Post by huxbux on Aug 20, 2006 20:37:01 GMT -5
Any of this sound familiar?..................
Changes in the deer woods
By Mike Giles / outdoors writer
While deer hunting in many parts of our state only gets better and better, there are problems in the deer woods. Many of these problems are a direct result of Mississippi’s fantastic whitetail deer program. As landowners, hunters and state wildlife personnel worked together for many years, the deer population literally exploded. In those early days killing a doe or female deer was almost as bad as taking a human life. You just didn’t do it! If someone did take a doe on purpose, they were likely to pay a heavy price for their crime. Almost every one worked together, at a time when deer hunting wasn’t the most popular thing to do.
With the evolution of whitetail management philosophy in our state, we have seen many changes, some of them good, and some not so good. The good news is that in some areas we are seeing deer unlike any ever taken before in the Magnolia State. Who can forget about the world record Fulton buck taken in Winston County? And then there was the huge 275-pound buck taken by Tim Campbell in the Mississippi Delta. One would have to look far and wide to find better deer than those being taking right here in our great state.
And therein lies much of the problem, as many average working class sportsmen seem to think. While discussing some of my upcoming hunting articles with Darryl Barrett of Greenwood, I was made aware of some of that sentiment. “Mike, we don’t need any more publicity about the gigantic bucks or about the great deer population we have here in our state,” commented Barrett. “Before you know it we won’t have a place to hunt. Our land will be leased by out of state, or wealthy hunters that have plenty of money.”
At first I was a little taken aback by the statement, but fully realized what he was saying. In reality it is already happening all around our state. When you take barbers, carpenters, plumbers, and everyday workers out of the woods, what will we have left?
Strangers in our land
While much of the land adjacent to the Mississippi River and the rich delta land have been high priced for many years, other areas of the state didn’t have that problem until recently. Now some may say that if you play you’ve got to pay. And that might sound good for people who have money to burn. However, the average working man that helped build our deer population can’t compete with people coming out of wealthy metropolitan areas in other states. While deer camp costs have risen astronomically, hunters’ salaries have not kept pace.
At first we heard hunters in other parts of the state complaining that they didn’t have places to hunt anymore because leases were being taken over by out of state hunters. Then many of them started moving further and further in search of land. Now I’m not against people from other states hunting here. If I lived in another state or metropolitan area and didn’t have a place to hunt, I’d try to find someplace, anyplace. However, I am opposed to non-resident hunters leasing all of the land and shutting out local hunters. These same local hunters pay our sales taxes, property taxes, and income taxes and support our rural communities and towns throughout our state on a daily basis. Their families and daily activities produce more for the local economy than non-resident hunters will ever contribute. And in fact, they are and have been the driving force behind the success of our bountiful wildlife success stories in the state.
Unaffordable hunting
Now I don’t blame the landowners for accepting what they are offered, but it just illustrates what is happening to many of our working people today. They are literally getting priced out of the hunting lands that they have hunted their whole lives! Many of these hunters are facing the stark reality that they may have no choice but to quit deer hunting. And in fact we have now lost many of them as they turn to other activities.
While I don’t have the answers to the questions posed everyday by local hunters, they are worth some serious consideration. With the cost of leases now doubling and tripling overnight in counties all around us, many hunters are losing most if not all of their hunting properties. The future certainly doesn’t look bright for them or our great American tradition of hunting.
I can only wonder what will happen in our local communities when mostly non-resident hunters control all of the hunting rights. Will our country eventually succumb to the same fate as other countries such as England? Is it possible that we may lose our right to hunt because non-hunters vastly outnumber us? What might be next? Could confiscation of all our firearms be possible?
Changes in the deer woods
By Mike Giles / outdoors writer
While deer hunting in many parts of our state only gets better and better, there are problems in the deer woods. Many of these problems are a direct result of Mississippi’s fantastic whitetail deer program. As landowners, hunters and state wildlife personnel worked together for many years, the deer population literally exploded. In those early days killing a doe or female deer was almost as bad as taking a human life. You just didn’t do it! If someone did take a doe on purpose, they were likely to pay a heavy price for their crime. Almost every one worked together, at a time when deer hunting wasn’t the most popular thing to do.
With the evolution of whitetail management philosophy in our state, we have seen many changes, some of them good, and some not so good. The good news is that in some areas we are seeing deer unlike any ever taken before in the Magnolia State. Who can forget about the world record Fulton buck taken in Winston County? And then there was the huge 275-pound buck taken by Tim Campbell in the Mississippi Delta. One would have to look far and wide to find better deer than those being taking right here in our great state.
And therein lies much of the problem, as many average working class sportsmen seem to think. While discussing some of my upcoming hunting articles with Darryl Barrett of Greenwood, I was made aware of some of that sentiment. “Mike, we don’t need any more publicity about the gigantic bucks or about the great deer population we have here in our state,” commented Barrett. “Before you know it we won’t have a place to hunt. Our land will be leased by out of state, or wealthy hunters that have plenty of money.”
At first I was a little taken aback by the statement, but fully realized what he was saying. In reality it is already happening all around our state. When you take barbers, carpenters, plumbers, and everyday workers out of the woods, what will we have left?
Strangers in our land
While much of the land adjacent to the Mississippi River and the rich delta land have been high priced for many years, other areas of the state didn’t have that problem until recently. Now some may say that if you play you’ve got to pay. And that might sound good for people who have money to burn. However, the average working man that helped build our deer population can’t compete with people coming out of wealthy metropolitan areas in other states. While deer camp costs have risen astronomically, hunters’ salaries have not kept pace.
At first we heard hunters in other parts of the state complaining that they didn’t have places to hunt anymore because leases were being taken over by out of state hunters. Then many of them started moving further and further in search of land. Now I’m not against people from other states hunting here. If I lived in another state or metropolitan area and didn’t have a place to hunt, I’d try to find someplace, anyplace. However, I am opposed to non-resident hunters leasing all of the land and shutting out local hunters. These same local hunters pay our sales taxes, property taxes, and income taxes and support our rural communities and towns throughout our state on a daily basis. Their families and daily activities produce more for the local economy than non-resident hunters will ever contribute. And in fact, they are and have been the driving force behind the success of our bountiful wildlife success stories in the state.
Unaffordable hunting
Now I don’t blame the landowners for accepting what they are offered, but it just illustrates what is happening to many of our working people today. They are literally getting priced out of the hunting lands that they have hunted their whole lives! Many of these hunters are facing the stark reality that they may have no choice but to quit deer hunting. And in fact we have now lost many of them as they turn to other activities.
While I don’t have the answers to the questions posed everyday by local hunters, they are worth some serious consideration. With the cost of leases now doubling and tripling overnight in counties all around us, many hunters are losing most if not all of their hunting properties. The future certainly doesn’t look bright for them or our great American tradition of hunting.
I can only wonder what will happen in our local communities when mostly non-resident hunters control all of the hunting rights. Will our country eventually succumb to the same fate as other countries such as England? Is it possible that we may lose our right to hunt because non-hunters vastly outnumber us? What might be next? Could confiscation of all our firearms be possible?