But the PGC claims they can calculate the change in population from one year to the next,so they are in fact claiming they have population estimates just like they have in the past,while at the same time they claim they don't know how many deer we have. That is simply impossible.
Yes there are estimated deer numbers, there always have been. But, that estimate isn’t the driving force in the management direction any longer and for good reason.
If the PGC listened to the deer , they would increase the antlerless allocations and reduce the herd even more, since the breeding rates decreased by 5 % and productivity also decreased.
That is a statewide number but since we don’t manage on a statewide level that number rightfully has no deer management influence in any particular management unit. Each unit is managed based on the facts the deer within that unit provide.
The deer have shown that the herd was below the MST carrying capacity when we had 1.6M deer and that is why breeding rates decreased instead of increasing as you predicted.
No, that is just your opinion based on your lack of knowledge about the deer/habitat relationship and how each influence the other. You simply don’t understand how nature works and it appears you most likely never will.
LISTEN To The DEER RSB!!
Oh, I do!
I’ve been listening to them for decades. That is why I have worked so hard for so long to educate people toward protecting the habitat so it can support more deer in the future, I have seen firsthand, with destroyed habitat and crashed deer populations, just how foolish it is to manage as you advocate.
R.S. Bodenhorn