[frankthetank]

In the land of deer hunting, we have seen a huge drop in deer killed.

A lot of hunters are blaming the DNR for being too open to all kinds of extended seasons, earn a buck tags, etc.

Some day we'll have to take a page out of the DNR's book to manage humans!

Hunters registered the fewest deer in 27 years in the Wisconsin gun deer season that ended Sunday, according to preliminary data from the Department of Natural Resources.

The 2009 harvest of 195,647 deer (86,251 bucks and 109,396 antlerless deer) represents a 29% drop from 2008. The 2009 buck kill is the lowest since 1980.

In addition, seven hunters were injured in shooting incidents; an eighth incident remains under investigation.

The state sold 638,040 licenses for the season; last year it sold 642,419.

“Deer populations are variable throughout the state,” said Keith Warnke, the DNR’s big game biologist. "And we believe people when they say they did not see deer in their hunting area. We have also received reports from successful camps. As always, local populations make all the difference."

The hunt was marked by mild weather, a lack of snow and more standing corn than usual.

This year's registration data showed a remarkable consistency: All 72 counties showed a drop from 2008.

The DNR had anticipated a lower harvest this year because of changes in season structure, a reduction in antlerless permits, lower fawn production and a decline in the deer population in the north and northeast.

You have to go back to 1982 when hunters registered 182,715 deer (97,534 bucks and 85,181 antlerless) to find a lower 9-day gun kill.

"There's a lot of dissatisfied hunters," said Ed Harvey, chairman of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress. "It's one thing to not get a deer. It's another thing entirely to not even see a deer."

The harvest decline was especially pronounced in the north. Year-over-year registrations dropped 62% in Florence County, 59% in Vilas County and 50% in Oneida County.

The state's legally established over-winter population goal is about 740,000 deer. Last year the over-winter herd was estimated at 1 million deer, according to the DNR.

Wisconsin hunters registered 618,274 in 2000, highest of any state on record.

A harsher than average winter in 2007-08 reduced fawn production last year to 0.73 fawns per doe; the long-term average is 0.87.

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/78271777.html

[SILENTTODD]

Are road kills down too?

[frankthetank]

I'm pretty sure gun accidents were down (they been dropping a lot lately--not good for some on here ) and i'm also pretty sure that car/deer accidents have dropped, although a few months ago i came the closest i ever have to hitting an adult doe on the interstate going about 75mph...scared the crap out of me!

Most hunters i've talked to (i haven't gun hunted since '98) say the DNR is crazy and out of touch. My brother was just hunting tonite (muzzle loader) and he didn't see a single deer. (rare for where he is hunting).

This is bad in many ways. First less meat for people to consume, meaning more money on grocery store food. Second, less tags sold, meaning less government money coming in. Third, people get pissed and depressed when they don't shoot stuff! I've always thought bowhunting is the better deal. Shoot them early when they are still uneducated, plus the weather is usually mild.

[frankthetank]

Wisconsin has an archery and a gun hunting season. The archery season is very long, while the gun hunt is only 9 days (they want to extend it). There are also other "special" seasons that allow you too shoot does in certain areas of the state, and also a muzzle loader season right after the gun hunting season.

Compared to Minnesota, Wisconsin is having a rough time. I would assume Wisconsin can sustain a larger population of deer then MN (better climate, more crop land, better everything).

Minnesota was also down:

Since the firearms season opened Nov. 7, preliminary results show hunters have taken 151,000 deer, 20,000 fewer than last year after the third weekend of hunting.

Minnesota hunters killed about 222,000 deer last year between the firearms, archery and muzzleloader season. The record kill occurred in 2003, when hunters shot 290,000 deer between the three seasons.

[wisconsin_cur]

Around here there was fog until noon on the opening weekend. We could not see more than 40 yards until 10 or 11. Not to discount the possibility of a systemic management problem but I was thinking the kill would be down based just on the weather.

[Ludi]

We have swarms of deer.

[cudabachi]

Back in the 90's when I did a lot of deer hunting our club's kill totals fluctuated quite a bit from year to year. I think though most of the fluctuation had more to do with changing habitat conditions on the place as well as with the weather, but the weather to a much lesser extent.

