A monstrous buck taken decades ago in Montgomery County has generated a lot of buzz across the country as one of the largest typical racks ever to be measured.
While the buck’s net Boone and Crockett score of 202-7/8 places it as the 8th largest typical of all-time and easily atop Pennsylvania’s list of typical racks, a spot in the record book doesn’t appear likely.
The history behind the buck is vague, as some believe it was harvested between the 1950s and 1970s by Frederick Kyriss. Reports on social media indicate the rack was recently purchased by antler collector Jay Fish of Michigan. Justin Spring, director of Big Game Records for Boone and Crockett, said the buck’s score was submitted and accepted, and he believed the deer was taken in 1962.
The buck’s score would place it 8th all-time in North America, Spring said, but it has to be verified by a Boone and Crockett panel of judges before it can take the ranking. The panel verification will take place in April 2022, he said.
But recently, a legal question arose that may prevent the buck from taking a spot in both the Pennsylvania and Boone and Crockett record books.
According to Bob D’Angelo, an official Boone and Crockett scorer and coordinator of the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Big Game Scoring Program, the legal issue occurred when the rack was purchased. D’Angelo said he is well aware of the Kyriss buck and has researched the matter several times. According to Title 34 of the PA Game and Wildlife Law, a permit needs to be obtained from the PGC before any inedible wildlife parts, such as antlers, can be sold (state-licensed auctioneers are exempt).
“To my understanding, the taxidermy mount was bought from the widow of the hunter who harvested the deer,” he said. “No permit was ever produced, so after consulting with the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Wildlife Protection Bureau, it was decided to not include this potential entry into the state’s big game records.”
It’s unlikely that the Kyriss buck will make the Pennsylvania record book in the future, either, as D’Angelo said a permit can’t be obtained after the sale took place.
The matter could complicate the buck’s standing in the Boone and Crockett record book as well.
Spring first learned of the permit issue when contacted by a Pennsylvania Outdoor News reporter, and he said it could have bearing on their decision to officially confirm the buck for the record book.
“Technically, the permit would be required for possession,” Spring said. “We work with the PGC pretty closely. When (the buck’s score) was presented to us, we were not aware of any issue with possession permits.
“It’s something to look into and we haven’t had a situation like this before. Lack of a possession permit doesn’t mean the deer wasn’t taken by fair chase.”
If the buck had been accepted into the Pennsylvania record book, it would have easily taken the top spot. The largest typical buck in the state scored 189-0/8, in the firearms category. The top archery typical buck was taken in 2017 and scored 184-4/8.
D’Angelo said he has scored several bucks taken more than 50 years ago, and the oldest entry in the state book was harvested in 1830 by Author Young and was actually scored in the 1960s.
Bucks that were harvested decades ago, like the Kyriss buck, often have a vague history. Before they make the record book, D’Angelo researches the details to make sure the entry is legitimate.
“With the 1830s buck, there was plenty of historical evidence and documentation to back it up,” he said. “What I’ve found in my 12 years of scoring and dealing with Pennsylvania’s big game records, if someone provides false information, someone else rats them out, so to speak.”
Spring agreed and added in some instances, especially with a decades-old buck, the legitimacy of the entry just comes down to the honesty of the owner.
“If we have any suspicion, we’ll do an investigation. We do get entries that were “grandpa’s deer,” and we always like to have someone familiar with it to corroborate the story,” he said.
While the fate of the Kyriss buck’s entry into the Boone and Crockett record book won’t be known until the April 2022 meeting of the judge’s panel, D’Angelo is ready for another buck to contend for the top spot on Pennsylvania’s list. The top three archery typical bucks were all harvested since 2017, he added.
“In my opinion, it wouldn’t surprise me at all for a 200-class typical to be harvested in the very near future,” D’Angelo said.
