From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

NC doesn't keep tabs on hunters' "success" rate.....but neighboring states do. In VA....29% of archers are "successful" in harvesting a deer with their bow. In WV.....it's 20%. In SC....it dips to 8%. In PA....there were 375,000 deer taken during the firearms season. If we're to believe that PA has 1M firearms hunters, that's a "success" percentage of over 37%.

So it would lead one to ask.....

Which is "easier"?

I just read these figures and found them interesting.;)

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Are you part Pit Bull??!![:-]

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Nah... he's full purebred. LOL

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Now Greg....we have a previous post with no data making an assertion....and I just wanted to post up some REAL numbers.

Yes. 37%+ Pit Bull.;)

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Have you ever hear the saying.......Let it go Louie?[8D]

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Those are some interesting stats Jeff, a few things that interest me are that in VA, 29% of archers are successfull and that number only increases by 8% for PA rifle hunters. Also, their are so many other things that factor into the "success rate" for PA that are off record. We have possibly the least efficent/accurate counting system not to mention that the herd reduction has caused hunters here to start purchasing doe tags and throwing them awhile while still reporting that they filled them. Also figure that it is believed by alot of hunters that the PGC is pumping up the "harvest" numbers to make it seem as though the deer population is still too high and allow them to continue on with the massive herd reduction.

Also, according to the PGC, those numbers are wrong. In the 2006 season, there were a total of 361,560 deer shot in PA, that is both for archery and rifle. 135,290 antlered and 226,270 antlerless.

Like I said in my thread that I started Jeff, until you can fully experience what the pressure does to the deer from those 1 million plus hunters entering the woods with rifle in hand, you can't begin to understand how the deer movement drops/stops. All things equal, yes, a rifle would be"easier" to hunt with, but things aren't equal in most areas.

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

I have, now....and I will;)

Edit: BM I just read your post....and I agree with everything you said. Nope....I don't experience THAT kind of pressure where I hunt. No experience with the subject matter, AT ALL.

Just found the stats, "interesting". What people are doing in your state "illegally" ....I have no knowledge of. Don't calim to. Just citing numbers provided.

I'm "out";)

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

While on the numbers kick, I also figured that I would add that only 136,932 harvest report cards were recieved by the PGC for the 2006-2007 season (thats is both antlered and antlerless as well as for all seasons). Also, the PGC personnel examined a total of 29,581 deer in the field or at processing stations.

Now, the PGC also reports that there were a total of 64,820 deer harvested by archers. Now, subtract that 64,820 archery kills from the total of 361,560 and you get 296,740 total firearms kills. Now, assuming that there are 1,000,000 hunters in PA, that puts the "firearms hunters" success rate around 29-30%, which is only about 2% higher than what you have listed for VA's archery hunters success rate.

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Yea Jeff, some of the people here have gone a little off the deep-end with their theories about the herd reduction. Either way I love seeing these numbers and it is always interesting to see how they vary and change from state to state/source to source. It still amazes me as to how PA gets the numbers they do for "harvest data". One thing alot of PA hunters have been sayin is that we need a more accurate system for getting these numbers.

By the way.... why aren't you out in the woods? ;):D

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

BM:

I was going on figures Rob/PA gave me yesterday....that he heard reported on the radio on your opener Monday (the 375,000 firearms kills) - 2006 numbers. He also gave me a figure of 150,000 Antlered killed in that figure (included in the 375,000). If my numbers are off....I apologize.

I've killed a few deer, this year....;)....and my mgmt. goalhas "almost" been met (I wanted to take 8 does out of the herd....and we're on 7, right now.....with 3 weeks to go in the season). I'll take a day off here and there in the next three weeks.....but to be honest with you....I'd just as soon someone else come over and kill the last doe or two. I'll take one if I get a slam-dunk opportunity.....but I had just as much fun watching someone take one as I would have taking another one, myself. I suspect I'll be hunting a couple days this week, though;).

