Thoughts on deer hunting

Deer hunting, like most other things, is constantly changing. Many changes have been good, while some of the changes are not so good. We are continuing to move away from "traditional deer management" and toward "quality deer management." That is good. Those of you who have followed this movement closely know that it took hunters much longer to embrace doe harvest than it did for biologists to recommend the harvest of does. The deep-rooted tradition of bucks only hunting was needed for a time. That management strategy allowed for the use of the resource and allowed populations to expand. However, deer populations with good protection and adequate nutrition grow exponentially until they reach and then exceed the numbers the habitat can sustain at a healthy level.

Biologists recommended antlerless harvests in certain areas as early as the mid 1960's. Finally, some forty years later, the fevered pitch of resistance to doe harvest has subsided and the majority of our deer hunters today both support and practice either sex deer harvest. In fact, the support of Quality Deer Management is both pleasing and amazing.

Untold numbers of hunters are now restricting themselves beyond State Law. Not only do they refrain from shooting bucks not allowed by State Law (4-Point Rule); they take it a step farther, and restrict themselves from the harvest of immature bucks of any description. While the methods differ, they attempt to harvest only mature bucks they believe to be three years old and older.

Only in the last ten years, has it become common for hunters to brag more about the bucks they let go than the bucks they killed. While it may seem strange to some, this is the natural progression toward maturity as a hunter and sportsman. Once concerned with "limits" of the hunted species, the mature hunter now dwells more on the satisfactions of promoting sound management of the species he hunts. His observations of wild things has gradually developed into a respect for the quarry.

Where are you on this journey toward maturity as a deer hunter? If you are young in age or just new to the sport, I encourage you to advance toward maturity by emulating the mature, ethical hunter. Remember, the mature deer hunter is more concerned with "how" he harvested his deer than in the numbers and size of the bucks taken.

Never before has it been so important for hunters to conduct themselves both ethically and lawfully. We must remember that many issues are settled at the ballot box. If the right to hunt ever becomes a ballot box issue, the general public will decide the issue, not the hunters or the anti-hunters. Hunters and anti-hunters make up less than 10 percent of the population. Many polls have demonstrated that non-hunters are in support of hunting as long as it is done ethically and the hunting constitutes management for the hunted species.

We should keep several things in mind as we go about our activities as hunters. First, obey the law. If the limit is three bucks, then harvest three or less. If hunting over bait is illegal, do not hunt over piles of corn. It does not matter if it is legal in other states, it is illegal here.

Second, act like a sportsman. Nothing is more distasteful to the non-hunter than to see dead animals paraded around in public. If at all possible, transport your animals where they are not in constant view of others. Yes, you are proud of your accomplishment as a hunter, but keep it among other hunters. Watch your language when relating the details of the hunt. Non-hunters who over hear your story may not have the same appreciation for the details as do your hunting partners. Keep the gory details away from those who are not hunters. Your actions can change someone from a non-hunter to an anti-hunter. When photographing harvested animals, clean them up, cover up wounds, hide the tongue, and do your best to present the dead animal in a manner that would not offend the non-hunter.

Third, hunt ethically. Ethics is just another word for what you do when no one else is watching. Hunters, as participants in a sport, have no spectators to watch them. This makes the sport of hunting unique. In competitive golf, there are eyes everywhere watching to see if the golfer breaches the rules or ethics of the game. Basketball players have officials following their every move, and a whistle blows each time a player violates the rules of the game. We as hunters have no such gallery and therefore must do those things that are ethical and sporting of our own volition.

If you harvest game animals or birds over bait, do you then brag about your skills as a hunter and how you used great skill and cunning to outwit your quarry? If "Officials of Sport Hunting" were watching your every move, how often would you hear the whistle blow condemning your actions?

Can the hunter take true pleasure in the harvest of a splendid game animal when he knows his conduct in the hunt was unethical, illegal or even despicable? I hope we all would agree in saying, "I don't think so!".