If I recall, we were allowed 5 does and 3 bucks. That's a lot of deer meat.

[Lore]

So much for returning to the hunter gatherer culture.

[billbrasky2]

ohio not doing too badly so far.......


White-tailed Deer Hunters Successful on Opening Day of Gun Season
Statewide harvest up from 2008.


Ohio Division of Wildlife
COLUMBUS, OH --(AmmoLand.com)- Ohio hunters had near ideal weather for the opening day of deer-gun season. Hunters took 33,607 white-tailed deer on Monday, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. The deer-gun season remains open through Sunday, December 6, and then reopens for two days on Saturday and Sunday, December 19-20

The preliminary figures from deer check stations throughout the state show a slight increase of 1.7 percent from last year’s opening day total of 33,034.

Counties reporting the highest numbers of deer checked on Monday included Tuscarawas-1,763, Harrison-1,374, Coshocton-1,353, Guernsey-1,284, Licking-1,182, Holmes-1,165, Washington-1,010, Athens-925, Ashtabula-836, and Muskingum-799.

Combining the results of Monday’s harvest with those from the early muzzleloader season, the first six weeks of archery season and the recent youth deer-gun season, a preliminary total of 97,371 deer have been killed so far this deer hunting season. That number compares to 95,074 harvested last year at this time. In all, hunters took a total of 252,017 deer during all of last year’s hunting seasons.

Approximately 420,000 hunters are expected to participate in the statewide deer-gun season. Ohio’s deer population was estimated to be 650,000 prior to the start of the fall hunting seasons.

The white-tailed deer is the most popular game animal in Ohio, frequently pursued by generations of hunters. Ohio ranks 8th nationally in annual hunting-related sales and 10th in the number of jobs associated with the hunting-related industry. Each year, hunting has a $859 million economic impact in Ohio through the sale of equipment, fuel, food, lodging and more.

Division of Wildlife Chief Dave Graham challenges all deer hunters to make this year special for Ohio’s hungry by labeling Saturday, December 5, as Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry (FHFH) Day. Last year, hunters showed they cared by donating nearly 220,000 meals to Ohioans in need.

Hunters who give their deer to a food bank are not required to pay the processing cost as long as the deer are taken to a participating processor and funding for the effort lasts. Counties being served by this program can be found online at www.fhfh.org.

[jlw61]

Back in the early 80's, the DNR quit maintaining the smaller wetlands that, for years, would be used to encourage ducks and geese to nest and/or stop over during their flight south. At the same time, they began to increase the Horicon and other habitat areas which are huge managed areas desined to severly control hunting and provide habitat in a controlled area. Today, duck hunting is virtually dead in many parts of the state that used to realize regular daily bag limits by a large population of hunters.

IMO, the DNR simply wish to limit the areas and number of people that hunt, but can not do it through regulation or legislation. Their only tool the is what some would call mismanagement of the game animals but what I refer to as very sharp management of the sheeple.

[Revi]

Here in Maine the deer season is now over. I just saw a fat doe cross the road, but that's the first deer I have seen since the season began.

The tally was way down from last year.

http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/ ... S-81124007

I don't really care. I didn't want to shoot one anyway.

I just like walking around in the woods.

[Ludi]

I just saw a fat doe cross the road, but that's the first deer I have seen since the season began.

For some reason I always think of you living in this remote place full of wildlife and few people.

[dohboi]

So are we calling peak deer yet? What will the decline rate be.

Usually, I think the DNR facilitates far too large a deer population. But it will be bad for many families that depend on the meet if they can't get any venison this year. Time to go back to beans and rice (or oat groats and lentils, my personal preference)?

[wisconsin_cur]

So are we calling peak deer yet? What will the decline rate be.

Usually, I think the DNR facilitates far too large a deer population. But it will be bad for many families that depend on the meet if they can't get any venison this year. Time to go back to beans and rice (or oat groats and lentils, my personal preference)?

or just walking out to do a little "rabbit hunting" later in the year... that is the biggest rabbit I have ever seen!