Joby Newman is no stranger to big bucks. He understands having them on your property takes more than luck. He and his dad spare no expense in attracting deer on their Bullock County lease, where high-protein foods are kept in feeders year-round.

Newman, now 24, has been bowhunting since age 13. He’s taken some big bucks through the years, but none quite like the one he took recently. The 16-point buck was still in full velvet. It has been already scored by Buckmasters, and in addition to being unusual in appearance, it is the largest ever bow-taken buck in Alabama in the semi-irregular (non-typical) still-in-velvet category.

A buck’s velvet is the fuzzy layer that traditionally covers the antlers for a small period. It is normally shed by the time deer season begins. While unusual looking in appearance, it is more functional than it appears. The velvet is a concentrated network of blood vessels and nerves. It serves as a protective layer for the hardening antlers. It allows the antlers to reach their full size so that they can be used by the buck during the rutting season. During a five-month period, the velvet provides nourishment and protection for the antlers.

A buck that doesn’t shed its velvet is usually caused by a birth defect known as cryptorchidism, which is the failure of one or both testes to descend into the scrotum. The normal production of testosterone is diminished, and the antler cycle of hardening and velvet shedding is altered. These same results can sometimes be produced in a buck that is born normal but then suffers a testicular injury.

“We may have gotten this deer on (trail) camera in previous years, but we don’t know for sure,” Newman said. “The people we lease the property from had just planted 130 acres of peanuts, and we started getting pictures of this buck in August on our trail cameras.