Arizona's Best Pronghorn Units - 2019

Across the board Arizona had a down year in 2018. Deciding which units to put on the list is tougher than normal.

I think 2019 can be a great year but it's going to possibly require more scouting than usual and more hiking. I'm looking forward to finding some giants and hopefully this review of the Top 6 Pronghorn Units in Arizona for 2019 will help a little.

Let's take a look at what we know and what we can use to determine the best units for 2019. 

Arizona GMU 1

The number of fawns is one of the biggest factors when determining the overall quality of a unit in a given year. The most important years for fawn spikes would be the years that would allow the bucks to be either 3, 4, or 5 years old for this season. Those years would be 2016, 2015, and 2014. The first of those years, 2016, would be the most important. Followed by 2015, and then 2014. 

When looking at the chart for Unit 1 we can see that the fawn numbers are steadily declining since 1991. Now, does this mean that Unit 1 would be a bad 1st choice on your application? Not necessarily. Even though we see units where fawns decline, certain units can still hold great genetics. There still may be giants, but possibly very few.

So our next question would be, "How do we know if a unit has good genetics? And if it does, just how good are they?" I like to use several sources, but I have two things I think are the most important:

1. The historical and the 5 year trend for bucks produced that break into my Top 100 list.

2. What we actually saw on the ground last year. 

The first part is easy enough. I've posted 2 graphs for you to look at. The first is the historical Top 100 list for Arizona. The second is just the last 5 years of that list.

As you might notice Unit 1 isn't on either list. This is because, according to my records, Unit 1 has never produced a buck that makes the Top 100 list. Not a great sign for good genetics. It's always possible that I've missed a few bucks here and there that should make the list, but the list still gives us a good overall representation. 

The second part is a lot tougher for ranking all the units because we typically don't get to scout every unit in the entire state every year. In those cases we just have to guess and use other information we get from hunters and guides. 

As for Unit 1 - we didn't scout it last year, but we also don't know of any big bucks coming from the unit. 

​Another factor to consider is access. Everyone has a different idea of what makes a good hunt and so access issues may not bother you as much as someone else. I won't use access as a measure of unit quality. Tag numbers come into play when you're talking about hunt quality. Having to compete for the best bucks may be exciting to you, but others may dread it. I also won't use that much in my rankings. 

By now you might assume that Unit 1 isn't a great spot to burn 25 bonus points. And you'd be correct!

Now, on to the Top 6...

Unit 1 Yearly Fawn Numbers

Arizona Historical Top 100 Bucks

Arizona Last 5 Years Top 100 Bucks

6: Arizona GMU 5A

This is the toughest call of the 5 units on this list. There are a number of units that could be placed here, but I like 5A for a few reasons above the usual check points. Here are all the reasons:

Fawns: The fawn numbers have been increasing since roughly 2006. There could be a decent number of 3 and 4 year olds with a spike in 5 year olds provided they haven't been killed already in prior years. 

Top 100: Historically 5A makes the Top 100 with a few bucks which is a good sign for top end genetics. The last 5 years there hasn't been a true giant killed in 5A but I saw a buck a few years ago that would have been close that wasn't killed. 

On the ground: To be honest we didn't see a bunch of great bucks in 5A last year. This is mostly because we didn't spend that much time in the unit. However, I was in contact with a few people who saw some 82 to 84-inch bucks. 

Another reason I really like 5A is the number of tags issued. This year they have 10 rifle tags. For a unit this big that's a relatively low amount. Which should make for a more relaxing and fun hunt on opening day. 

Whatever you do, don't expect to see a lot of antelope or easily find a big one. This unit could take a lot of scouting time and long hours glassing. 

Unit 5A Yearly Fawn Numbers

Upper 70's type buck we found in 5A in 2018

5: Arizona GMU 4A

Fawns: Unit 4A's fawn chart isn't as pretty as 5A, but the unit's total fawn numbers for the past 3 years combined is actually a lot higher than 5A. With the spike in 2014 there should be a lot of 5 year old bucks still alive. 

Top 100: The unit only shows up (barely) on the historical chart for the Top 100, but I know for a fact that it's produced a slew of bucks in the mid to upper 80's range. And several of those types in the last few years. 

On the ground: We scouted up several 80 to 82-inch bucks last season in the unit and know of one that was killed and scored in the upper-80's! 

You'll see A LOT more antelope on this hunt than in 5A.

Also, don't forget the forest. This buck has lived there for years and no one has killed him yet. (He was a lot bigger years ago.)

Unit 4A Yearly Fawn Numbers

4: Arizona GMU 18A

Fawns: Since about 2007 18A has seen a very slight upward trend in fawn numbers and in 3 out of the last 4 years. It's a far cry from the historical fawn numbers from the early 90's, but with the chopped up nature of the unit I wouldn't expect that to ever return. 

Top 100: 18A makes the Top 100 list historically and during the last 5 years. This should indicate very strong genetics. Even when the fawn numbers took a dive the big bucks kept popping up. They aren't easy to find in certain areas of this unit, but sometimes they still do.

