Pronghorn Antelope Hunting

Pronghorn

(Antilocapra americana)

Current SCI all time record: Score 99 7/8

Description: The slender, graceful, Pronghorn has a deer-like body weighs between 90 and 125 pounds, and stands about 3 1/2 feet at the shoulder. It has large, protruding eyes and a white or buff, 4-inch tail.

The upper body and outside of the legs are tan to brown. The cheeks, lower jaw, chest, belly, inner legs and rump are usually white. The male has a broad, black band down the snout to a black nose and black neck patch, together with black horns.

Not an antler, the horn is a hollow sheath over a bony core arising from the skull directly over the eyes. Horns are lyre-shaped, with the female not exceeding 3 or 4 inches. Male horns may grow to 20 inches with a short prong jutting forward and upward halfway from the base. Unlike any other animal, however, the Pronghorn sheds its horn.

Other Common Names:

Size: Adult male antelope weigh 90 to 120 lbs. Females are about 20 lbs. lighter.

Range: Western U.S., Alberta, Saskatchewan, northern Mexico; primarily short seasons August - October.

Natural History: The name pronghorn comes from the pronged or sharply pointed horn of the male antelope. The females' horns are smaller and more slender. Antelope have true horns in that the horny tissue is composed of fused hairs which form over a bony core. Horns reach their maximum size during the summer and the sheaths are shed annually, usually in the fall.

Antelope have exceptional eyesight, often compared to high-powered binoculars, and are one of the fastest of the animals, being able to run in excess of 60 miles-per-hour. Despite their speed, antelope are reluctant to jump over objects, preferring to crawl under or through fences.

A conspicuous characteristic of the antelope is the white rump patch. When alarmed, the hair stands erect and appears as a white flash that can be seen for miles. Tan is the dominant body color, with sharply contrasting white markings on the head and neck. The top of the buck's nose is dark and there is usually a triangular black patch below the ear. The doe does not have this black cheek patch. A short mane is present along the top of the neck. Shedding is continuous with the individual hairs being loosely attached making antelope hides worthless as rugs. Since the hairs are hollow and can be erected at will, pronghorns are able to adjust to temperature changes.

Antelope are primarily browsers, especially on sagebrush, with grass being only a minor food source. Wild antelope usually reach ages of 6 to 8 years.

Behavior: Antelope are gregarious. They are found in mixed herds most of the year; except in the spring when the bucks are alone or in small groups. In the fall, bucks collect harems numbering up to 15 does, which they then defend from other bucks. Antelope breed in August and September and the young are born in May and June. The gestation period for the antelope is the longest for big-game animals in the United States. About eight months after mating, one or two fawns are born. The young are not spotted like the fawns of the deer family, but instead have markings similar to the adults. The fawns remain hidden, with the doe feeding them several times a day until they are strong enough to travel with the adults.

Hunting Characteristics: