ORIGINAL: ddear
Now lets see if I was blowing smoke about the effects of AR's. the following is the harvest data for 2.5+ buck both before and after AR's were implemented. Note that the 2004 harvest of 2.5+ buck was also 62K.
Statewide data from 1981 through 2003 showing the buck harvest, percentage of 2 1⁄2 and older bucks harvested and the number of 2 1⁄2 year old and older bucks harvested for each year.
Year-------buck harvest------% 2.5 plus years old---# of 2.5 year old buck harvested
1981--------N/A------------------18.4------------------------N/A
1982--------122,264-------------20.3------------------------24,819
1983--------120,291-------------21.7------------------------26,103
1984--------135,388-------------22.8------------------------30,868
1985--------136,104-------------20.0------------------------27,221
1986--------150,363-------------21.2------------------------31,877
1987--------157,559-------------18.9------------------------29,779
1988--------163,113-------------19.0------------------------30,991
1989--------169,814-------------19.4------------------------32,944
1990--------170,099-------------17.9------------------------30,448
1991--------149,633-------------18.0------------------------26,934
1992--------163,195-------------18.5------------------------30,191
1993--------165,250-------------20.8------------------------34,372
1994--------157,030-------------17.5------------------------27,480
1995--------182,235-------------17.4------------------------31,709
1996--------153,432-------------16.2------------------------24,856
1997--------176,677-------------18.6------------------------32,862
1998--------181,449-------------19.4------------------------35,201
1999--------194,371-------------20.0------------------------38,874
2000--------203,221-------------18.3------------------------37,189
2001--------203,247-------------21.6------------------------43,901
2002--------165,416-------------31.8------------------------52,602
2003--------142,270-------------43.6------------------------62,030
Now please note that the 2.5+ buck harvest increased more from 2000 to 2002 before AR's were implemented, then it increased from 2002 to 2004 after AR's were implemented.
The increase prior to AR's was due to low BB harvests, more BB being recruited and fewer adult buck being harvested as antlerless deer. the exact oppposite has occurred since AR's were implemenetd so the 2.5+ buck harvesat will continue to decline and we will sooon be harvesting fewer 2.5+ buck than we did in 2002.
Now as far as the B/D ratio is concerned, I can provide a link that shows our B/D ratio in 1983 was 1:1.99 ,if you are still interested in seeing that I can support my postion with facts and that it is not based on my personal opinion.
To be fair ddear, I don't see where the numbers for 2004 are in this table. Do you have them to know what the numbers between 2002 and 2004 are? Also, What does the B/D ratio from 1983 have to do with the present? I know the estimates of out-of-whack B/D ratios from the last few years were way off, but how does the 1983 number apply to the point you are trying to make?
I agree that the increase in button buck kills leads to lower recruitment of yearling bucks, and therefore, fewer yearlings become fewer 2.5, and so on down the line, but I don't see in the table where the 2.5 yr old harvest has started to decline. I think it will merelybe a function of drastically lower deer numbers, but I don't see that in this table yet. Maybe the missing 2004 numbers show that?