Deer Wars: Do Antler Restrictions Work?

Dr. Gary Alt was responsible for a lot of changes in Pennsylvania's deer management program during his tenure as chief of the deer management program, but the two features that drew the most attention were his herd reduction program and antler restrictions.  Of the two ideas, antler restrictions was the one that gained the most approval by Pennsylvania's deer hunters, but one still hears some discontent about them at times.

First we must consider if they work.  In my experience they definitely do, as todays' photographs will illustrate, and I can show case after case of similar examples.  This is a buck that I first photographed after rifle deer season of 2011.  This particular photo was taken on the day after Christmas, which was also the first day of the flintlock deer season.

Yearling Spike Buck: Canon 7D-Canon 300mm f2.8- ISO 400 1/400 sec. f 3.5

Before antler restrictions were implemented it is likely this photo would not have been taken as there is a high possibility  he would have been shot during the traditional two week buck season as bucks with spikes 3" or more in length were legal.  As it happened he lived to grow a larger rack as the photo below illustrates.

Same Buck - 2 1/2 yrs. of age: Canon 5DMK II-Canon 500mm f 4- ISO 1000 1/1000 sec. f  4

Some agree that the buck is bigger, but say he is still not a trophy so what is the point?  I for one believe that anything that contributes to keeping a buck alive is a good thing.  While habitat quality and genetics are important to a certain extent--age of the animal is also extremely important.  I have documented one buck that was a small spike in his first year with antlers, a modest 8 point in his second, and an impressive 8 point in his last.

The fallacy of Alt's view of deer management was that he believed these deer should be growing larger racks sooner.  To a certain extent he is right, but only to a certain extent.  Drastically reducing the deer herd in the hopes that those that remain will be larger is absurd, but it is even more absurd to claim that we had better quality bucks before antler restrictions and that antler restrictions will damage the genetics of the herd.  Some are still so hung up on the concept of getting "their buck" each year that they would be perfectly happy to kill a spike and deeply resent having to pass up the little bucks.

Perhaps the poorest argument I ever heard against antler restrictions was penned by a well know outdoor writer who was upset because restrictions eliminated the surprise factor from buck hunting.  In his view one had to look at the deer so much to determine if it was legal that he knew exactly what he had gotten before he walked up to the deer if the shot was successful.  There is of course cases, perhaps many, where determining the legality of the buck does cost the hunter a shot, but in many if not most cases it is a shot that would have been better not taken anyway, and anyway as I see it the important thing is keeping as many bucks as possible alive to be at least one step closer to maturity.

I for one do not intend to ever kill another buck, but I would much rather see a deer herd in which a significant portion of the bucks live to reach maturity, which is the case at places like Shenandoah National Park.  That doesn't seem possible in hunting country, but it is much better to have a significant crop of 2 1/2 year old bucks coming on that is comprised of a large number of decent bucks of six to eight points or more, than for most of the bucks sighted to be spikes and four or six points.

Watch for more on deer management issues as we continue the "Deer Wars" segment from time to time. 

Originally published at Pennsylvania Wildlife Photographer by Willard Hill.

Remembering The 2012 Elk Rut

With the whitetail rut effectively over because of the onset of rifle deer season in Pennsylvania, I find my thoughts turning once again to the Pennsylvania elk rut.  I was photographing one of the larger bulls on Winslow Hill on a rainy mid-September morning when I heard a bugle behind me and turned to find an impressive 6x6 staring at the other bull.  I had the 500mm lens mounted and could not get the entire elk in the composition so I decided to try for a dramatic close-up of the head.

Rainy Day 6x6: Canon 5D MKIII-500mm F4 ISO 640 1/200 f4

Rainy weather can yield some dramatic photo opportunities, and cameras such as the 5D MK III have sufficient weather sealing to make this type of photography possible without one having to be overly concerned about protecting the camera.  I do keep a garbage bag over the camera and lens when transporting it, but have no qualms at all about shooting with this camera and lenses such as the 500mm in moderate rainfall.

Excellent opportunities my also be found when the sky begins to clear, especially in late evening.  In this case a rainbow formed as the sun emerged after a shower and the late evening sun bathed a herd of elk in warm, dramatic light.

Rainbow Forms As Late Evening Sun Breaks Through:Canon 5D MKIII-24-105mm L @28nn   ISO 400 1/25 f 13

Bull and Harem In Late Evening Sun: Canon 5D MKIII-24-105mm@88nn L  ISO 400 1/80 f 4

With the the fall rut over for both species, it will soon be time to focus on other species as winter approaches and in about three months it will be time to photograph the spring waterfowl migration.

Originally posted at Pennsylvania Wildlife Photographer by Willard Hill.

PA Deer Season: Recalling The Past

Mature Whitetail Buck

 As Thanksgiving week comes to an end, the human population of Pennsylvania's rural areas reaches a yearly high with a large influx of deer hunters anticipating the opening of rifle deer season on Monday.  The air resounds with rifle shots, as hunters sight their rifles in and at night spotlights flicker in the air and across the fields and woodlands as hunters scout for whitetails by use of artificial light.  Persons may spotlight for deer until 11:00 p.m., but may not posses firearms while doing so, may not cast the rays of lights on buildings or livestock, and may not attempt to kill a deer in such a manner.  They are not allowed to spotlight during rifle deer season.The taking of wildlife by use of artificial light is commonly known as "jacklighting"and is a common violation.

Deer Killed by "Jacklighters"

PGC Officer With Rifle Seized From Jacklighters

 During my years as a Deputy Conservation Officer for the PGC, this was the "busy" period of the year and Thanksgiving week usually brought a lot of law enforcement work dealing with persons who couldn't wait until deer season to kill a deer.  There was seldom a year went by that several violators were not apprehended killing deer while spotlighting during Thanksgiving week.  Once deer season came in, the most common offenses were failure to tag a harvested animal as required by law, hunting over bait, hunting by use of motorized vehicle, and various safety related violations.

