Post by Woody Williams on Jul 13, 2006 11:44:09 GMT -5
From 2005...
“According to Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) deer biologist Dr. Jim Mitchell, the overall Indiana whitetail herd had stabilized since the mid-1990 herd reduction effort. And, quite honestly, the numbers seemed to play this out. There has, however, been a slight increase in the overall numbers of deer taken annually since 2001. The 2002 harvest of 104,428 was up only 1 percent from the 2001 harvest of 103,163. Similarly, the 2003 harvest (106,985) was up only 2.5 percent from the previous year. While not huge numerical annual increases, this seemed to show that perhaps the herd was growing.
The 2004 overall harvest number was 123,062 animals, just missing the 1996 record by fewer than 30 deer. This was a tremendous increase of 15 percent over the 2003 harvest. “
AND..
“According to Lance McNew, deer research biologist for the DNR, "Most of the increase in the statewide deer harvest is probably a function of a generally increasing deer herd.”
AND…
"It's too soon to tell what effect the one-buck rule will have on the herd," according to Jim Mitchell, the state's deer biologist. "I don't think you would clearly know until three years at a minimum, probably five. We had been seeing, even prior to implementing the one-buck rule, a trend toward older bucks in the harvest. That trend is going to make it tough to see what the effect really is."
Mitchell said the one-buck rule has resulted in a shift in the harvest away from the early archery season and toward the firearms and muzzleloader season. "Over 90 percent of our archers are firearms hunters as well," Mitchell said. "If it's going to have an effect, it's going to reduce the early archery harvest."
Mitchell said there was a 38 percent decline in the antlered harvest during early archery season from 2001 to 2002. In 2003, the second year of the one-buck rule, the early archery antlered harvest was higher than 2002, but remained 25 percent below 2001.
Mitchell said he expects to see hunters become more selective in their buck harvest because of the new one-buck regulation AND because the state's deer hunters are maturing. He expects the selectivity will change the age structure of harvested bucks toward more mature animals. "In fact, the first year (of the one-buck regulation), the harvest of our 1 1/2-year-old bucks did decrease and the harvest of older bucks increased," he said.
“According to Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) deer biologist Dr. Jim Mitchell, the overall Indiana whitetail herd had stabilized since the mid-1990 herd reduction effort. And, quite honestly, the numbers seemed to play this out. There has, however, been a slight increase in the overall numbers of deer taken annually since 2001. The 2002 harvest of 104,428 was up only 1 percent from the 2001 harvest of 103,163. Similarly, the 2003 harvest (106,985) was up only 2.5 percent from the previous year. While not huge numerical annual increases, this seemed to show that perhaps the herd was growing.
The 2004 overall harvest number was 123,062 animals, just missing the 1996 record by fewer than 30 deer. This was a tremendous increase of 15 percent over the 2003 harvest. “
AND..
“According to Lance McNew, deer research biologist for the DNR, "Most of the increase in the statewide deer harvest is probably a function of a generally increasing deer herd.”
AND…
"It's too soon to tell what effect the one-buck rule will have on the herd," according to Jim Mitchell, the state's deer biologist. "I don't think you would clearly know until three years at a minimum, probably five. We had been seeing, even prior to implementing the one-buck rule, a trend toward older bucks in the harvest. That trend is going to make it tough to see what the effect really is."
Mitchell said the one-buck rule has resulted in a shift in the harvest away from the early archery season and toward the firearms and muzzleloader season. "Over 90 percent of our archers are firearms hunters as well," Mitchell said. "If it's going to have an effect, it's going to reduce the early archery harvest."
Mitchell said there was a 38 percent decline in the antlered harvest during early archery season from 2001 to 2002. In 2003, the second year of the one-buck rule, the early archery antlered harvest was higher than 2002, but remained 25 percent below 2001.
Mitchell said he expects to see hunters become more selective in their buck harvest because of the new one-buck regulation AND because the state's deer hunters are maturing. He expects the selectivity will change the age structure of harvested bucks toward more mature animals. "In fact, the first year (of the one-buck regulation), the harvest of our 1 1/2-year-old bucks did decrease and the harvest of older bucks increased," he said.
