No, I didn’t change my mind at all. The facts still support exactly what I said from the very beginning.

The record book data, for those four counties, indicates a sharp decline in the number of smaller bucks being entered since 2001, or didn’t you notice that the number declined from 120 in the ten years before antler restrictions down to 32 in the seven years since 2001.

That is a major decline in the number of entries but there was also an increase in the average size of the bucks being entered, (from 133.4 to 145.0). Since those counties still lead the state in the number of bucks being harvested it is therefore most likely that the difference is just in a very high probability that the smaller archery bucks aren’t being scored for entry into the book.

It used to be that a hunter with a 115 - 125 buck was looked on as having a real trophy, but now with so many nicer bucks being harvested a 115 to 125 inch buck is a lot closer to average and it appears many guys just aren’t getting them scored unless they are larger then the minimum book requirements.

R.S. Bodenhorn