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Critic of Pennsylvania's deer management fails to find better
Posted by Marcus Schneck, Harrisburg Patriot-News - April 20, 2009
Bryon Shissler, a wildlife biologist who has frequently criticized the Pennsylvania Game Commission's management of the state's deer herd, today told the agency he was unable to find a better deer management program in the continental U.S.
Working with the Pinchot Institute, Shissler's Ecosystem Management Project set out in 2005 to find deer management programs in other states from which better ideas could be copied and brought back to improve the Pennsylvania program.
However, researchers involved in the study of programs in all the lower 48 state, which was completed last fall, did not find those better ideas.
"We were somewhat disappointed in what we found," Shissler told the Board of Game Commissioners. Most states are not managing deer based on overall ecosystem goals, but on deer production goals.
"Our goal was to go out and steal those ideas and bring them back. We didn't find very much. There's very little science driving most deer management programs," noted the man whose organization was set up to move deer management farther into the realm of science.
"Pennsylvania has one of the most progresssive deer management programs in the country," he said.
Shissler admitted to expecting to find that "super agencies," in which Game, Fish and Boat, Conservation and Natural Resources, and other resource functions were all combined into agency, had larger and better funding supporting more science-based deer management.
However, he noted, "most deer management programs are run on a shoestring budget."
The one-time advocate of merging the agencies in Pennsylvania explained, "When you merge agencies you don't necessarily get better deer management. You don't necessarily get more money.
He blamed the lack of funding and lack of science in deer management on "political compromise" caused by hunters not wanting to lose control of deer management decisions.
"Pennsylvania has the best program we found," he said.
While he would rate the average across the U.S. a three, on a scale of one to 10 with 10 representing optimum ecosystem-based deer management, Shissler said, he would score Pennsylvania with a five.
That leaves " a long way to go," he pointed out. "We're on the right track, but we have a long way to go."
Shissler did not back away from his previous statements that deer management in Pennsylvania is a "flawed" system.
He pointed to the state's lack of funding from a broader base than hunters to support wildlife management and lack of broader representation from interests other than hunters on the Board of Commissioners, as well as inadequate measures of the ecosystem effectiveness of the state's evolving deer management program, as central to the flaw.

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While he would rate the average across the U.S. a three, on a scale of one to 10 with 10 representing optimum ecosystem-based deer management, Shissler said, he would score Pennsylvania with a five.

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Ever wonder why every year this never happens ---- the head deer biologist
says at the April meetin "we would like 1.3 million doe tags" and the BOC hudles up and say "no, we will only grant 1 million tags".

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ORIGINAL: WV Gino

>baiting,group hunting,the ability togive your unused tags to someone else,unlimited tags,a rifle season that lasted several months and a host of other things.

Doug what is soo outladish about any of these? It just sounds like a lot of other states to me. Maybe not the several month rifle season but most other states have longer seasons for deer than PA.

I have a buddy who manages 4000 acres in 2G Clinton County. He is begging hunters to hunt and kill deer and is still not getting enough shot. THere FLIR numbers are in the 20 plus per squre mile but on average hunters see 1.7 deer total for the season when they are hunting the property.

Gino

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ORIGINAL: WV Gino

>baiting,group hunting,the ability togive your unused tags to someone else,unlimited tags,a rifle season that lasted several months and a host of other things.

Doug what is soo outladish about any of these?

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ORIGINAL: Screamin Steel

Gino is an avid birdwatcher, memer of Audubon society, (even drives a Toyota suv, hee hee...) and works for the US Forest service. His viewpoint is what one would expect from the antideer movement.

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ORIGINAL: cardeeer

20 deer PSM aint exactly deer heaven. See thats my opinion.One big problem why no one agrees is the generation gap which will always exist. 40 deer PSM is a good start.

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ORIGINAL: Cornelius08

"Gino's a real hunter and he undestands the issues.Labeling him an eco-weenie or whatever is innacurate. "

Id say he qualifies. His credentials. His views. His completely antideer sentiment that goes even far and above that of PGC. If he is not, then noone on this earth IS! His supporting of the guy whom you call a nutcase and hisviews doesnt make him the same?? Is this because of your friendship and looking at it with rose colored glasses? I Dont see much difference between the two?? I believe Gino is more than welcome to his views as extreme as I believe them to be. But I dont understand why one guy you call a nutjob and many other things on 3 different boards, yet another who believe the exact same and has exact deer management philosophies is a "real hunter and understands"????....

"The commission is not listening to Shissler.They shot down every one of his requests."

They listened to him and his ilk for years now. And they gave them their biggest wish. Deer herdextreme reduction. I dontsee how it matters exactly how it got their, fact is it has and continues to take place. Regardless of wether they did itwith or without baiting, witha million or a million point one doe tags or whatever else.

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ORIGINAL: DougE

I've never met Gino is person but I know enough about his credentials and views to not label him an eco-whatever.It doesn't mean I can't disagree with him if he thinks Shissler is anything but a wack job.

The PGC did not cave into any of his demands.

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ORIGINAL: WV Gino

Doug

here is more info on this Clinton County land and the deer management
going on there.

Mike sends out surveys to all guys who obtain DMAP coupons. It's amazing
how few deer sightings there are with densities in the 20's



http://huntwestbranch.blogspot.com/2009/01/blog-post.html

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ORIGINAL: bluebird2

RSB claims the habitat in 2G is controlling the herd at less than 10 DPSM in 2G. Can you explain why the poor habitat in Clinton Co. isn't controlling the herd at less than 10 DPSM?

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