Trad Gang

I've had the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time hunting this season here in west/central IN. Early season there were several doe sightings along with a few basket racked 1.5 yr. olds. First part of Nov. was dead as far as seeing any deer at all. On Veterans Day, I had 5 different bucks working a thicket in the afternoon for about 30 minutes, then they were gone and no does were seen. The opening weekend of gun season usually brings alot of activity as my 50 acre patch doesn't get any gun pressure and we bow hunt only. The gunners USUALLY get the deer moving right into my lap! Rain and high winds kept things quiet on opening weekend. I usually hear over 100 shots on opening day, but probably heard less than 20 on Sat. and less than that on Sun. Last weekend and over the Thanksgiving Holiday I have hunted pretty hard and have only seen a basket 6 point and maybe 10-12 does in 7 trips to the woods and I saw the 6 point and 7 does during one evening's set! For this area that is equivalent to seeing nothing. The weather the past two days has been ideal and I am baffled by the lack of deer moving and the lack of shooting by the gun hunters. I'm gonna sleep in tomorrow and head out about 9:30 and stay on stand until noon or 1:00. Everyone I've talked to has pretty much the same story as I do. We'll see what happens tomorrow......Mike

Good luck Mike.... I'm not having much luck either..... I've been hunting public land that connects to my property...there's deer around , but not alot... makes for tough hunting.... Hope to see ya at the expo this year!

Same here.The harvest report for first gun was in the paper today and the numbers are down from last year.
I have seen a few after dark in our pasture but nothing during legal light.
Not seeing the road kills either.
The IDNR says we have too many deer, maybe over in the "triangle" where everything is leased up but not here.
Good luck tomorrow.

Seems like this is a growing trend everywhere. Here in NY we have seen a few here and there, but man it is tough. We dont shoot does on our 40 acres just because everyone else around us shoots them. Even seeing a 1 1/2 year old buck is tough. Have seen 1 buck all gun season. I have been out 12 times. Each year for the past 7 we have seen a major decline in deer when driving to alll of our spots in the southern tier, over 3 different counties.

I have only seen three deer total this year while hunting and they were all a long way off.  It has been a tough year.

I think we're still feeling the results of EHD around here  (southern IN) from couple years back. Plus I don't think as many people are hunting anymore.Based on shots heard and number of cars and trucks parked along the roads, I'd say fewer hunters.
We had a 1400 acre state hunting area that bordered our farm. The hunters there used to push deer out to our place. In order to land the Homeland Security Training Center here in IN there was a trade made with Purdue University for some land they had here. The nexxus of it was we lost a 1400 acre tract of hunting ground. In their defense Purdue does allow hunting on the former preoperty by permit but I don't think many people even bothered. I think it's just fewer hunting.Deer ar not being threatened or pushed as much.

Mike,

I have to agree with Flinttim. We had a die off last year from EHD or Blue tongue. We didn't shoot any does off our 1800 acres due to not having them, per sightings in our food plots. We also found several dead deer near the water last year and 2006.

Again this year, we haven't seen many deer and the ones we have seen have been extremely small, young does 1 1/2 year old with fawns. Figured due to no older does last year, the yearly fawns got bred, hence, the sightings of smaller 1 1/2 year old does with fawns.

We saw several good bucks last year and several 2 year old bucks this year so far. Just no shooters this year, except on the game cameras.

Just seems to further support we had a die off of some sort.

Just walked in from the woods and from around 9:30 until 12:15 I saw exactly no deer at all. There is a cold front moving in tonight, so maybe tomorrow things willpick up a bit. Mike

we had a bad gun season in missouri...hardly any shooting around us...took my dads deer to the butcher and he said he didnt get hardly any business

I'm seeing fewer hunters this year as well.  Sounds like good news / bad news to me.

Mike,
    I just got home (right at dark) from driving from just south of Rockville, IN up u.s. 41 to Attica, IN then back down 41 to I-74 and west to home. I'm not sure the mileage but it was somewhere close to a 2 hour trip (maybe a bit more). I saw exactly 0 deer! I normaly would lose track on this trip on the amount seen. I also only saw 1 roadkill. I have noticed a huge decline in the sightings in the area in Indiana I hunt (northern Parke county), I have also noticed a decline in the area in Illinois that I hunt (Vermillion county). I'm not sure if it is from the EHD that came through here 2 years ago or not but I don't think it is. There is also still quite a bit of standing corn around this year compared to normal and I think that may have alot to do with it after all it's been a really wet year and all the windy days we have had is not helping at all. We still got quite a bit of time though and I have managed to put a couple does in the freezer!

I have seen a total of 4 deer this gun season. Basically I see the same 3 does every day and the one buck just once. Two yearling does and one old doe and the 8 point. Around here that's pretty abnormal but I will say that last year I saw a total of three all season and shot one of them. Last year it was EHD most likely and I would have to offer up that same thing this year. I heard that over in the Wildlife Refuge near me that they quit counting EHD dead deer at 300. That alone could account for maybe 600-700 less deer the next year. Extrapolate that across all of Southern IN and that's a ton of deer missing. The numbers released from the DNR should tell the tale after the season ends but I'm betting it's way down.

