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Post by boonechaser on Dec 3, 2018 22:31:51 GMT -5
Looking at numbers today we are down about 1,300 near as I can tell. Saturday was a killer down about 3,000 just that 1 day
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Post by firstwd on Dec 3, 2018 23:01:20 GMT -5
There could be some truth that deer are getting smarter. Ten years ago how many times did you enter the woods? Not that many. We were smart to check after deer season and stay out of the woods.. Now we have trail cameras. Now how many times do you enter the woods? Deer will go nocturnal with any pressure. More pressure times = more nocturnal times. We are active in the woods all year. We have prospectors on the creek, we camp, we ride atvs, pick berries, squirrel hunt, and cut wood. The biggest changes for this year we have come up with so far: Very few spotlighters. Only one road shooter. Got rid of the trespassers on the neighbor's property across the creek. No hunters on the property 2 places south. Did not have the trespassing group running coon dogs the night before opening day. 10 foot wide standing beans along the south and west side of both fields. Beans in almost all fields on the inside of the three major blocks of woods, corn almost all the way around the outside. What standing corn was around wasn't much standing, it was blown down and very difficult to get through.
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Post by bullseye on Dec 3, 2018 23:08:18 GMT -5
I can't go with less deer where I live at least based on my close encounters driving to work everyday and now having had both vehicles in the body shop. Lot less shots around here this year and I am surrounded by the Hoosier National Forest. I think less hunters as much as anything.
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Post by dbd870 on Dec 4, 2018 7:33:23 GMT -5
I used to take and use 2/3 deer but now that it is just the 2 of us we don’t use them like when we had every one at home. I could have killed additional deer this year I just don’t need them. If I take another it will be a 3.5 year old or better buck. (unless I mess up!) I wonder if the aging hunters are just not taking as many deer as they used to?
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Post by Woody Williams on Dec 4, 2018 9:15:58 GMT -5
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Post by boman on Dec 4, 2018 10:05:29 GMT -5
I voted less hunters but its more complicated than that. There's less deer in the draw areas(parks etc) based on the kill but from what I've read theres also less hunters. There's less deer if you go back to 2012 based on kill but the herd should actually be stable or growing since 20115-2016 Less deer means less hunters---marginal hunters(the opening day only guys) will quit or skip hunting if they don't see them a couple of years in a row. Conclusion---Can't pin it on one thing---survey flawed. Steve
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Post by greghopper on Dec 4, 2018 10:13:06 GMT -5
Or less people buying multiple tags Why would lowered bag limits not be considered as a part of reason?
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Post by treetop on Dec 4, 2018 10:51:54 GMT -5
less deer at least in my area and more hunters again at least in my area there were tree stands and new trucks in places there were not there just a few years back. Now maybe they moved from somewhere else I don't know but I do know the guy behind had had his kid hunting and the farm beside the grandson just started. So that's up to 4 more deer that could of been taken this year in a sq mile
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Post by jjas on Dec 4, 2018 11:34:28 GMT -5
I know I keep saying this, and with all due respect to you and the members here... If the herd was down and/or there were less hunters why would archery be up and the last 15 days of the firearms season be right @ the average from 2009/2016? The only day that was down substantially was the opener of the firearms season and it was down 10,000 deer (as compared to the 2009/2016 averages). Had that number been @ the average we'd be sitting @ 105,000 deer and wouldn't even be having this discussion. Could it have been as simple as with the late start, hunters holding out for a certain deer or class of deer didn't pull the trigger? I don't know. So to me, the question was, is and will continue to be... Why was just the firearms opener down so much?
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Post by treetop on Dec 4, 2018 12:16:14 GMT -5
Could be a lot of gun hunters bought a x bow and took there deer before gun opened
If more people did use a x bow maybe the deer moved at night due to pressure
Around me I’d say I heeard as many shots as any other year could it be nobody checked in till the next day, it was a nice day in adams county so weather was not it at least here anyway
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Post by tynimiller on Dec 4, 2018 12:20:44 GMT -5
Speculation upon that....
...few things we know are factual. The number of folks actually buying a license or priviledge as called has been trending down...and if stayed consistent most likely did again.
Let's discuss just that for a moment. I am basing this purely off of gut and interactions with the hunting community...most fellas that are ready and willing for the hunting grind of it all OR enjoy hunting deeper than just killing a deer will rarely ever stop buying a license. EVEN if they've chosen not to target any antlerless on their property that buck will motivate them to enjoy the tree or blind each season....only thing that may cause some to not buy is loss of a hunting spot, however even then you do that to most of us here, public land would become or challenge.
So I think the lower licenses sold or privileges sold impact on a higher percentage the hunters that opening weekend was the extent of their hunting "for the most part."
Going a step further with that as areas that suffer from lower numbers many simply don't enjoy the challenge enough to spend the money....BUT these I'd bet are the demographic of hunters that IF they buy a license by God they're gonna do all they can no matter what to get their money's worth.
