Forthcoming book of interest: DEERLAND

On April 2, 2013, Lyons Press will release DEERLAND: America’s Hunt for Ecological Balance and the Essence of Wildness.

The U.S. is now home to 30 million hungry deer—100 times more than were here a century ago. When we see all those deer out in the woods, most of us believe it’s a measure of the forest’s health. It is, but in exactly the opposite way we think. All across America, overabundant deer routinely devastate ecosystems and alter entire landscapes. DEERLAND traces the story of how we got here and asks tough questions about what it will take to restore the balance we’ve disrupted.

The author also asked tough questions about the rapidly changing gear, tactics, and values of today’s hunters—and about what role those hunters will continue to play in 21st Century America. And when it comes to deer, are hunters part of the solution, part of the problem, or both? Rest assured, however, that DEERLAND isn’t just about hunting. It’s a much larger environmental and cultural story. (To learn more, you can visit the author's website at www.alcambronne.com) Whether you’re a hunter, a gardener, or a birder, and whether you care about the environment, the deer in your back yard, or the shrubbery they just ate, DEERLAND is an eye-opening read that will change forever the way you think about deer and the landscape we share with them.

 Pre-order a copy at Amazon

MINNESOTA NEWS: Hunting Areas Becoming "Overbuilt" on Public Lands

The presence of tree stands for deer hunting on public lands is not a new phenomenon.  However, the size and extent of these tree stands is growing out of control.

First, let's look at a trend in tree stands:

It’s not just a couple of boards slapped into a tree, but tree houses with stairways, decks, shingled roofs, commercial windows, insulation, propane heaters, carpeting, lounge chairs, tables and “even some with generators so they have electricity,” Krepps said.

One deer “stand” discovered on county land was a cabin 18 feet wide and 20 feet long. And, increasingly, some hunters are buying elaborate manufactured stands and leaving them in the woods all year.

When a stand is abandoned, much of it is left to rot in the forest. But plastic, metal, shingles and other materials aren’t biodegradable “and really leave a mess in the woods,” said Jason Meyer, who manages forests in the southern half of St. Louis County.

It crosses the line on what is appropriate for public lands.  These stands often have locks on the door. 

Next, let's look at the evolution of shooting lanes.  This used to entail cutting some branches or the occasional sapling to provide an unobstructed (and thus safer) area for shooting.  And now?

Some of those shooting lanes are more than 30 feet wide and up to 700 feet long. In one area of county land near state land, it’s estimated that a group of hunters had cleared more than six acres of forest combined for their 47 shooting lanes. “They are taking public land out of timber production and it’s adding up across the county,” Kailanen said. “The real impact of this may not be realized until 40 or 50 or 60 years from now, when those trees would have been harvested.”

Without all of that tree cover, what is to be done? Why not plant food plots to entice the deer to be closer to the tree stand?

In some areas, hunters have taken to clearing the forestland and planting clover and other farm crops to attract deer. While the ethics of food plots is hotly debated in the hunting community — some say it’s akin to baiting deer, which is illegal in Minnesota — county foresters say the plots are taking even more forestland out of production. Moreover, the seeds planted may not be just one crop, but may bring in invasive, non-native species that could damage the native forest and spread.

This all adds up to a pseudo-privatization of wildlife.  It involves constructing buildings and landscaping on lands people do not privately own to manipulate deer that are not "theirs" for the sole purpose of increasing their chances of having a successful hunt.  This is contentious enough within the community of deer hunters.  It amounts to another self-inflicted black eye in society at large.

Source: Duluth Tribune

IRELAND NEWS: Deer Population Density Not Sustainable

It looks like Ireland's deer population is in the early phases of exponential growth.

There are some 4,000 licensed hunters, who shoot about 25,000 deer a year in controlled hunting seasons. For a “sustainable” population, it seems an annual cull of 150,000 deer would be nearer the mark. This figure comes from Woodlands of Ireland, whose expert study in 2009 computed the extensive damage not only to Ireland’s native broadleafed woods and their dependent species but also to conifer forests, where deer strip bark when other food gets short and browse young sitka spruce into valueless bushes. By its estimate, red deer increased more than fivefold in the 30 years to 2008, with a tripling of sika and near-doubling of fallow. The muntjac may be small (like a furtive, hard-to-spot Labrador dog), but, even though it was introduced only in 2006, its sightings are already widespread and raise great ecological concern. Rumours of even more introductions – of roe and Chinese water deer – are so far unconfirmed.