I think it's space aliens.    :saywhat:        :eek:    :rolleyes:

I live in southern In. also,and I agree the EHD outbreak last year has taking a toll on our deer herd.In Crawford county last fall we were finding dead deer everywhere.Alot of the older deer died.I found 1 buck that scored 171 .

I don't know about aliens ,George...
but, a gun totin poacher got 2 deer off a 12 acre private spot, that I am the only one with permission to hunt.
Found the shells and tire tracks.
The trash left behind could choke a pen full of hogs!! Cigarette butts, candy wrappers, soda cans ..at least it weren't beer !!   :eek:  
That spot is done until late season.....
my sightings are down too...but three a day and road kills are almost normal around me.
My two spots are travel corridors. Picking a trail is hit and miss. I guess wrong for shooting, more than I hit; and just watch from a distance, mostly.

Things seem to be about normal here,I'm seein quite a few deer.While the army is out I'm huntin on a PHA called goose island that is bow only.It is about 640 acres and ate up with deer.   :thumbsup:

I spent 6 hours today in a stand with not even a tree rat moving.We have a winter storm moving in late tonight/tomorrow so every creature in the woods should be getting ready for it.
Stopped by the local bow shop and got the same story so I called my friend who is a biologist for the IDNR and he said that its just a bad year.Several things all have contributed to this.EHD and habitat loss are at the top.Weather also caused some fawn mortality in several areas.He also included a couple of things that Illinois needs to fix but that's not affecting other states.Hope he's wrong about Illinois deer heard future.

well it seems like my property is the best it has been in years if we dont see 10 to 20 deer an evening it was a wash.but on the down side they are not on a definate pattern.seen a 160 class 10 pointer just grazing a field and does eating next to him they left he stayed and payed them not a bit of atention.my deer arent even staying on trails seems there wondering wherever...oh well hope you all smoke a big one...good luck

Just came in from the woods. Cold front with snow moved in last night. Should really see a spike in the movement........right? I did not see one deer from the stand and decided to walk the property and check fresh snow for tracks to try to pinpoint the movement. Cut 3 sets of tracks and jumped a small buck. I have had had exclusive hunting rights on this property for 12 years and have never seen so little deer movement. Early season showed the usual movement and as I posted earlier on Veteran's Day I saw alot of buck movement but no does. Just kinda weird? Crops are picked on the adjacent properties and the only difference that I can find is that on the property to the south, there was some selective logging done this spring. Walked the perimeter of that property this a.m. and saw very little sign. Oh well, we'll see what the late season brings! Good luck to all! Mike

deer sightings have been way down for me this year, both at my woods and on the roads. East central IN

Same here Mike. My boy took a small doe but that has been it. I hunt private land in brown county that borders yellow wood. Haven't seen a buck all season. The kids seen several but I haven't seen any. The only deer I have seen was a doe with a yearling and I passed on them

Not seeing anything on the public ground I'm hunting but seen a few on my buddys land.

I've been of the opinion that our NE G&PC has overestimated the deer population the last several years.  I'm sure part of this is a response to complaints by insurance companies and motorists, and well as farmers who are suddenly receiving decent prices for their corn.  

However, I'm convinced that most of NE's overpopulation is in and around cities where there is no hunting.  The properties I've hunted for 17-18 years have no more deer now than they did 10 years ago...and I really think they have even a few less.  But the refuge areas in eastern NE--near cities, housing developments, lake and cabin areas, city parks, rec. areas where there's no hunting--do have tons of deer that no one can hunt.  But they sure do wreak havoc on the highways at night and sometimes even during the day.

I'm curious as heck to see if the harvest from our just-completed rifle season is anywhere near where they wanted or predicted it would be.  BUT, whenever it doesn't match expectations they always have an excuse:  crops in the field, too warm, too cold, too wet, full moon...you name it.

I agree with Wary Buck that many times "outside" influences tend to skew the population estimates. I spoke with a freind at church this evening that lives across the state line in IL. He owns 215 acres and between him and his son, they saw 2 does this entire 4 day weekend. Our season is out for the next 5 days and then comes back in with a 16 day muzzleloader season and bow thru the first Sunday in Jan. We'll see what that brings! Mike

On a good day where I hunt here in Maryland I am lucky to see several deer in a full days hunt but I do see one on most sittings but yesterdays rifle season was something very odd...I saw 62 deer in a morning sitting and afternoon...I'm guessing some were the same groups that banned together and just circled back from farm to farm but by 7:30 to 8:00 a.m. it seemed like everone just packed it up and left...I went back out early afternoon and didn't hear much shooting till last hour...I don't think people put in the time to hunt all day like we did back in the 70's where we packed some lunch and stayed put till dark...Ever since our state went to a two week gun hunt I personally think people just gave up on spending time in the woods...I know some people have to see action each time they go out in order to come back but I don't think that's what hunting is all about...I have a good time just being in the woods...People are in this time schedule and in a hurry and can't sit still long enough to enjoy the other creations that God gave us...Yesterday I took my nephew out with me and he got his first deer and got to see those 60 some deer and I told him that this was a rare thing to see and don't expect this will happen again but he said I had fun just going and Thanked Me and the friend of mine for inviting us...God Bless, Keefers <")))><

