That is only because you are forced to pass on the small buck you would have normally harvested. Our bucks are no bigger today than before ARs.

my CONCERN FROM WHAT I AM SEEING THIS YEAR IS LACK OF FAWNS.

I DONT THINK I SAW 2 FAWNS THIS FALL IN WESTERN CLINTON COUNTY.

if anything, we have got to look into this.

i feel
l that COYOTES are doing in fawns, in fact, i know they are.

there must be way to get rid of these coyotes,i hunt them, we trap them but they still come back.

dont any of you think that you have fewer buck because people keep killing all of the does year after year?? and i dont know what you deer numbers are but i could spot light and see 75 deer along about a 10 mile road now i might see 50 and the number of bucks is the same to more depending on the day over the last couple of years numbers so say an area that doesnt could have low numbers to begin with. all the the killing of doe that has happened in this state could mean alot less fawns which means even more less buck. and by the way the quality of buck i have seen is great ive been hunting this farm and this area for 7 years and have not seen good buck like i have seen and have trail cam pics like i have yet.

You hit the nail right on top of the head BTBowhunter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i dont really know much about the AR, but my dad said ever sinceit started the deer population went down

Based on that data it appears that the rack sizes of 1.5 buck decreased instead of increasing. Furthermore the percentage of 3.5-6.5 bucks decreased instead of increasing. The sad part is that only a fool would use the bucks brought in for mounting as representative of the general buck harvest.

The AR's aren't killing off the deer population. The ability for hunters to kill whatever they see during the rifle season is what is lowering the deer pop. I have taken the 2 biggest bucks I have ever shot in Pa during the past 2 seasons, A 120" 8 point in 07 and a 112 5/8" 11 point this year. I had my fiance's son out yesterday for his first deer hunt. The first shot I heard was at 6:50 AM and the next 6:58Am. It was 15 mins later till I heard a 3rd shot. I did hear alot of repetitive shooting fromguys shooting outside of their capabilitiesthroughout the day.I wonder how many of those guys who emptied their gun on a deer actually recovered that deer. Willing to bet less than 25%. Compared to 10 years ago the shooting was scarce. But the bucks I did see harvested were alot larger than the bucks harvested when I started hunting. We need to have a happy medium, more deer than we currently have while still managing the herd for larger buck. I think this can be done- reduce the amount of time hunters can kill doe.Keep the AR. On the unlikely occassion we have an "overabundance" of deer lengthen the season. There needs to be flexibility in policies mandated. When the progam runs it's course and the objective is reached changes must be made and done so in a timely manner not just when damage control is the only option.

Hunters can't kill whatever they see due to ARs and those hunters that don't buy a doe tag can't kill whatever they see. The combined effects of high antlerless allocations combined with the effects of ARs are the reasons our herd has been reduced. ARs were the carrot Alt used to get hunters to shoot more doe and now we are paying the price.

i dont think any of us had say in what the PGC/DCNR did.

it does not take much for meat hunter to have reason to kill,just let door open and they will ruin your hunting.[:@]

You knew what I meant by killing whatever they see= brown it's down. I know it's happening and anyone sitting in the woods hearing one gun fire 5 shots at a deer is almost always shooting at deer out of range or in cover.You yourselfdefended those who need more than one shot due to firing in heavy cover,more mistaken killshappen this way thanany other. Having the ability to kill doe all rifle season long is a MAJOR factor in the reduction of the deer herd. If antler restrictionwas a major factor ina reduction in the deer pops. the areasI hunt outside of this state would reflect the same- THEY DO NOT. I heard your overwintering stats and your fawn birth stats and all those other stats you quote from theGame Commission. I know what I see and I know from experience what an antler restriction did for the lands I have hunted. We have alot less deer in my area of PA but the numbers of Big Buck harvested now compared to when I started hunting is much higher. Am I completely happy? No! In my area the doe allocations have to be reduced andif not for AR- every deer in the woods would be killed, wounded or get shot at. I do not believe having a free for all is going to do any good for the deer populations. Nor is that a safe environment for anyone who hunts or lives near hunting grounds. You and I have beat this dead horse into burger already. I said what I had to, now you have my willingness to leave you have the last word. Enjoy!