New potential world’s record musk ox entered into Boone and Crockett Club records

Missoula, MT — The records department of the Boone and Crockett Club recently received a musk ox entry, and if confirmed by a judges panel, it will be crowned the new world’s record.

The recent entry was killed by Aron F. Wark on Aug. 1, 2023, near Contwoyto Lake in the Canadian Territory of Nunavut. With a preliminary score of 131 4/8 points, Wark’s musk ox beats the old record of 130 4/8 points taken by Alex Therrien in 2020.

“I had the best time of my life, even without shooting a musk ox,” Wark said in a release issued by the Boone and Crockett Club.

The 64-year-old is quick to credit his guide, Sam Kapolak, with filling the hunt with good laughs and plenty of exercise.

“A lot of people think this is an easy hunt, but it’s not,” Wark said. “We covered 20 miles in a day, and it’s not flat. The walking sucks. I want to get these hard hunts out of the way before I get old.”

MORE COVERAGE BIG-GAME COVERAGE FROM OUTDOOR NEWS:

Planning an out-of-state dream hunt? Here’s tips to understanding preference points and big-game draws

Your first western deer hunt? Here are critical rules for success

Mild temperatures make for a great chance to tackle winter whitetail habitat projects

The Boone and Crockett Club has been measuring North American big game since 1895. As a way to measure conservation efforts, the Club began keeping records in the 1920s and released the first record book in 1932.

“Keeping a record of the largest representations of North American big game isn’t a competition between hunters, it’s a tool for hunters and resource managers to help them understand how wildlife management is or isn’t working in a given area,” said Kyle Lehr, the Club’s director of big game records.

“Every animal is a trophy,” said Tony A. Schoonen, chief executive officer of the Boone and Crockett Club. “Sometimes, there are truly magnificent animals taken that represent the conservation success story of North America. That’s really what we’re celebrating.”

Wark has a 15-year-old daughter and 10-year-old twin boys who he is excited to share his passion of hunting with.

Before Wark’s entry is official, Boone and Crockett Club procedures require that the final score of a potential world’s record be verified by either an Awards Program Judges Panel or a Special Judges Panel.

Awards Program Judges Panels are assembled once every three years following the close of one of the Club’s triennial Awards Programs.

Special Judges Panels are convened during the interim between Awards Program Judges Panels with the sole purpose of verifying and declaring a new world’s record.

In either case, two teams of two judges each measure the entry, and if the scores of both teams verify the original measurement, the panel will declare it a new record.