Warmer winters and longer growing seasons will likely further facilitate this growth. Ireland would do well to look to their old rivals to the east for some guidance on national deer management policy.

Source: Irish Times

WISCONSIN OPINION: I'm Sorry the Natural World Does Not Yield to Your Wishes

Another great column from Pat Durkin


Judging by their press releases on November's deer season, be prepared to pat the hands of state Sen. Russ Decker, D-Weston, and Rep. Scott Gunderson, R-Waterford, if you ever sit by them on an airplane bounced by turbulence.

If gentle reassurance doesn't stop their shrieking, suggest the flight attendant slap them.

Decker's hysterical demand on Dec. 3 to fire the state's top deer managers and Gundy's panicky call Dec. 4 to cancel December's four-day antlerless gun season show these lawmakers can't control their emotions.

"It is absolutely imperative the (Natural Resources) Board takes swift action to protect Wisconsin's deer heard (sic) from further harm that may take generations to recover from," Gundy declared.

The Board ignored him, and the low-impact season was held as scheduled. And what about Gundy's nonsense that deer might need "generations" to recover? Even if he meant deer generations, not human generations, he needs schooling in deer biology.

Researchers at Michigan's George Reserve twice showed deer herds capable of 50 percent annual growth. Starting with six whitetails in 1928, the reserve's herd boomed to 222 in seven years. And in 1975, after reducing the herd to 10 deer, most of which were fawns, researchers reported the herd at 212 after six breeding seasons.

But Gundy's outburst was nothing compared to that of Decker, majority leader of our Senate. Does that "D" in "D-Weston" after Decker's name stand for Democrat or Demagogue?

Granted, the DNR should stick to its harvest data and let others suggest wet, warm conditions and uncut corn helped lower the kill. By discussing factors beyond its control, the DNR sounds like it's making excuses.

Likewise, Decker shouldn't use his personal experience in Lincoln County to make statewide generalizations about hunting conditions.

"The swamps were pretty dry where our crew was hunting," he claimed. "We don't let a little water stop us from going after deer."

Bravo, sir! Give yourself another attaboy!

For the record, the National Agricultural Statistics Service reported 41 percent of the state's corn remained uncut because of wet soils as of Nov. 23 (the Monday of deer season). The five-year average is 19 percent uncut. That's a lot of extra hiding room.

The NASS also reported average temperatures were 7 to 11 degrees above normal during deer season, with average daily highs of 46 to 48 degrees. Research shows deer activity basically ceases in late autumn when temperatures hit 45 degrees.

But Decker went beyond weather with his pandering. He pleased barbershop biologists with this gem:

"The DNR has mismanaged the deer herd and a new team needs to be brought in that can do the job."

Unfortunately for Sen. Decker, the candidate pool appears thin. The Minnesota DNR reported a statewide kill of about 200,000 deer, the state's lowest figure in about 10 years. The agency also reported standing corn in 80 percent of Minnesota's fields.

Meanwhile, the Michigan DNR reported the deer kill fell 20 to 30 percent in the Upper Peninsula, 15 to 25 percent in the northern Lower Peninsula, and 5 to 10 percent in southern Michigan. Agency biologists said the main reasons for the slump were "unseasonably hot weather" during hunting season and harsh winter a year ago.

In addition, Michigan's corn harvest was 35 percent by Nov. 16, the second day of its 16-day season. "In an average year, it's 80 percent, " said Brent Rudolph, Michigan DNR deer program leader. "It's likely some deer never left the standing corn."

How about Illinois? Even though Illinois lacks northern forests and severe winters, its gun-hunters failed to kill 100,000 deer for the first time since 1999. The reasons cited? Warm weather and a 33 percent harvest of its corn crop.

Despite these declines in herd sizes and harvest figures across the Great Lakes, the bigger question remains: Why is anyone surprised?

The Wisconsin DNR issued a reminder before the season — Nov. 10, to be exact — that this year's deer kill would be lower than in 2008.

In addition, the mission of wildlife agencies isn't to match previous kills or produce records annually. Their task is to manage the herd to publicly approved biological and sociological goals. For much of the past three decades, that meant reducing herds.

That the Wisconsin DNR might finally be succeeding is hardly a firing offense. The same can't be said of Sen. Decker's childish tantrum.

Source: Green Bay Gazette

WISCONSIN NEWS: Possible Word Record-Setting Deer, DNR to Receive No Credit

Do not let this record buck fool you--the DNR has ruined the herd! I read that on the internet somewhere.

