By Rick Taylor, Wildlife Biologist/Associate Broker Most Texas hunters and landowners want to produce and/or harvest the best bucks they can. For landowners, the better the bucks, the better the economic return. For hunters, the ultimate goal of harvesting a record-book white-tailed deer is the climax of years of hard work, money, and dedication. Most agree that the basic formula …
Managing Quality Deer Through Harvest Management
By Rick Taylor, Wildlife Biologist/Associate Broker While reading a Texas hunting magazine recently, I couldn’t help but notice how many Ranches and Outfitters advertised deer management programs while peddling their trophy white-tailed deer hunts. Unfortunately, some of the “trophy management” applications that many hunting operations, as well as individual well-meaning hunters, are applying, are very questionable. They may include harvesting …
Managing Feral Hogs in Texas
BY: Rick Taylor, Associate Broker, Wildlife Biologist The feral hog, Russian boar, Razorback, Rooter, or whatever you prefer to call it, is a topic of campfire banter and heated debate throughout Texas and much of the U.S. From the boardroom to the bunkroom, no other creature stirs the emotions of so many people. Sportsmen, ranchers, biologists, ecologists, and even developers …
Quarantined at the Ranch
by: Rick Taylor- Broker Associate/ Wildlife Biologist Hunting season has passed. The leaves have erupted, the grass is growing fast, the lawnmower is tuned, and as usual, the weed eater does not work; a sure sign that spring has arrived. In the back of my house, in the sunroom of a converted carport, I sit each morning with the rising …
The Bobwhite Quail: Prince of the Pasture
BY: RICHARD B. “RICK” TAYLOR- BROKER ASSOCIATE/WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST If the white-tailed deer is considered the king of the pasture, surely the bobwhite quail can be labeled the prince. The mottled brown quail, with its distinctive black and white striped head, can be found throughout most of Texas. Yet, many sportsmen and landowners throughout the state have been asking what’s happening …
Aging Deer In The Field
By: Richard B. “Rick” Taylor- Broker Associate/Wildlife Biologist Many times, an overly excited hunter has bagged what he considered a trophy, only to be sorely disappointed when he walks upon his beloved buck. “I thought he was bigger than that,” he laments. The problem was he looked at the antlers and not the deer’s body or compared the antler size …
West & Swope Ranches Welcomes Broker Associate and Wildlife Consultant Richard B. “Rick” Taylor!
Richard B. “Rick” Taylor is a Certified Wildlife Biologist with over 30 years of experience in natural resource management. A range and wildlife graduate of Texas A& I University (Texas A& M Kingsville), he worked as a senior staff biologist for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for 27 years. During his tenure, he provided technical assistance to private landowners on …
Discover The Texas Hill Country
The Texas Hill Country is arguably the most beautiful and diverse region of the great state of Texas. Its majestic oak-studded hillsides and lush basins of winding rivers and creeks distinguish itself from any other area of the state. The beautiful topography, along with the many charming small towns and convenience to large economically booming metropolitan cities, such as …
San Antonio Business Journal “Farm and Ranch Brokerage Team Breaks Off to Start New Company”
Read Full Article Here Since breaking into the farm and ranch real estate business 19 years ago, Mitch West has experienced struggles and success, most recently being named to the San Antonio Business Journal’s top Farm & Ranch brokers list for the second year in a row. Now, West and his business partner, Louie Swope, are breaking away from their …
Lands of America Highlights West & Swope Ranches as Having One of the Top Ranch Sales Nationwide during the month of February 2018
There were over 1,800 properties listed as sold through the Lands of America Comparable Sales Program in February 2018, totaling $618 million and 161,000 acres of sold land and rural real estate across 44 states. This represents a 2 percent increase in sales activity over January 2018. Notable sales included Louie Swope and George “Mitch” West’s sale of 1,310-acre Pedernales River Ranch in …