RE: Go ahead, shoot the doe, and her fawns!
First of all...a fawn is a deer born this spring. A yearling is a deer that was born last spring, ya know as in 1.5 year old. Yes, that little basket racked year and a half old buck is a yearling by definition.
I can't even believe some of the responses here. Call me gutless, heartless, and tell me to grow up if you want. I will be ok. I will shoot a doe fawn pretty much any time I get a chance in the early part of the season, and then again after Thanksgiving. And really...if I felt like shooting a knothead...I would go ahead and do that too regardless of what some of you all think I should or shouldn't do, or whatever kinda names you would want to call me. I don't shoot them anymore, but if someone wants to, fine by me.
So...here is the bottom line for the areas I hunt. You aren't gonna kill too many antlerless deer. In many areas, if I don't kill them, the landowner will find someone else that can. The majority of doe fawns in the midwest do get bred and successfully bear young. While I won't claim that for WCLab's area (the northern midwest areas), down here it is fact. That is why MO and IL have unlilmited antlerless tags. I don't waste time worrying about how many deer I am potentially taking when I shoot the dang thing...all I know is I have a tag for a deer, a deer is standing there, I go hunting because I want to kill a deer, and I know that removing antlerless deer is good for the overall health of the herd. No need to discuss that nonsense of "needing" meat. Hell no I don't need"meat...if I do, I will go spend a couple bucks at the grocery store on some meat. I love deer meat, but no way will I sit here and say I hunt for the meat, cause I would do it just as much if I couldn't stand the taste of venison.
I would say the one deer I would not shoot would be a spotted fawn simply cause they would still be a little too cute. Then again, I have yet to see a spotted fawn during the season, so that is really not a concern for me either.