A Wisconsin hunter is holding his breath and waiting to hear whether he will hold a hunting world record.

Michael Gregoire of Sheboygan Falls may break the current record for the largest whitetail rack of a buck he shot with a bow and arrow Thursday on his brother's farm.

The 12-point buck weighed 240 pounds and the rack was unofficially set at 217 5/8 inches.

The current record was set back in 1993 in Canada, with a rack of 213 5/8 inches. The state record is 206 1/8 inches.

There is a 60-day drying period Gregoire must sustain before the official measurements and scores are released.

Source: wkowtv

ARKANSAS NEWS: A Look at Historic Deer Harvests

From the low three figures to a steady six figures — that's the story of Arkansas' deer harvest records.

Numerous hunters in the state, sometimes after an unproductive session in the woods, many grumble that "deer hunting just isn't what it was in the old days."

The statistics are not on their side, however.

Many other hunters realistically realize that the state has many, many more deer here in 2009 than it did a couple of generations back. They may also have gripes about not enough deer in this area, few bucks in that county, too small racks on the bucks somewhere else. But the numbers are indisputable — Arkansas deer are plentiful, although not to everyone's satisfaction.

The first year of official checking of deer taken by hunters by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission was 1938.

Picture that autumn. The state and the nation were still in the grips of the Great Depression. Many Arkansans sought deer for the most basic of objectives. They needed food on the table. That hunting season, 203 were checked by hunters with AGFC's representatives.

The economy was bleak, but restoration of Arkansas's deer had been under way for more than a decade, most as the efforts may seem today. Deer "farms" were in operation in several locations. Deer were being relocated to places where they were absent and had been scarce for years since the late 19th century and early 20th century.

It is a reasonable assumption that some deer were taken by hunters in the fall of 1938 and were not checked, but were taken straight to kitchen use.

The next year, 1939, there were 540 deer checked as information spread around the state about this new requirement for hunters. In 1940, just 408 deer were checked, and in 1941, 433 deer were checked.

These totals seem tiny compared to recent years of Arkansas hunting.

Last season, the 2008 hunt that stretched into early 2009, 184,991 deer were tallied by Arkansas hunters, a total second only to the peak season of 1999 when 194,687 deer were logged across the state in records of all three hunting methods archery, muzzle-loader and modern gun.

long with the outright poaching and night-hunting, is present today as it was in 1938. Unknown, of course, is the extent of these illegal takings of deer. Does poaching account for a small percentage of the deer taken each year or a large amount?

Deer hunting numbers rose steadily from the early years, especially after the AGFC was reorganized into its present form by Amendment 35 of the Arkansas Constitution which went into effect in 1945. From the 1,687 deer checked that year, the state total was 5,122 just five years later. Fifteen years later, in 1960, the deer harvest total was 15,000.

Deer harvest growth continued through the 1960s and see-sawed a bit in the 1970s as the first steps toward hunting of female deer, does, in some areas began. Some protests came forth after the 1978 season when 43,452 deer were checked. Doe hunting was reduced, and in 1979 the total for the state was 36,074.

About this time, more tailored deer hunting regulations were crafted by the AGFC, allowing for more hunting days and more taking of does in areas where deer had become plentiful. Restricted rules were in effect for areas of lesser deer numbers.

It was 1987 when Arkansas's deer take reached six figures, with 106,392 checked that year by hunters. The total dipped in 1990, again with tightened hunting rules. Then it returned to six figures in 1991. The peak of 1999 climaxed five years of impressive numbers on the deer hunting scene.

Some hunters protested that too many deer were falling to hunters. New strategies in deer management came forth, including quality deer objectives on both private land and some public land.

After a dip in 2003, when tighter deer hunting rules were coupled with unfavorable weather, the statewide deer totals have climbed again to approach the peak of a decade ago.

Source: Baxter Bulletin

WISCONSIN NEWS: Thirty-Point Buck Bagged

Remember, if you bag a thirty-pointer, it is due to your hunting prowess. If you get skunked, it is the DNR's fault for ruining the deer herd. -TR

A Fond du Lac resident bagged a 30-point whitetail buck by bow.

Wayne Schumacher shot the deer Sunday night from a tree stand near Rosendale.

Schumacher says the shot covered about 15 yards and the deer ran about 60 or 70 yards before going down.

Schumacher noted he's hunted with bow and gun for more than 30 years and he's known people who have seen the buck but it was hard to believe.

The deer, referred to as "Lucky Buck," has an inside antler spread of 20 inches. Its field-dressed weight was about 225 pounds. Estimates are that the deer is at least 4 years old.

