HuntingNet.com Forums - View Single Post - Archery harvest in Illinois down significantly!
Old 10-23-2013, 08:05 PM
  #26  
whitetailcrazy
Fork Horn
 
whitetailcrazy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Lansing, Illinois
Posts: 396
Default

Originally Posted by Murdy
I'm not sure the percentage-of-total-harvest statistic OL is using is a valid means of comparison. Wisconsin has a CWD problem and, accordingly, they issue tags like crazy in the CWD zone. That has to skew the percentage when measured against B&C bucks taken (or P&Y). Not all states have the same management strategies and goals. The number and types of tags they issue as a result will effect the percentage (if you issue more doe tags, B&C bucks will be a lower percentage of total kill), Indiana is, I believe, a one buck state. Illinois allows two bucks per year. More Indiana hunters will wait for that special buck, pushing the percentage up. There's just too many variables to make the comparison meaningful.
That's the point I have been trying to make! Indiana went to a one buck system what 5 years ago or more? Don't know exact number of years, but you can see it's been paying dividends! When does a buck reach it's peak antler growth 5-6 years of age... You can see the 1 buck system is clearly leading people to hold out... I don't hunt in Indiana, and Zim I couldn't agree with you more, that in the past a great deal of people from NWI(of whom I know) there motto was if it's brown its down.. Times are changing!

Illinois' lust for the dollar is what clearly put the hurting on the Illinois deer herd.. It wasn't til 2 years ago that all the money spent in the dept. of Conservation, actually stayed there as opposed to emptying its funds and placing them elsewhere.... I talked to wildlife biologists, last year that had stated that EHD had not affected the herd whatsoever.... They do not want to stop the flow of money spent by non-resident hunters! There lies the problem with Illinois, I seen the surge prior to this year of non-residents from Penn., New York, New Jersey, Maryland leasing property all around me to hunt on. Not all, but a great deal come with the attitude, if "I spent all this money, I'm at least going home with something, usually meaning a buck less then 130", which greatly effects the quality of the herd around you. That's why Iowa is good as it is! They didn't open the flood gates!

The numbers stated show percentages not actual number of entries, sure they may be skewed because some states allow 2 bucks, that correlates directly with the quality of the herd. Some people don't even score there bucks, so there will always be variables. Isn't Eastern Iowa the best place to hunt, central and western Iowa mostly plains....(Don't know, never hunted there?) Maybe that may be why the numbers are off?

Last edited by whitetailcrazy; 10-23-2013 at 08:08 PM.
whitetailcrazy is offline