Syc,
Weather has and always will play a role in animal movement during hunting hours. Changing up tactics to improve odds of success can be done over a quick strategy meeting amongst the crew knowing there’s animals available requiring only a change of hunting techniques...
Our crew just had to do this finding uncommonly warm, dry weather for a 2nd year in a row. We should have had 2 bulls down in 4 days of hunting instead of only one. It was a mistake a pard made. The key is animals in the area to hunt.
I wouldn’t say someone is a poor hunter, if the hunting grounds they’ve spent much of their life scouting and hunting becomes a barren landscape for furred animals after an increase of wolf presence in the area...Further, you take an area that had historically held an abundance of game and now doesn’t. How do you expect a hunter to change tactics on non-existent animals, or move to another hunting ground, especially when hunting a boundary unit that prevents you from pulling stakes and moving 30-40 miles into a new area?
You can’t...You’re stuck hunting the unit. Over the years I’ve had to make several changes in hunting tactics, mostly to follow the animals, but also to get away from the increase in hunting pressure from individuals who lack area knowledge and screw up a well planned hunt for myself and crew....
But this conversation is about the impact of wolves, and to a degree the added pairs of teeth they bring to some areas already holding predators that enjoy dining on ungulates. They certainly don’t make it any easier, and without living within or nearby the hunting grounds you plan to hunt. It can be very disappointing to arrive days before the opener only to discover wolf tracks and no game.
Lastly, living at 7k elevation would be difficult for me to hunt being I spend most of my life at sea level. Congratulations to you running your weed eater without getting winded. I would hire my yard work out, so I could concentrate on working a heavy pack running up and down your mountains to be ready to hunt...😎
Good post, but not following you on some of it.
IME, multiple things have changed over 40 years on all the places I hunt in Arizona. Weather has changed, population of the state has changed, the way other hunters hunt has changed. Where I'm at no wolves (yet) but they are in the eastern part of the state now.
In AZ not uncommon to hunt a different unit every year, up to 100-200 miles away, or even the border 300 miles away.
Forest structure has changed, more logging on the 1980s, then 20 years of very little, now starting to pick up a little again.
Bigger fires, now have some burns to hunt.
GPS, maps, Google earth, game cameras have really changed the way other people hunt, and their has been a bump (in my opinion) in outfitter/guided hunting.
Travel trailers and UTVs have made a big difference in how much country people can travel to hunt in a day.
Schidt-load of changes without wolves.
I expect there are changes due to wolves, but I doubt all the change people are noticing can be laid solely at the feet of the wolves.
