Here is the full summary:
http://www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/files/fw-2013deerseasonsummary.pdf

Simply hard to believe. I expected a much bigger decrease based upon comments from guys at the show. Actually, this spells trouble because I doubt it provides the numbers for significant decrease in tags.

You would think with adding Ehd into the equation that they would back off on the antler less harvest!

I would think with EHD from last year and this Winter's snow and cold the number of bonus antler less permits available should be lower in many counties next season.

I guess we'll see......

How much was you expecting...percent wise??

Just a question...

8% decline from 2012 total harvest

is this the precipitous cliff we keep hearing about??

Data talks, BS walks

=)

I'll just continue to manage deer on my property and let those who believe the "herd" is OK to continue the "Brown and Down" mentality.

Delaney is correct, people commenting at the Deer Classic would not agree with these numbers.Numbers are correct, IDNR would not "fudge" the numbers.

Bright point in those numbers....39% 1 1/2 year old bucks and 11% button bucks! Who would have EVER thought?

This is something as old as hunting itself.

Hunters complaining about lack of game sightings. I imagine the cavemen sat around a campfire and did it too.

76Chevy......... Let me take 8% of your income and see how you like that......

8% from a record harvest does not seem like much, but it is a substancial number from the recent past.

Ask people in Tipton county how they like their experience, or ask those in Parke county.

I understand you "got yours" but other folks are seeing a real decline.

+1.....

BTW...here is 2012 Harvest Report... http://www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/files/fw-MR_1048_2012_Deer_Season_Summary.pdf

Interesting I'm in one of those also ran counties at the bottom and we had 2 HRB bucks in 2012 and 3 in 2013. I'll take those odds.

I would've expected somewhere closer to 12 to 15%. Certainly that is a big percent, and frankly 8% is pretty significant, but I just keep taking input from people and from what many seem to be saying is that they simply didn't see many deer. I was actually hoping for a double digit decrease because I think that would've brought about a more aggressive attempt at reducing bonus tags and such. I had a conversation with a gentleman in Plymouth on Tuesday and he said the same many say in that one side of Marshall County has almost no deer and the other side has probably too many deer. The future will be feast or famine in my opinion for a lot of areas. This gentleman whose name is Alan Collins has a pretty decent idea as to the deer situation up there in my opinion.

Delaney.....don't you think they have to take ehd into account along with harvest data?

I would hope so, but how would they calculate it. It could be that they'll take the view that if EHD had really crashed the herd, the percentage decrease would have been worse. Heck, I don't really know though. Hopefully the surveys from hunters can positively influence things. I am probably very biased. Guys are posting on another thread that they are seeing 20 or 30 deer together, which is great. I'm told that our field up north has over 40 in it daily. But, that number is not good in my opinion because just a few years ago that number would have been 75 to 80. And, we didn't even hunt that farm after the first week of November.

Alan and Chris Collins manage thousands of acres in the Plymouth area. This is the ground that Michael Waddell and friends Deer & Turkey hunt!

I had an interesting conversation with Alan. The one thing I would say that he said is that he doesn't control as much land as some have suggested. He gave me a number but I don't think I should share it. Hadn't seen him in years and years but caught up with him in a cigar store for the chat.

When you see deer this time of year on a food source, and they are yarded up, it is likely ALL the deer within a very large area. The 20 or so on our place are most of the deer in a 4 square mile block! That is confirmed by the absence of tracks in the snow for the last two months. That number USED to be 50 to 60 on our place.

8% is a pretty substantial number in my book. That is an average of 115 deer per county less! Its not a surprising number to me.

Good Points Joe. It is amazing to me that people can't see past their own situation and realize things aren't the same everywhere. That goes for both sides of the coin.

For example, I killed more deer this year than I have in my life. I also know there are far less deer in all of my hunting areas. I busted my but hunting dang near all parts of the state but the far north and am lucky to have access to several managed areas. I feel for the guys that don't have that luxury and get to hunt next to the "herd is fine kill em all crowd".

Stick around on these sites long and you will see the worm will turn. Same ones preaching deer everywhere will be moaning the blues in a few years.

I got a feeling your gonna be surprised...not everyone has to shoot up the herd to boost there "EGEO's"...

19% drop in my county from 2012 harvest plus we had confirmed ehd this year! Wow........that is a decline!

Our total harvest was 885........so I'm not in a deer Mecca.......maybe we shouldn't be a 4 antler less for the late antler less hunt next year.....lol

I see the down trend now as I shed hunt. Not as many tracks/trails and there places completely absent of deer sign which historically always held deer this time of year... I hear this from others as they shed hunt too.......found 4 winter kills yesterday shed hunting, 1 very old deer(Doe) and 3 young(1 button/2 doe fawns)....this cold and snow is tough this season on deer and we have more snow coming and no end of the cold till the end of march... heck, we still have a foot to 18" down in many places.............Porter county was down 129 deer from '12. Not down as many bucks(-26/2012 to 2013)as compared from 2011 to 2012 which was down 80 bucks. But it is still showing a decline...the question still is, will they back off the antlerless tags to 3 or less ??