On the ground: We saw several good bucks last season in 18A including a few in the mid-80 range. They were very spotty and very hard to relocate because of the lack of overall numbers in the unit. 

Apply for muzzle loader only if you're searching for a trophy buck. Muzzle loader hunters get first crack and many of them kill big bucks before the rifle hunters make it to the unit.

Also, if you want a really long buck or potentially one that hooks forward, this is the unit to apply for. It's produced more hooked forward 17" long bucks than anywhere else. 

Unit 18A Yearly Fawn Numbers

Me on top of a high hill in the 74 plains

3: Arizona GMU 10

Fawns: In this fawn graph of Unit 10 you can see the importance of fawn numbers. Unit 10 saw a rise and spike in fawn numbers in consecutive years from 2010 to 2012 while holding steady the 3 years prior from 2007 to 2009. That spike and the lower tag numbers for those few years resulted in a monster trophy pronghorn boom in 2015 and 2016. The boom was short lived however because of the massive number of hunters hunting the same areas and the tag numbers increasing up to 100. All those great bucks got wiped out in 2 years and we saw the results of that in 2017 and 2018. There's a large dip in fawn numbers for our target year of 2016, but the unit may be able to overcome that because...

​Top 100: This is where Unit 10 shines. It's produced more Top 100 bucks historically and in the last 5 years than any other unit. The genetics are impressive in this unit to say the least. Where there might not be any 88+ type bucks there should still be several record book heads and few mid-80's even on down years. The size of the unit and overall numbers compared to most of Arizona's other units are just too good to ignore.

On the ground: We actually guided several hunts in Unit 10 last year and did really well considering what we were up against. We killed 3 bucks that officially scored between 84-4/8 and 86-2/8. However, even though we still did good, most of our back up bucks (maybe all of them) were killed by other hunters. This would mean that in order to get back to decent numbers of good bucks the unit's going to have to overcome a lot. 

Unit 10 Yearly Fawn Numbers

Aaron Smith with his massive Unit 10 84-4/8-inch buck we guided

2: Arizona GMU 19B

Fawns: The fawn chart for 19B isn't stellar but if you go back to 2006 it's slightly up - or at least pretty close to even - over that span. It had a great run for a couple years, similar to Unit 10, during the 2010-2012 years. And as a result we killed multiple auction bucks in 2015 in the unit. They were on private with almost no access, but the bucks were still there. 

Top 100: 19B excels in this area, too. It's 4th historically and tied for 2nd over the last 5 years. The private ranches, as big a pain as they can be, do at least allow for a lot of the bucks to grow to their full potential. Unfortunately, because almost no one gets to hunt them, they also grow past their primes, shrivel up, and die of old age. But, they also leave the ranches sometimes and wind up on accessible land - which is what we're always hoping for if we draw a tag. 

On the ground: We found an absolute pile of 80" bucks this last season in 19B. I have a list of 13 that I know survived the seasons. And there would have been more had the drought not killed off several of the mature bucks. The bad news is that almost none of the bucks that survived were over 82". So, they're out there, but they have some ground to cover if they're going to get to record book size or bigger. 

Also, the muzzle loader hunters get a crack before the rifle hunters and the bucks in this unit aren't very skittish. If you're searching for a trophy and aren't going to pay big money for access - apply for muzzle loader only. Otherwise the best bucks on public land will probably be gone.

Unit 19B Yearly Fawn Numbers

Trent Swanson with his awesome mid-80's muzzle loader buck we guided

1: Arizona GMU 5B

Fawns: It's had spikes here and there over the years, but really it's been trending upward since 1996! And very specifically it's been trending upward almost every year since 2011. That's pretty amazing and something I really didn't see when looking at any other unit. And not only is it trending upward, it's doing so with a decent number of total fawns. As far as fawn charts go this is by far the best one in the state.

Top 100: 5B isn't the best in this regard but it isn't far off. It's ranked 5th historically for giants, and tied for 2nd over the last 5 years. What's great about this is that 5B isn't easy to find or kill the biggest bucks. Which means there are probably more big ones here than anyone actually kills, and they still kill enough to have the unit rank really high on the Top 100. That's great genetics.

On the ground: I scouted 5B quite a bit last year and found a few mid-80's type bucks and one upper 80's buck. Every year I hear rumors of more than one true giant. Sometimes I'm able to dig him out, sometimes I'm not. But I do believe there's probably at least one upper-80's in this unit every year, regardless of if it's found or killed. 

Also, every day I spent there, I found more and more antelope. I didn't see the same bucks very often, but I kept on seeing bucks. I counted over 60 bucks in one 3 day span last year. The trees are thick in this unit so be prepared to chase "Bigfoot" during your hunting and scouting. And even where the trees aren't thick, it's still more difficult to hunt than the other Arizona units. 

This was a pretty easy unit to rank number 1 this year. Good luck in your applications and send us pictures when you kill a giant! 

Unit 5B Yearly Fawn Numbers

Awesome upper-80's buck from last year