete the bull population.

One would think that farmers would manage their wild stock like their domestic stock
NOT going to send ALL your prime pedigree breeding bulls to market.
SO
Have to keep a few of the big Kudu bulls back for breeding
Take out the old bulls and the not so promising youngsters as well as cows beyond the normal breeding ratios = intelligent and selective breeding.

[Treeman]

bulls only - this has created a problem - seldom see a bull that's more than 2 years old, 3 at the outside. The culture of bulls only can deplete the bull population.

One would think that farmers would manage their wild stock like their domestic stock
NOT going to send ALL your prime pedigree breeding bulls to market.
SO
Have to keep a few of the big Kudu bulls back for breeding
Take out the old bulls and the not so promising youngsters as well as cows beyond the normal breeding ratios = intelligent and selective breeding.

************************************
Many farmers do, many farmers do not. Many of our Afrikaans farmers in particular see land and animals as money generation, grab it first. (the afrikaans statement is not to argue insult, just an observation).
A lot of farmers rely on other farmers conserving so they can clean up each year.
Many farmers will not allow hunting during drought, but sadly so many are just so "over" that free cash walking through their lands during hunting season.
Our find our best conservation farmers to be English and Afrikaans old farm family's, the middle ground farmers are generally afrikaans and the worst conservation types are always afrikaans.
I am half English/Afrikaans, any insult to any language is as much to myself, so its no language knocking from me, just what I have noted over many years.
Single male farmers are always Afrikaans and you seldom seem to find the same marriage/farming status among english farmers. Almost like English farmers leave the farms till married, Afrikaans farmers farm while waiting for a wife.

Oh, and then there is the the farmer thats selling the land and just doesn't give a shit because its no longer going to be his. I think these are the worst farmer type scenario's. I know of so many farms, times that when farm is sold, a last rape takes place for a year, a last R200 000 grab takes place, bulls cows and normally too small animals all = KG converted to cash.
I must add though, I hear a lot of prospective farm buyers are demanding a no hunting clause from date of negotiations.

So I suppose the looking after game is just like everything else in life, there are the grabbers and the save some for later types.

[Treeman]

A bit of a Treeman mixed up post     

[Alf]

I used to hunt on a farm near Melk rivier in the Vaalwater district 2 to 3 times a year. About 20 or so years ago the owner told me that there was a ban on hunting Kudu bulls as there was a concern that too many bulls have been shot out. I unfortunately cannot remember if the ban was implemented by nature conservation or if the farmers themselves decided to stop hunting bulls.
This farm was not game fenced and the Kudus were all trek bokke.
I was the only person allowed to hunt there and the only payment he ever requested was half of the meat of whatever I shot

[Newton]

A bit of a Treeman mixed up post     

No not at all - hard to tell the truth of ones observations
I can second the "rape" after a farm is sold = VERY sad !

[Treeman]

Kudu bulls - when do they get careful?

About now ! - I am heading out to the hunting grounds...............................they had better.

[223]

From my observations, they become careful once you stop the bakkie...   

[Againstthegrains]

If kudu are anything like springbok, if you blast away at all the big rams, until there is only a young pen horn ram left, the next year, every ewe will drop a baby. If you leave an old ram, he is too busy fighting, and not as good at doing the business as a young one.

That's why our trek kudu breed so successfully compared other game species?

[Treeman]

I met a Kudu this week end that forgot to be cautious, he is now hanging in my mini cold room.

[Ds J]

I met a Kudu this week end that forgot to be cautious, he is now hanging in my mini cold room.

Hiehiehie - ek hoop ook vir so 'n domme