JNRBRONC
Well-Known Member
A 36% population drop for Johnson county. I can't wait to see the entire state survey results.
Joe Wilkinson's IC Press Citizen article
• DEER FROM THE AIR: That white backdrop is causing havoc with wildlife feeding. From 400 feet above, though, it sure makes the deer stick out during aerial surveys. DNR wildlife workers tally deer seen from the air in over 300 transects they fly each winter. Though dozens of counties still have a few hunters pursuing antlerless deer, ideal weather conditions have some counts wrapped up already.
"You need to distinguish a deer from a deer bed melted through to the ground or a stump. We've had enough snow that the deer showed up very well," wildlife technician Dave Nicholson says. "It gives us an index from year to year, a round number if you will, of what is out there."
With a lap full of maps, he directed pilot Bonnie Roth up and down across transects in Johnson, Linn and Benton counties this week. In the back of the tiny four-seater, Chris Mack and Brandon Nitcher tallied deer they could see as far away as an eighth of a mile.
They notched slight downturns in Linn and Benton counties and a noticeable 36 percent drop in Johnson County. With indications that deer numbers might actually be down, the surveys have to take into account the heavy flooding and loss of food in lowland timber areas.
"Next year, deer may move right back in to those bottoms", says Nicholson. "Most of the deer we saw on the Hawkeye Wildlife Area, for instance, were at turning points or up in the hills just outside the survey area."
As all routes are concluded, wildlife biologists use the data to help set seasons, dates and county quotas for next fall and winter.
Joe Wilkinson's IC Press Citizen article
• DEER FROM THE AIR: That white backdrop is causing havoc with wildlife feeding. From 400 feet above, though, it sure makes the deer stick out during aerial surveys. DNR wildlife workers tally deer seen from the air in over 300 transects they fly each winter. Though dozens of counties still have a few hunters pursuing antlerless deer, ideal weather conditions have some counts wrapped up already.
"You need to distinguish a deer from a deer bed melted through to the ground or a stump. We've had enough snow that the deer showed up very well," wildlife technician Dave Nicholson says. "It gives us an index from year to year, a round number if you will, of what is out there."
With a lap full of maps, he directed pilot Bonnie Roth up and down across transects in Johnson, Linn and Benton counties this week. In the back of the tiny four-seater, Chris Mack and Brandon Nitcher tallied deer they could see as far away as an eighth of a mile.
They notched slight downturns in Linn and Benton counties and a noticeable 36 percent drop in Johnson County. With indications that deer numbers might actually be down, the surveys have to take into account the heavy flooding and loss of food in lowland timber areas.
"Next year, deer may move right back in to those bottoms", says Nicholson. "Most of the deer we saw on the Hawkeye Wildlife Area, for instance, were at turning points or up in the hills just outside the survey area."
As all routes are concluded, wildlife biologists use the data to help set seasons, dates and county quotas for next fall and winter.
