Last fall I started seeing this wide racked buck during the rut. He was one of the dominant bucks working the area. Not very creative, but I called him Wide as his rack was wider than any of the other bucks I saw. He was in great shape and he showed up on the trail cameras throughout the autumn. I also ran into him on several occasions while checking the cameras and got these two shots of him in November.
As the winter went on, the photos of him I saw became alarming. He was easy to recognize due to his distinctive horns and then after shedding his horns, because of his poor condition. Bucks often are exhausted and in less than tip top condition following the rut, but I had never seen one look so terrible.
In this picture taken in April he looks much better and seems to be recovering. I was convinced he was not going to survive into the spring. It will be interesting to see how he looks in the fall.
Northern Desert Photography 