Iowa Whitetail Forums

[THA4]

Along these same lines, the number of mature harvested bucks HAS DROPPED at a higher rate than the over all harvest has dropped. It only stands to reason that if your harvest has dropped by 50 percent and the doe or button bucks harvest is now running over 60 percent of that reduced harvest then the numbers of antlered bucks harvested must also be way lower. We are now harvesting fewer antlered bucks than we did 20 years ago. Is that what we all really want?

Can you provide some statistics to back that up? I'd like to see where you came up with that, but not to be argumentative as i'd like to learn more about what I evidently don't know.

Just sayin' I don't think that is entirely the case. Lower numbers of does means higher buck quality, thats simple QDM. Not calling you out on the carpet, but I have heard from lots of biologists, etc. that we are doing fine in buck production, if not better than most years.

Regarding the 63 acre bean field, while I don't mean to pick on you, we need to put that in perspective. There was probably just as much damage or perhaps more done to that same field 20 years ago except that the prices were way different. Today $2200. of damage means about 137 bushels of beans at $16.00 a bushel. 20 years ago that same 137 bushels at $6.00 was $800., still nothing to sneeze at but also not something that made a farmer rant about killing every deer around before they ate him out of house and home.

you missed my point and my perspective is clear on the matter. I'll reiterate it. I already conceded numbers are down statewide and the Gov. has been a major disappointment based on his decisions and lack of experience.. My point was simple, there are still hotspots that need further doe reduction, as they are OVER carrying capacity.

As deer hunters we all want to see 50 deer a night, but thats not the proper balance... like it or not. I never said anything about killing all the deer in a particular hotspot, rather reducing and balancing the herd. Most guys/farmers are reasonable enough to see it that way, "kill 'em all" is not what everybody wants... again a blanket statement does not adequately cover how EVERYONE should hunt whitetails in Iowa.