So less hunters I think while it hits all....hits the opening weekend of firearms the hardest.
There are some other factors I believe would help identify possibly why just the firearms opener was low...but gotta get back to work and will share later.
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Post by boonechaser on Dec 4, 2018 12:57:35 GMT -5
I know I keep saying this, and with all due respect to you and the members here... If the herd was down and/or there were less hunters why would archery be up and the last 15 days of the firearms season be right @ the average from 2009/2016? The only day that was down substantially was the opener of the firearms season and it was down 10,000 deer (as compared to the 2009/2016 averages). Had that number been @ the average we'd be sitting @ 105,000 deer and wouldn't even be having this discussion. Could it have been as simple as with the late start, hunters holding out for a certain deer or class of deer didn't pull the trigger? I don't know. So to me, the question was, is and will continue to be... Why was just the firearms opener down so much?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 4, 2018 13:04:17 GMT -5
Ty, the older generation of hunters where mostly gun hunters. Bow back in the 70-80's was not that popular. When the good compounds came out and now crossbows the younger generation of hunter are both bow and gun. The more traditional gun hunters are sadly fading away. I see bow kills going up and or being steady and gun going down. That traditional gun opener is not the same as yesteryear. Back in 1985 I was the 1st to buy a bow out of 30-40 hunters. Now all of us plus the next two generations all have bows. The young and old ones hunt with their crossbows.
I did not gun hunt for only the 2nd time. One family matter and this year I was successful with crossbow.
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Post by chewbacca on Dec 4, 2018 13:17:04 GMT -5
In my area I can't say whether or not there are less hunters but I can definitely say without a doubt there are less gun hunters around me. It's been a steady decline over the past few years. One of the guys that I've hunted the firearms season with for the past 25 years just started bow hunting last season. I had been telling him for years that the action during the last week of October and first week of November is incredible nearly every year. He never believed me but he decided to give it a shot last season. After one season he was hooked on early archery. This year he got his buck in the third week of October and hasn't hunted since. I think a lot of people have wither moved towards hunting more in early archery or have lost permission to hunt and have given it up. I know many people on both sides of that spectrum. The fact of the matter is it is likely a combination of all the factors you have listed in the survey. Great discussion though!
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Post by treetop on Dec 4, 2018 13:28:37 GMT -5
Just MHO but I don’t think the average joe that hunts 3 to 7 days even know the dates are late this year nor do they much know about the rut all they know is its shotgun and so the rut is on,
I myself thought this until I started hunting Seriously This again brings up timing of the rut read live from the stand there is so many opinions on that and this from guys that do hunt.
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Post by treetop on Dec 4, 2018 13:32:48 GMT -5
Another is my county went to one doe one buck had that not changed I’d would of killed two does by now and I’m still looking for a buck so had I tagged out that would raise the number
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Post by frisbee3557 on Dec 4, 2018 13:59:46 GMT -5
The fact that I have yet to see dead deer on the side of the road (road kill) in NW Indiana is the number 1 reason I'm saying it's less deer. I drive down I-65 to get to my hunting spot in Jasper County and normally there are gory blood splatters all over the roadway come end of October/start of November. This year, I haven't seen a single one.
I believe the archery harvest is up due to cross bows and strongly believe that. Plenty of guys out there with a crossbow during archery that would have never been out before the start of firearms previously.
Locally where I hunt, there's an increase in numbers but, based on the lack of road kill, I believe the overall population in Lake, Porter, White and Jasper Counties are down.
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Post by jimbob on Dec 4, 2018 14:12:07 GMT -5
The fact that I have yet to see dead deer on the side of the road (road kill) in NW Indiana is the number 1 reason I'm saying it's less deer. I drive down I-65 to get to my hunting spot in Jasper County and normally there are gory blood splatters all over the roadway come end of October/start of November. This year, I haven't seen a single one. I believe the archery harvest is up due to cross bows and strongly believe that. Plenty of guys out there with a crossbow during archery that would have never been out before the start of firearms previously. Locally where I hunt, there's an increase in numbers but, based on the lack of road kill, I believe the overall population in Lake, Porter, White and Jasper Counties are down. I also travel up 90 minutes to hunt on 31, and didn’t notice the usual number of road kills. I believe the state publishes that number somewhere, but I could be wrong. If so, it would be an excellent indicator of the current state of the herd.
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Post by treetop on Dec 4, 2018 15:52:58 GMT -5
Now that you guys bring that up I’ve not seen that many either this year and I drive a bunch for work
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Post by Woody Williams on Dec 4, 2018 15:55:32 GMT -5
Yep, I've got believe that there are less deer hunters today than in 2012..
……Deer License* .....Privileges
2012 - 199,542 - 316,858
2013 - 190,571 - 314,877
2014 - 183,529 - 313,235
2015 - 178,341 - 315,389
2016 - 169,801 - 314,283
2017 - 163,615 - 305,591
* Does not include youth licenses
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