Are the glory days of deer hunting coming to a close?

[SwampCat]

I think that’s part of it but I think bigger than pressure is landscape. Louisiana is thick as crap. As you start heading north the landscape opens. It’s why rifles are so hard on these deer. They have very few places to hide. I don’t think we have less pressure here than Louisiana.

Louisiana has a three month rifle season

 

[BenAllgood]

I think that’s part of it but I think bigger than pressure is landscape. Louisiana is thick as crap. As you start heading north the landscape opens. It’s why rifles are so hard on these deer. They have very few places to hide. I don’t think we have less pressure here than Louisiana.

Pressure? Put these seasons in Kentucky and see what happens.

 

[omicron1792]

I think they are bait shy. I get dozens of pictures of the same buck on the same camera in a food plot or trail - and rarely at a feeder. Hand spread feed is a different story. I fence most of my hand spread feed sites with 32” field fence to keep the hogs out. Even the biggest, oldest bucks will typically use those areas.

We have killed one buck in 20 years we did not first have on camera - usually multiple times.

I put up large gravity feeders (banks) in remote spots and some mature bucks will come to it in the middle of the night. They absolutely won’t come to the spin feeders. I keep those on my big central fields and they bucks will come to edge at rut and that’s it.

Prob with gravity feeders is they will eat through 350lbs of corn in a week. Ha

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

I will have bucks daytime feed at bait up through bachelor herd breakup time - usually late september. After that, it becomes rarer and rarer.

Answer me this - the pic below was obviously during daytime. Buck was out in the afternoon a number of days in a row. I hand spread some corn in this exact location and he has showed up once, night for a few minutes, and not been back. It is almost like the corn scared him off

View attachment 60239

I will get the odd daytime picture of a mature buck at hand spread feed during season - but not consistent enough to hunt them. Not at a spin feeder. I get all kinds of daytime pics in a wide open food plot.

Even more surprising than the deer, I have seen hogs one time in daylight in the last year - but they are regular night time visitors. My hogs have learned, for the most part, to avoid spin feeders, also - even at night. I have not had a hog even walk by a feeder in months.

Literally no clue. Is that buck a regular or just passing through? There’s personalities and anomalies in any situation with living things. On a macro level though, what do you think the mature (4.5 and older) buck harvest be in ark without bait? I would venture in my world it would drop by as low as 50% with a good chance much higher.

 

[AtomApple]

I just don’t think a lot of people did not bow hunt that now crossbow hunt. Maybe some. But most switched from bow to crossbow. I think the impact is Negligible

You think ? Or you know?
it is not that hard to use Google to find out how many tags are being sold in your area, or how many deer are harvested, and by what weapon.
I am waiting for after this season to see how MN shaped up (1st year for x-bow).
no, I am not interested in researching AL.

 

[omicron1792]

Literally no clue. Is that buck a regular or just passing through? There’s personalities and anomalies in any situation with living things. On a macro level though, what do you think the mature (4.5 and older) buck harvest be in ark without bait? I would venture in my world it would drop by as low as 50% with a good chance much higher.

Have records born that out?

 

[SwampCat]

Literally no clue. Is that buck a regular or just passing through? There’s personalities and anomalies in any situation with living things. On a macro level though, what do you think the mature (4.5 and older) buck harvest be in ark without bait? I would venture in my world it would drop by as low as 50% with a good chance much higher.

He is a regular

 

[omicron1792]

You think ? Or you know?
it is not that hard to use Google to find out how many tags are being sold in your area, or how many deer are harvested, and by what weapon.
I am waiting for after this season to see how MN shaped up (1st year for x-bow).
no, I am not interested in researching AL.

Isn’t opinions what this board is? If it’s just all us using Google to post stats have at it.

From chatGPT

As of my last update in September 2021, I don't have access to the internet to pull up new statistics or studies. However, I can tell you that the impact of crossbow use on deer harvest has been studied.

One example is a 2018 study from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. According to this report, the use of crossbows did increase deer harvest numbers. The report found that crossbow hunters, in general, had a higher success rate than vertical bow (compound, recurve, longbow) hunters. However, the report also noted that the increase in harvest could potentially lead to a decrease in deer populations if not managed correctly.

