Read between the lines of the PGC

[ulysses]

Isn't it odd that by the second day 11/23 of bear season (11/22,23,24/04) the PGC thru press release states hunter had a great opening day,etc.,
but traditional rifle deer season opened Monday 11/29 the entire season has come and gone and no report as of yet released?
HMMMMMMMM I wonder if they need time to think up a good line so ALT isn't putting his foot in his mouth yet another time!

[rybohunter]

Its called a check system. Bears killed need checked in, deer don't. How hard is that to understand?

[livbucks]

I agree Rybo,
The bear report is based on actual checked harvests and the low number makes counting all the more simple. How hard is it to call in a tally and punch the calculator for a total?

[GREEK HUNTER]

AND HOW ABOUT THE BEARS THAT AREN'T CHECKED IN

[ulysses]

that is one of the things I'm talking about! How many years have we had check stations for bears? Yet the PGC didn't even move on them for deer as of yet other than to get Rendell to sign language for online checkins and this is all during place of a management program that is said by Alt to "cutting edge".
You kids just don't get it do you?

[T_in_PA2]

Heck, people don't send in their report cards. What makes you think they will take them to a check station?

[ulysses]

yeah I guess that's how the PGC gets such accurate counts to base their management on,huh

[BarnesX.308]

I think people take their bears to a check station to show them off. It's the perfect chance to swap your story with other hunters and probably get your picture in the local paper. When I check my bear in, I stayed for hours talking to other hunters and seeing other bears. I viewed it as a social event.

[chickory]

In a way Pa does have check stations, and there could be a preliminary count for rifle season if they were inclined to do so.

Each season the PGC sends out 30+ teams around the state to check deer harvested right in the woods, at camps, at PGC parking lots, and at deer processors. In addition to those numbers they have 200 WCOs doing field checks in addition. Those numbers from the field checks are pretty much wrapped up right now. All that they now do is wait for harvest cards to come in and compare the cards to the physical checks to determine the reporting rate for the harvest cards. All that data is then checked against a hunter survey done post season, and of course that leads to an estimate.

So as you see we really do have a form of check stations in Pa, but instead of 400,000 hunters having to try and go to a station....they take thier PGC teams to the hunters...!! Actually makes perfect sense to me. much more efficient and just as accurate as any states system.

http://www.pgc.state.pa.us/pgc/cwp/v...a=465&q=161248


So the PGC could this afternoon make a early forecast of the harvest for rifle, it would not include much of input from early seasons such as archery and ML it would be mainly determined by rifle (which is the major factor in the harvest).

So I would agree that the PGC 'could' predict to a reasonable certainty what the rifle harvest looked like. Just like on the second day of bear they can predict what the total bear harvest will look like.
But, the PGC will hold off on this years news because it is not favorable for them to say the buck harvest is down once again this year and the total harvest is off slightly because of the herd reductions the last 3 seasons. It just doe not benefit them to talk about it. If the buck harvest was up or the number of big bucks was up they would be tooting the horns and camera crews would be out there with Vern Ross tking credit for everything including the sun coming up in the east. PCN and PON would be running stories and touting the beauty of PA's politics which got us here.

but that ain't the case because the harvest is slightly down, as wsa predicted by those who were not dupe'd by Dr. Alts dog and pony show.
And it just does not benefit the PGC to put out a preliminary harvest report when it does not cast them in a favorable light.

In pa we do have check stations, its just the 'stations' (PGCteams) go to the hunters we don't have to stand in line to go to them.

[ulysses]

well said chickory though you should have noted that for many many years the PGC did indeed publish reports on the second or third day as to how good the harvest was and only said we weren't reducing the herd but just barely keep up with it. That's pretty good considering it was only day 1 or 2 they were reporting on.