Violator Prepares To Shoot Deer From Vehicle With Modern Rifle In Blackpowder  Season

Things have really changed since I began hunting in the mid-1960s.  At that time there was two weeks of bucks only season, followed by two or three days of artlessness deer season.  By the time I quit hunting in 1997 or 1998, the taking of antlerless deer had been liberalized to a certain extent, with bonus tags being issued in many years.

2000 saw the introduction of a three day flintlock season for antlerless deer , which was increased to a full week the following year. In addition a three day rifle antlerless season was established for junior and senior hunters. disabled persons, and active duty military.

Things really changed with the implementation of concurrent buck and doe season in 2001 and antler restrictions in 2002. The early flintlock season was expanded to include the use of in-line muzzle loaders that year as well.   Since then deer numbers have plummeted in many parts of the state as has the number of hunters, but even with that the yearly deer kill is quite large.

While the "deer wars" had been going on to a certain extent for years, this marked the period that they accelerated to the heights of the recent past.  The controversy continues to this day with some claiming the herd is still out of control and damaging the environment, while others firmly believe that deer numbers are too low and the lack of deer is leading to the death of the sport of hunting.

Whatever the truth of the matter, it seems The Pennsylvania Game Commission has lost the hearts and minds of a significant portion of the hunting public.

Ralph Harrison Receives Rothrock Award

Ralph Harrison: Photo by John Eastlake-all rights reserved

 Each year, the Pennsylvania Forestry Association (PFA) recognizes an individual, organization, or group's significant contributions to the public recognition of the importance of Pennsylvania's forest resources in the same tradition and spirit of Dr. Joseph T. Rothrock, the first president of PFA.

This year's recipient was retired Bureau of Forestry Maintenance Supervisor, Ralph Harrison, Elk County native and resident of Dent’s Run.  Mr. Harrison received a plaque with the following inscription:

"Ralph Harrison has demonstrated a life-long interest in and concern for the elk of Pennsylvania.   He successfully motivated forestry professionals to develop specific elk habitat actions for the Elk State Forest management plan and provided keen observations and knowledge that were essential to the accomplishment of the plan.  A healthy elk herd now populates over six Pennsylvania counties.  Know for his educational talks, tours, and publications, Ralph is the individual most responsive for saving the Pennsylvania elk herd as a valuable component of today's Penn's Woods."

For those unfamiliar with Ralph Harrison I will reprint an edited version of a post from this blog , "Ralph Harrison Above and Beyond The Call Of Duty"  February 13, 2008, which will give the reader an understanding of the conditions under which Ralph Harrison became involved with the elk."

"Mr. Harrison was born in Dent’s run in 1928 and has lived there most of his life except for a stint in the military. Ralph went to work for what was then know as the Department of Forest and Waters in 1951 and worked for them for the next forty years, although the agency changed names over this period. It would take a book to cover his life and in fact Ralph has written three. The first was “The Pennsylvania Elk Herd: published by The Pennsylvania Forestry Association in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service and DER Bureau of Forestry. The Second was a smaller update of the first called, “The Pennsylvania Elk Herd of Today” Published by The Pennsylvania Forestry Association in cooperation with the DCNR Bureau of Forestry. His most recent is, "The History of Pennsylvania Elk Country", also published by The Pennsylvania Forestry Association..

Mr. Harrison never had an official job in elk management. There was no big title, just a simple love and respect for the animals, which led him to go above and beyond the call of duty and dedicate his life to them. He has seen elk population grow from less than twenty to over 800 animals. Although he would never claim responsibility, he was an important factor in this increase.

First, a greatly condensed history of the Pennsylvania elk herd to illustrate the backdrop against which Ralph Harrison's life work took place. The last Pennsylvania Elk was killed sometime in the late 1860s or early 1870s as a result of unregulated market hunting. In 1913 The Pennsylvania Game Commission released fifty animals in the north central part of the state. These animals were obtained from Yellowstone National Park. There were additional releases and in time the herd grew to the point that The PGC established a hunting season in 1923. Anyone with a general hunting license could kill an elk (bulls of 4 or more points were legal). In 1931 only one bull was killed.  The season was closed in 1931 and remained so until 2001.

During this time the PGC lost interest in the herd and at times few even knew they existed, as what few remained stayed well away from human habitation in most cases. The population began to increase slowly in the 1950s. Ralph recalls how he realized the elk herd was rebounding in the mid-1970s after a late August evening encounter with cows and calves in a meadow in which he heard bulls bugling in the woodlands. This so inspired him that he approached his boss the next day and outlined a proposal to help the elk herd survive and expand. Things progressed from there. A management plan was developed which included more public land acquisition and development of suitable elk habitat.

 In a nutshell the PGC did re-introduce the elk in 1913, but when the population declined too much to support a hunt, they lost interest in the species. It was The Bureau of Forestry, inspired by Ralph Harrison that picked up the torch and brought the elk herd to the position it was in a few years ago. The PGC only entered the fray after Forestry had done the hard legwork to bring the herd back from the brink. It should be noted that this was the agency as a whole, not some of the dedicated Game Commission employees who were assigned to the area. These included District Game Protectors Norm Erickson who served from late 1940s-1965 or 66, and Harold Harsbarger who ably filled the slot from 1966-97. PGC Wildlife Biologist Bill Drake was also numbered among these dedicated individuals. All were very interested in the welfare of the elk, even at times that The PGC as a whole was not.

Originally published at Pennsylvania Wildlife Photographer by Willard Hill.