Please note, this is just one study from a specific region, and the impacts can significantly vary depending on numerous factors as previously mentioned. To get the most accurate and up-to-date information, I would recommend checking with local wildlife or natural resources departments, or looking at scholarly studies on the subject.

Doesn’t really answer if these are new hunters or same hunters having more success

 

[AtomApple]

We also talked about deer hunting in Alabama. We have a three buck limit, only one requiring antler restrictions. Our genetics could be as good as anywhere, we just need more regulations.

Another issue that might be bigger is we just have more country boys here. I feel like up north, there are fewer hunters, per capita, and more people that hunt take it seriously And manage land to hunt. Here, every redneck, I know, calls himself, a hunter, when really they go out once a year during rut and shoot a four Point

Again, any research ? MI & PA reportedly have some of the highest hunter per capita in the nation.

 

[AtomApple]

Isn’t opinions what this board is? If it’s just all us using Google to post stats have at it.

I would prefer sharing “knowledge “ not just opinions that could be false.

 

[omicron1792]

I would prefer sharing “knowledge “ not just opinions that could be false.

Well. Prefer away!

If you think any studies will solve this debate my guess you haven’t taken a stats class or read or published many studies.

Again, this board is for sharing personal knowledge on subjects, not everyone posting what they read on Google. What would the purpose of that be?

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Have records born that out?

Idk. How would you find that out with any relevance to today’s world? Baiting has been around for a long time in ky but the modern conveniences have not been. Not sure you could do much but take a guess based on observations of the hunting world around you.

 

[omicron1792]

was

Again, any research ? MI & PA reportedly have some of the highest hunter per capita in the nation.

see above. That not research?

 

[SwampCat]

Literally no clue. Is that buck a regular or just passing through? There’s personalities and anomalies in any situation with living things. On a macro level though, what do you think the mature (4.5 and older) buck harvest be in ark without bait? I would venture in my world it would drop by as low as 50% with a good chance much higher.

It would make a big difference. Our highest harvest comes from the commercial timberlands - where there are very few oaks and it is thick with low visibility. This year, use of feed sites and my food plots has decreased due to an abnormally large acorn crop. But, I have a lot of oak trees around me. I also have food plots. A lot of the hunters in the commercial timberlands area may not have a mature oak on their ground. Most are not permitted food plots. The use of bait is a lot more effective there than on my ground. Probably without bait, a lot more would go back to dog hunting.

 

[omicron1792]

Idk. How would you find that out with any relevance to today’s world? Baiting has been around for a long time in ky but the modern conveniences have not been. Not sure you could do much but take a guess based on observations of the hunting world around you.

I agree with that. Just know I agree with most of what you’ve said. My guess is Kentucky got a good name for big deer and the ratios of big bucks have changed. I still think you can get a big one by being smarter than the other knuckleheads hunting in the long run

 

[matinc]

Sorry to say but it's time trail cams are outlawed with stiff penalties 30 days prior to season till the end season. This and baiting are the 2 most non fair chase items plaguing hunting today. It's why I did not hunt this year. I'm over the bs of states lacking the courage to outlaw both for GOOD

 

[matinc]

To put it in context my 1 square mile of land has been decimated this year. Illegal bait piles n trail cams. Wow the buck walked here at 525 pm yesterday hmmm where do I sit or even better my trail cam went off n that buck is my land 100 yards to the west. It's soo pathetic n anyone using cams should have any Boone n crocket or pope n young bucks immediately removed from the books.

 

[Mortenson]

Sorry to say but it's time trail cams are outlawed with stiff penalties 30 days prior to season till the end season. This and baiting are the 2 most non fair chase items plaguing hunting today. It's why I did not hunt this year. I'm over the bs of states lacking the courage to outlaw both for GOOD

I kinda maybe want trail cams banned too, but they've single handedly nearly eliminated trespassing here. If they become banned, bring back all the trespassing. I wouldn't be heart broken if cell cams were banned.

 

[hillrunner]

As a thankful outsider to the baiting conversation, I have to ask. If it doesn't aid in killing deer, why do it? Why not hunt the funnels and save your money?

I ask the same thing when people say crossbows are no advantage.

 

[TenPoint]

Baiting is not hunting. I just have to laugh at all the feed stations out there.