Schumacher says the memory will be preserved with a shoulder mount.

Source: Chicago Tribune

NEW JERSEY NEWS: Park Employee-Only Hunt Shot Down

A plan to allow only Monmouth County Park System employees to participate in a special "culling" deer hunt next winter at Tatum Park is dead, although hunts open to the public will continue.

A storm of complaints from excluded sportsmen as well as opposition from the anti-hunting community led the county Board of Recreation Commissioners to defeat the employee-only hunt resolution in a split vote Monday night.

The seven residents who spoke during the public hearing mostly ridiculed the idea of park system employees hunting for deer while on the taxpayer's clock, and Commissioner Kevin Mandeville agreed, saying, "I am totally opposed to paying staff to hunt."

The vote was 6-3 against the resolution. Siding with Mandeville were Frederick C. Kniesler, Michael G. Harmon, Violeta Peters, N. Britt Raynor, and Michael W. Brim. Voting in favor of the employee-only hunt were board Chairman Edward J. Loud, Thomas E. Hennessy Jr. and Fred J. Rummel.

However, the commissioners unanimously approved all other elements of the deer management plan for the coming year, which allows deer hunting to continue in the same 15 park areas as last season. The hunts will begin in October at various scheduled times over a 4 1/2-month period and take place in parks in Middletown, Marlboro, Millstone Township, Upper Freehold, Howell, Roosevelt, Holmdel, Wall, Tinton Falls, Neptune and Freehold Township.

New to the program is the establishment of a $20 fee for a so-called deer harvest access permit. Officials said that the revenue is needed because of the county's budget woes and that the money can also offset "program expenses," though they conceded that people who were infrequent hunters in the past may be unlikely to sign up for the permit.

West Long Branch resident Gerard P. Natale, who is an official with several sportsmen's clubs, said hunters already pay for use of the parks through their tax dollars and shouldn't have to pay an additional fee.

"I'm a Monmouth County resident," said Steve Ferrara, Red Bank. "If someone from Ocean County wants to hunt here and you want to charge them, I guess it's OK, but don't charge your own county residents."

Harmon said the fees will be primarily used to ensure program safety.

"We're trying to cover some of the expenses. Maybe you don't see or notice it, but the park rangers are there monitoring you and protecting other people using the park. We appreciate your health and safety, and $20 is nominal for that," Harmon said.

Source: Asbury Park Press

MICHIGAN NEWS: Another Good Year for Deer Hunters, But U.P. Harvest Down

The number of deer killed during the 2008 hunting season rose slightly statewide, but fell nearly 11 percent in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

The Mining Journal of Marquette reports Thursday that 480,638 deer were taken last fall, up from 476,595 in 2007. That's an increase of just under 1 percent, although the buck harvest was down 7.1 percent.

In the U.P., the Department of Natural Resources says 51,769 deer were killed last fall, down from 57,988 in 2007.

DNR wildlife biologist Brian Frawley says nearly 694,000 people took part in the hunt.

Source: Chicago Tribune

CONNECTICUT NEWS: Deer Kill Up, Deer Collisions Down

Road kills of deer in town have declined dramatically over the last decade, as the number of deer taken by hunters has risen.

“If you kill deer by hunting them, you get fewer car accidents,” Conservation Commission Chairman Ben Oko said. “That seems very clear.”

But a vast lowering of deer numbers — the culling of five out of every six deer now roaming Ridgefield’s forests — would be needed to bring the population down to levels that research has found can make a difference in keeping down ticks and Lyme disease.

The state counted 122 deer road kills in 1998, and just 35 in 2008. Deer taken by archery hunting rose from 55 in 1998 to 222 in 2008.

The pattern holds — with some ups and downs — across the 12 years from 1996 to 2008, according to statistics assembled by Howard Kilpatrick, a wildlife biologist with the state environmental department.

And Ridgefield no longer leads the state in the number of deer killed on its roads.

“Ridgefield was consistently ranked number one for many years — it was for three, four, five years anyway,” Mr. Kilpatrick said. “In 2007, they were ranked number seven.”

Ridgefield Police count more road deaths of deer than does the state, but the trend is similar. Road kills fell from 205 seven years ago to 90 last year, according to Police Chief John Roche.

Annual road-kill totals from 2001 to 2008 were: 205, 129, 172, 198, 146, 115, 127, 90.