In Chad's report he states that it is tough to determine the impact of EHD. While you could never be exact, it seems to me you could use the data to see trends.

If you look at the broad harvest, most counties are stable and the harvest rate was basically the same as 10 years ago. So you could look at the counties with the biggest declines, then see which ones have many confirmed reports of EHD.

While you may have a county with 4 doe tags, how many really took that? If only a couple took max, and big declines, EHD is having a large impact. Vice versa, if many hunters and blasting deer and no EHD, then big declines, reduce antlerless dramatically in that county. Given that deer herds are fluid and most stay in a relatively small area (< 5 sq. mi.), adj. per county based on the lowest no. of deer.

As someone who filled out the survey, the questions are geared for your personal experience. However, that doesn't necessarily mean I have a brown and down mentality. I want everyone to have a great experience for the future of the sport.

No, I won't be. I warned people of dwindling numbers in 2006 due to ehd in some areas. Had many on here tell me it is necessary and there were way too many deer, yet they had no idea the area I referenced was almost wiped out. I've seen many of same ones now griping about same thing. Some can't see past the end of their nose and live in their own little world. Others of us live and breathe deer hunting and understand not every area is the same.

I guess I was referencing the "OTHER of US" your talking about!!! :rolleyes:

I also don't think your see many folks kill more deer in one season then they have in there life time of Deer Hunting!!!

4 bonus antler less tags = special late antler less season.......doesn't matter how many you shot! Just another "season" that needs to be removed from areas with large harvest declines and Ehd........imo

+ lower bonus #s for sure where needed!

I'm making calls and sending text for a "save the deer" campaign

More than I've killed in any one season of my life. My point was numbers don't reflect everything. I killed more this year than any other year yet numbers in all my areas were down. I used to be able to hunt one area now I travel all around the state for similar opportunity.

Why would you shoot up the Herd when numbers/sightings where down in your areas? :rolleyes: ...WTF

Figured that would be your comment. Again you have no idea everyone's situation. Since you want to make this personal for some reason, here was my experience. 1 deer state park, 1 deer east side of state and 3 off of a restricted access area that is loaded with does (special circumstance)in extreme western part of state. Haven't shot a deer off main property we have for 8 years due to drastic reduction in deer due to ehd. See how I am managing per area instead of blindly thinking all areas are the same?

I've said many times some areas are fine on deer. Some are not. Everybody has different circumstances. What ticks me off is guys dead set in their ways that don't think it could be different in different areas.

See how I'm not grouping everyone in the same boat. Probably not, I guess I need kill one giant deer to make me an expert on everything and everybody referencing deer throughout the state.

if they havent recovered from ehd in 8 years you have something else going on

If everyone had to hunt just their area, it might change folks approach. For instance, at our farm where all the land is privately owned, I would not care for guys trying to get permission and shooting a lot of deer, even though they might see 20 plus does a day. A lot of guys would think its "ok" because in their view there is a lot of deer. But, there is a lot of deer because the guys who hunted around there wanted a lot of deer and didn't shoot a lot. If guys had to only hunt one area and not be able to move from area to area and get permission we might have a whole different approach to how many deer are killed. It's a difficult situation because everyone views things differently.

I doubt shooting any one Deer for you will help your mind set... :rolleyes:

You just keep shooting up the herd and will see how that works out for yeah!

BTW....no where was I "grouping everyone" in a same boat...or trying to make this personal...but its your fairy tale tell it like you want!!

SMH...

X2...

Here is what is pathetic ... the late antlerless season which was designed to target does. In 2012 19% of that harvest was bucks. In 2013 18% of the harvest was also bucks. In two years that is 2,970 bucks that were killed in this special season that was intended to target does. That says that almost 20% of the deer were killed by hunters that 1) don't care what they kill and the intent of the season or 2) cannot properly identify their target before they squeeze the trigger. That is pathetic.

Yep...neighbors.

You weren't assuming you knew my hunting situation or telling everyone I'm shooting up the herd? 1 deer in one county, 1 state park, and 3 off of 2000 acres (again special situation) where I never had one sit where I saw less than a dozen does is shooting up the herd?

I never have trouble making my hunting enjoyable and that will continue as I make sound decisions to what I shoot and where.

Also to your grouping everyone quote, I wasn't referencing you anywhere but my last sentence but I guess that went right over your head. If you have anything further PM me. No need to spew it out here.

Sorry guys for hijacking the thread.

No...I picked up your hating and dung spewing real quick!!