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

No need to apologize Jeff, who truly knows what the numbers are here in PA, the system is so backwards that there is no honest way of telling. For all that anybody knows, the total deer harvest could be as low as 175,000 and as high as 450,000.

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

I don't have the % success rate for NC, but I do have the figures for each type weapon...

Bow...9,427
Gun...130,385
ML...14,461

What bothers me...Bucks killed...85,438...Does...60,662...Button Bucks...8,153

Hopefully with the unlimited doe tags we will see more does taken and less bucks...

Also...Killed on the highway last year...15,000

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Good stuff, NC. I know out of the woods I hunt....we're sitting on 7 does and 2 bucks (that "I" know of). The guys on God's Great Acre are apparently trying to negate my does with their buck kills, though:eek:.

Counting the depredation permit the farmer to my South has....and the CONFIRMED road kills I know of.....there will be 30 less does in the herd, here, after the season is done.

I also know of one other buck that was killed and left laying. So....we're still doing the right thing. If we could get the freakin yahoos out of here....we'd have a little hunting paradise.

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

It's very hard to manage when others are helping...I know with our farms down east that the dog hunters are "helping" themselves...I'll go back down in December, we have wheat planted, and take "inventory" and then decide what else needs to happen...

The Friday after Thanksgiving, I was hunting with my flintlock when a cowhorn came through, I have passed on him about 5 times.....He crossed into the gameland which borders our property...I heard a shot, not 75 yards away....Funny, I hope they missed....:D

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Here is the 2006IL numbers.

bow - 65,170 total kills - 33% of total harvest
Shotgun - 115,379 total kills -58.5% of total harvest- Hunter's shotgun success rate - 47.8%
Muzzleloader - 5,939 total kills
Late winter "chronic Wasting Disease" season - 9,700 total kills

Total deer harvested = 197,287 Down 2% from 2005 when 202,492 deer were killed

IL's overall average harvest/kill density was 3.5 deer per square mille

Moultrie county led the state with a 79.9% hunter success rate during the shotgun season. For comparison purposes, infamous Pike county had a success rate of 49.9% for the shotgun season.

Pike county also had the top harvest of 8,602 followed by second place Jefferson county with 4,557. Adams county was third with 4,478 and Fulton county was 4th with 4,355. It's amazing how many more deer are killed in Pike county each year compared to the other counties.

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

[align=left]http://www.guideddeerhunts.biz/harvest.shtml[/align]

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

Those numbers are interesting and not surprising. I still don't think it necessarily means one is easier than the other. Take VA for example, gun season is 10 weeks (including blackpowder) where bow season is only 6 not to mention there are way more gun hunters than bowhuntersso I would expect higher harvest numbers andsuccess rates.

Ultimately I still think it comes down to the hunter and Jeff you are a perfect example of that. I know guys that have bowhunted for 10 years that haven't killed 10(1 or 2 for that matter)deer with their bows. Is it because the deer aren't there or are so hard to kill, no it's because they are half ass bowhunters that don't scout and they take shortcuts. Now hereyou are in the midst ofyour second full season of bowhunting and I don't know your exact numbers but you have killed what, somewhere around 10 deer with your bow. NowI would say it is due to the fact thatyou put ina lot of hard work but actually killing the deer is not thehard partbecause you know where they are, when theymove, watch your scent,etc. etc. etc. and you put yourself in a position tobe successful. AllI'm saying is many guys don't go at it like that, likemany of us on this site do andthat is why manyof them are unsuccessful bowhunters and many of those same guys are unsuccessful gun hunters as well. I just don't think the numbers tell the whole story, but what do I know.:D

RE: From "NC Sportsmen' Magazine article....
 

location, location, location, NEW!:D

I am fortunate to hunt where there are good numbers of deer. I do my homework....but I'm not fooling too many, either.;) I have a good population where I hunt....and I'm not afraid to admit that.

Your numbers are close.;)