No method of counting deer — hunted, killed on the roads, or running in the woods — can be taken as 100% accurate, Mr. Kilpatrick said. His numbers are based on Deer Kill Incident Report forms that police all across the state fill out when they go to the scene of an accident.

The higher numbers from the Ridgefield Police include those incidents, but also count carcasses found along roads when no accident is reported.

Mr. Kilpatrick’s numbers on deer harvested are based on tags turned in by hunters, and are likely low since not all hunters turn them in. Still, he said his numbers were meaningful because the methodology was consistent over the 12 years.

“We know the reported harvest is low. We know the reported deer road kills are low,” he said. “But our method for collecting that data is the same, so any trends should reflect what’s really happening out there.”

“What Howard is saying is that there is still a correlation, whether it’s reported as what he had, or what we had,” Chief Roche said. “There is still a drop in the number of deer found dead on the side of the road.”

Full story at: Acorn Online

GUAM NEWS: Special Hunt to Combat Overabundant Deer

I had no idea there were deer in Guam. Shows what I know...

The Department of Agriculture is offering a special unlimited deal for deer hunters starting tomorrow, April 15.

The agency notes this year's seasonal hunting of local deer can only take place on Government of Guam property or private property with the owner's permission. Division of Aquatic and Wildlife Resources Biologist Jeff Quitugua says they have opened up the unlimited either-sex deer hunt because the agency is trying to control the deer and feral pig population. So far, he mentions that the animals have been destroying natural habitats that are supposed to regenerate indigenous plants and vegetation.

No exact data has been released on the current population of these local animals. In the meantime, Quitugua also says hunting licenses and deer tags are required to participate in this hunting season. Anyone interested is asked to contact the Department of Agriculture. Again, the unlimited deer hunt starts tomorrow, April 15 and ends September 30.

Source: Pacific News Center

AUSTRALIA NEWS: Sport hunting Unlikely to Control Deer

The National Parks Association says deer hunters in the New South Wales Illawarra region need to view the pest as an environmental threat rather than a hunting resource.

The state's third annual deer season, which is open to recreational hunters, started yesterday and runs until the end of October.

The association's executive officer Andrew Cox says recreational hunting is not an effective feral animal control because it is too selective.

Mr Cox says while there is some reduction in deer numbers, hunters need to take stronger action.

"With feral animals acting early and with lots of resources is the way to deal with this," he said.

"I think we can act to stop new populations growing, expanding in areas that weren't covered.

"They certainly are well adapted to many of the coastal wet forests of the east coast of New South Wales."

Source: ABC News (Australia)

MINNESOTA NEWS: Three Deer With One Bullet

By Sam Cook, Duluth News Tribune

DULUTH, Minn. - Minnesota's firearms deer season was almost over, and Chris Olsen of Two Harbors needed to get his venison. One shot changed his season in a big way.

Olsen killed three deer with the same bullet from his 8-millimeter Mauser.

Olsen, 50, was hunting on his property about 15 miles north of Two Harbors late in the afternoon Nov. 17. Two deer that Olsen described as yearlings (1 1/2-year-olds) walked in to check out a scent cloth he had put out. He was going to shoot one of the yearlings, when a doe appeared. It approached the yearlings at the scent cloth, which was about 60 yards from Olsen's stand.

"I thought, `I'm going to have to shoot her. It's desperate times,' " Olsen said.

He was shooting the 8-millimeter Mauser he had bought from a friend about a year ago, he said. It's a German military rifle, he said.

Olsen shot the doe with a single shot, and all three deer bounded away. Olsen thought he might have missed.

Later, his brother Lee Olsen of Two Harbors joined him. They found the doe a short distance away and field-dressed her.

"By George, we got done with her, and there was another one," Olsen said. "I thought, `Wow, two deer with one shot.' "

The two men field-dressed the yearling and retired to their deer shack for the night. The next morning, Chris Olsen got to thinking, and he went back to where he had found the doe and the yearling.

"We retraced our steps, and my gosh, there's a drop of blood," he said.

Olsen found the third deer - the second yearling - not far away. All three deer had fallen within 50 yards of each other, Olsen said. The bullet had passed completely through the first two deer and a piece of it had lodged in the third deer.

"I couldn't believe it. It's absolutely unbelievable," Olsen said.

Olsen had tags to legally take all three deer. He was checked later in the hunt by Department of Natural Resources conservation officer Kipp Duncan of Two Harbors. Duncan wasn't surprised when Olsen told him he had taken three deer. But he was surprised when Olsen told him he had taken all three with a single shot.

Olsen is happy.

"We got venison," he said.