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Shotgunners - THINK FIRST

Lwadzie said:
I found an article in a magazine I had D&DH Bowhunting Whitetails I thought might help. It has harvest tables in the back of this issue for the last 10 yrs of all the whitetail states. Heres Iowa's stats for the last 5;
2008: 142,194 deer harvested. 23,449 with bow, 118,745 with firearm

2009: 136,504 deer harvested. 24,995 with bow, 114,809 with firearm

2010: 127,094 deer harvested. 22,560 with bow, 104,534 with firearm

2011: 121,407 deer harvested. 22,020 with bow, 99,387 with firearm

2012: 115,608 deer harvested. 21,022 with bow, 63,185 with a firearm.

Remember, these are deer that were legally tagged and reported also. This also proves that gun hunters may be buying less tags or taking less deer (at least some anyway)

Record year was 2005 at 211,451 harvests
And lowest harvest was 1954 at 2,423 incase anyone wanted to know
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Taking less deer because there are less deer to take! That is how I would read it!!
 
flugge said:
man, everyone hunts around grant I take it... I have several family farms down there
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Ya it's a tough spot for any boones but there is a few of them out there, all groups I have hunted with are very nice. They get a little crazy but in the same breath They will help ya in a heart beat if ya need it. Some non locals are a pain to deal with. But it's like that everywhere. Good luck in the up coming weeks.
 
Open Site said:
Grant iowa. And I get 1 buck and 1 doe. Or I mean 1 buck and 12 future deer.
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Years ago that's where we hunted but the land was purchased and now is leased. Hunted east of Grant for awhile too along the river. Sure miss those days.
 
Ladies and Gentlemen:

The most staggering fact of all. in 2011 the combination of Early Muzz and Archery deer harvested was = 100,959

So far this year to date there have only been 28,342 deer reported so far, and Early muzz and most of the bow season has ended!!!!!!!!!!!
 
gundog870 said:
Ladies and Gentlemen:

The most staggering fact of all. in 2011 the combination of Early Muzz and Archery deer harvested was = 100,959

So far this year to date there have only been 28,342 deer reported so far, and Early muzz and most of the bow season has ended!!!!!!!!!!!
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Gun - I think you may be looking at the wrong chart or something. The 2011 stats that I see for early muzz and archery would add up to 27,722. (4427 for EM and 23,295 for archery.)
 
shadowpeople said:
Yes, reducing the tags and the seasons is what the DNR has been trying to do but they are handcuffed by the governor's office. We had a meeting with the head DNR biologist a couple of years ago at our bowhunters & archery club, and the original post is exactly the same as what he said to do. Many counties, esp. Clayton, were at target herd levels the first or second year of extra doe tags but the DNR has not been allowed to lower the number of tags available. The insurance companies, as major contributors to Branstad's campaign have influenced our resource management more than what the DNR can do now, as all tag reductions must go through the governor's office first. Tag reductions have been proposed, but have been rejected by the governor's office. So now, the DNR can only propose to reduce tags in areas that will curtail the most damage to the deer herd if they are filled. If you want to help or maintain the deer numbers, you must manage it yourself, and not go by tags available to your county. Remember, no single buffalo hunter believed they were responsible for the near extinction of the buffalo, just as no single raindrop believes they are responsible for the flood.
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Farm Bureau is the devil, evil people or just idiots.
 
gundog870 said:
Ladies and Gentlemen:

The most staggering fact of all. in 2011 the combination of Early Muzz and Archery deer harvested was = 100,959

So far this year to date there have only been 28,342 deer reported so far, and Early muzz and most of the bow season has ended!!!!!!!!!!!
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We are actually right on track this year as we were back in 2010. We are slightly lower by 2000 deer but we did not have the thanskgiving doe season otherwise we would be neck to neck. Our population has dropped but bow, youth and early muzz hunters are right on track for the past 3 years.
 
I think all those numbers have to be taken with a grain of salt or the whole shaker. I know very few people who actually report their kills. Not because they're shady they just don't bother. I do because I think it's important. Part of the reason I am in the habit of doing it is I also hunt in a management zone and want to make sure I have everything covered to earn my buck tag, which is no easy task any more. I rarely take a deer to a locker and when I do I often look at the other deer there. See a lot not properly tagged and registered.
 
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mplane72 said:
I think all those numbers have to be taken with a grain of salt or the whole shaker. I know very few people who actually report their kills. Not because they're shady they just don't bother. I do because I think it's important. Part of the reason I am in the habit of doing it is I also hunt in a management zone and want to make sure I have everything covered to earn my buck tag, which is no easy task any more. I rarely take a deer to a locker and when I do I often look at the other deer there. See a lot not properly tagged and registered.
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I too report my deer but I know more people that don't worry about reporting it than people that do. So unless they take this into account the numbers are always going to be off. And I'm not just talking one deer I'm talking about big shotgun parties who kill lots of deer.
 
chipterp said:
I too report my deer but I know more people that don't worry about reporting it than people that do. So unless they take this into account the numbers are always going to be off. And I'm not just talking one deer I'm talking about big shotgun parties who kill lots of deer.
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We have a big shotgun group in our area who shoots everything they see then go back through and choose what deer they want to tag and leave the others
 
CurtisWalker said:
We have a big shotgun group in our area who shoots everything they see then go back through and choose what deer they want to tag and leave the others
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If this is the case you should report them. You can remain anonynous. If you don't you are just as bad as they are. The shotgun groups I know around here tag and report everything.
 
Again, a result of Iowa's plentiful seasons and liberal tag allotment. Technically Iowa has 5 firearms seasons. Two single shot rifle seasons, two shotgun seasons and one legitimate rifle season. I watched the same problem happen in my state. You can plead all you want with hunters in the various seasons not to shoot, look at the big picture, so on and so on, but if your legal authorities allocate the licenses they will shoot and kill the deer. The answer is addressing the deciding officials regarding reducing tag allotment.
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This is the only suggestion that will work. Until we take away the tags, or plentiful seasons, we will overkill the sustaining rate of reproduction.
I'd like to keep the season choices (less late rifle), but only allow one Any Sex tag per year, per hunter. The extra antlerless need to go away or be reduced greatly.
 
2-bucks said:
How many people on here complaining have contacted their lawmakers?
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I have and will again when the season is over for what it's worth.....

Also when I was talking about not reported deer I was referring to bow hunters. I am sure the DNR has a formula they use that takes into account the percentage of deer not reported. Just not sure how accurate it is. In my opinion it is an inaccurate way of getting the harvest data and setting new seasons and it will have a greater negative influence the farther herd numbers fall.
I am not looking to pile on the gun hunters of which I will be one this weekend just to take my son out. He is free to shoot one doe and or whatever buck walks by.
I also will say that it chaps a little bit to think that I passed all does on the land I hunt in Clinton Co. all season and tomorrow many of them will get shot only to go to HUSH. I don't control the land so it is what it is. If I shoot them they die for sure if I pass who knows maybe they make it. Big maybe there this piece of ground is a deer drive generals wet dream.
 
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