Mike

Same around here (Putnam County / Clay County area).  We had more EHD this summer for sure.  The big outbreak a couple years ago killed around 50% of the deer in my immediate area, still some dying now and then.  I passed on 6 bucks in the early archery (usually 2-3X that number) and doe sightings down substantially as well.  On an up note I killed a dandy 3 1/2 yr old 5X5 with my Black Widow on the 1st Sunday of shotgun season (very quiet opening weekend for gunshots around me as well).  My buck was following a doe when I shot him but his hoof growth shows he survived EHD this past summer (growth rings and lower hoof walls starting to slough off).  The IDNR better stop hammering the heck out of the deer with the "bonus" tags or we will really be hurting in a couple of years after these EHD problems.

Ryan

Here in my area of NY I've been noticing the same thing over the last few years. there are definitely less deer than there were 10 years ago thanks to the liberal doe permits issued every year. I'm no expert by any means but there are some changes that have occurred that I think may account for what I'm seeing.

First, there simply just aren't as many hunters as there use to be. That doesn't explain the lack of sightings during bow, but it definitely has an impact on sightings during our gun season. it use to be that groups would organize drives all season long and keep deer moving. I just don't see them any more.

Second, land use has changed. More and more of the land around us is being sub divided and developed. around here you need 5 acres to zone for a septic field. That usually leaves 4 acres of undeveloped, yet heavily posted, property for the deer to hunker down on. after the first couple of days the dumb ones are dead and the survivors only move when kicked.

third, the land that is being hunted is tightly controlled by a small number of hunters and managed specifically for hunting. That means they plant food plots to hold the deer and try to hunt "low impact" so as to hold the deer on their property.

Granted, that's just my take on it locally, but I still see the same number of deer hit in the roads as I use to and large herds in cut fields after the season, so the deer are "somewhere", just not where I tend to be.    :knothead:

Welp, here in the northern Ozarks of Missouri it's much the same.  Folks I know who get a deer or two every year haven't seen any this year,  My wife and I included.  There is the usual family of 2-5 does and young of the year around but they're only coming around after sunset.  I know of two semi-decent bucks that were killed within a couple miles of me but that's it.  I understand our rifle season was down 13,000+ statewide.  I haven't heard any numbers for bow season.

Vic

I know gun season was slow for lots of people.  I hunt 2 different properties in Parke County and deer sighting were down.  During gun season, the two check stations I visited were down. At the Parke County station I use, they were down about 40% after the first 2 weekends. In Martin County, it was down 50% the first weekend. My buddy who hunts up north reported about the same. I expected a bunch of shooting this weekend in Martin County but just didn't hear it. Saturday was beautiful and no one seemed to be hunting at all.

I really believe a lot of it has to do with fewer hunters being in the woods stirring things up.  After the crappy weather on opening weekend, a lot of folks just didn't hunt this year during gun season.

I also noticed acorns were really down this year in Parke County.  That definitely impacted the deer movement on the 2 properties I hunt.  Down south that didn't seem to be the reason though.  The deer sign was still very prevalent, I just didn't see the deer.  I did see about 10,000 squirrels the past weekend in Martin County.

I'll be very interested to see the kill numbers.

Another good indicator of deer population around here is road kills. They are either way down or the paper quit reporting them. I did talk to a farmer today and he mentioned finding several dead deer this Fall from EHD. As dry as it was thet would make some sense.

I went out twice and killed three does. Saw 8 in those two trips. I got no problem with the deer numbers here on my place.
Of course due to some extensive logging on this property before I got it, the whole place is grown up in thick security cover. So that may be why I'm still seeing so many deer.

I was lucky enough to get two so far this year, but I did not see as many as I usually do.  I was hunting Hendricks County.

Spoke with a neighbor this evening who farms here in northern Vigo Co. and southern Vermillion Co. He said that this year he has had very little crop damage and really hasn't even seen very many deer. I like to take a doe in late archery season, but I am not so sure this year. Of course if I don't see anymore deer late season than I did in the early season, that won't be an issue anyway! Good luck in the late bow season! Hunt hard, hunt safe! Mike

This season was probably my worst. Past seasons I worked alot of OT.This year work is slow.I spent hours and days  finding and scouting new places. Good sign ,rubs , scrapes everything a bowhunter could ask for. Deerless.The biggest factor is lack of mast crops around.Nothing in the woods for them to eat or hold them in the woods.I didn't get my usual zone permit bow tag because of the high price of gas. I figured if I was going to get skunked why drive over 100 miles round trip and see nothing or have another hunter ruin your setup. Last Saturday morning I was thinking in the stand if I bit the bullet at least I would have been hunting near standing /cut corn.    :knothead:   In Jersey they want you to take unlimited does in some zones that = fewer deer.Bear and yotes aren't helping matters either.