Battue-do you think hunter numbers are still down as a result of the QDM initiatives? Seems like the state lost a lot of hunters when that went through.
Gopher here is my non-biologist take on Pa QDM and from what I see it has at least two sides. First, I have no problem with the antler restrictions. People can argue against me, but the racks have gotten bigger. Evidence being what I see and what are now winning the Buck pools. Much bigger racks are placing all down the line. Yes, it used to be a big one would come in, but not in the numbers I'm seeing now.
Second and where I think they made the biggest mistake was over harvesting way too many Does back when they initiated. Pa hunters were used to going out and seeing a good many Does, and yes at one time there were too many, but eventually they started to see none or just a couple; on land that could easily support more, but the war continued. We really did it to ourselves by doing the shooting and thinking the well wouldn't run dry. The end result was much of the enthusiasm for the hunt was lost.
Which brings us to today. With not all that many going at it hard-for what 10 years now-they are starting to come back. My Cousin has a small farm and they are definitely back in numbers in his area that may approach too many. Talk with him on the way home this evening and he saw three Bucks running together. Out of velvet and one was very nice, one average and one that will not be legal. Last year on his place I saw somewhere around the low 80's in total Deer. Some obviously more than once.
I was on a great lease of 1200 acres down the road from him, which has since been sold. Anywhere between 14-20 people. We never pounded the Does really all that hard and we also never had a hard time seeing Deer and with the antler restrictions we kept seeing and taking bigger Deer. Now the cover was excellent with selective timber harvesting.
Cousin has also recently been looking at some camps to buy in the Marienville area the past couple months. He said he is seeing more Deer up that way than in the past.
To sum up my thoughts, I have nothing against the QDM management science. I do think the GC went at it too hard in the number of Does thay eliminated and that had a significant impact on the number of hunters, especially kids, who dropped out or who only are willing to spend a limited amount of time on the hunt. When QDM started I had a GW tell me that in the big woods, before it's over they predicted the average hunter would only harvest-kill for those of you harvest pizzes off-1 Deer every 5 years of casual hunting, but those who worked at and knew the game still should punch out most years.
FWIW.
No matter what, the Pa Deer tradition we knew is pretty much ancient history. Posted land also hasn't done us any favors. Used to be my home county of Armstrong was pretty much open ground. There was an unspoken brotherhood of the hunting tradition. Now it is pretty much posted up. QDM and the quest for big Bucks I'm sure had a part in it.
