Possible Reasons for a Bad Gun Season?

[BigVal]

Last year when I shot a doe it was air temp of 5 this year it was over 45 lol

[DirtTime]

Can someone please define a "bad season"?

 

[rj23nyr]

Can someone please define a "bad season"?

Too much pepper, not enough salt

[turkeyfeathers]

I thought animals eat to get fat for the coming winter. Unless they know something about the next few months that we don't, they're putting on just as much weight. Any self-interested, healthy animal will put on weight, whether it's 60 or 30 degrees out because no one knows what's coming.

do you think deer eat more now compared to summer to store fat or it's typically colder and need more food for energy to keep warm ?

[fasteddie]

Some of them store fat ......

 

 

[rj23nyr]

do you think deer eat more now compared to summer to store fat or it's typically colder and need more food for energy to keep warm ?

  

I think that the deer (squirrel, bear, turkey) brain perceives a temperature shift through the hypothalamus of the brain, just like you would if you slept outside. I think this temperature shift triggers the shift into hyperphagia. In my area, this temperature shift hasn't occurred and game animals haven't shifted in hyperphagia.

[jaxofdeth1]

It's been a warm gun season so it's made deer nocturnal to avoid overheating

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[The_Real_TCIII]

I don't think we ever get the kind of cold they get

In the Midwest, where deer have to expose themselves to feed in broad daylight

[rj23nyr]

It's been a warm gun season so it's made deer nocturnal to avoid overheating

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They make it through those 90 degree summers just fine though

[jaxofdeth1]

Yeah but during the summer months they are nocturnal and also aren't in the peak rut

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Edited December 12, 2015 by jaxofdeth1

[Doc]

As long as we are into a guessing mode, I would put my money on the fact that nocturnal movement is caused by the fact that they are getting shot at and there is a huge home invasion underway by all the orange critters taking over the woods. Warm ... hot .... cold .... frigid, probably doesn't really enter into it unless perhaps when you hit extreme record numbers that have the critters laying down and panting to breathe.

 

It occurs to me that deer down south eat, and it isn't always nighttime either. Out west you get the sun burning down so intense that humans can't hardly stand it. And yet it is not necessary for hunters to use lights at night to do their hunting. So I have to believe that temperatures are not really a factor at all and the nocturnal situation is due to a more obvious reason of safety more than a need for comfort.

[Curmudgeon]

So, can we agree to disagree?

[fasteddie]

I think that the deer (squirrel, bear, turkey) brain perceives a temperature shift through the hypothalamus of the brain, just like you would if you slept outside. I think this temperature shift triggers the shift into hyperphagia. In my area, this temperature shift hasn't occurred and game animals haven't shifted in hyperphagia.

 

Hey , c'mon , we speak English here !      

[The_Field_Ager]

Still no desire by Outdoor News to factor in two bad winters:

 

http://www.outdoornews.com/December-2015/A-weird-deer-season/

[NFA-ADK]

My gun season was only 2 weeks in the ADK.  Movement was slightly low but the deer where their, just could not find any big bucks and I believe rut happened after I left the area the following week.  Trying to push deer for my friends did not help myself get a deer but I would not change a thing as I would love to get one of my friends into an ADK buck.

 

The many factors that will alter deer sightings. 

1) I believe the rut happened the week or two before gun season opened depending on area.  Causing many deer to go into "food" recovery mode.

2) Bad winter did a number on the old, sick and young resulting in less deer.

3) Less hunter participation = less deer movement

4) Restrictions on antlers cause more hunters to identify and place a shot resulting in less brown and down shooting.

5) Amish, DMP and poaching will affect an area that for sure, did it affect your spot, I have no idea but these issues can decimate the local population!

6) More hunters planting food plots and sitting in trees = less deer movement (Thanks for feeding the deer!)

7) Winter coats are in for deer, try putting on all your heavy cold weather gear and see if you want to move around when it's 50+ degrees out!

 

The way I see it:

The combination of an exact rut and excessive food availability and weather cause the perfect storm for opening day with many deer recouping from the rut and remembering how bad last winter was the early snow storms set them into a "Winter feeding mode" to conserve energy and store up some fat.  The old doe remember and know that surviving the winter requires eating when it is available!  Overthinking it, maybe. 

 

No doubt many of the factors mentioned will affect deer sightings but to have much of the state complain about deer sightings has to be a universal factor and to me that is the timing of the rut combined with abundant food, weather, presser from hunters and possible foresight of a bad winter to come.  Overthinking it maybe but it makes sense to me!

[fasteddie]

I havn't seen many cars / trucks parked where I used to see them when going hunting . Less participation / less deer movement .

[Doc]

The many factors that will alter deer sightings. 

1) I believe the rut happened the week or two before gun season opened depending on area.  Causing many deer to go into "food" recovery mode.

2) Bad winter did a number on the old, sick and young resulting in less deer.

3) Less hunter participation = less deer movement

4) Restrictions on antlers cause more hunters to identify and place a shot resulting in less brown and down shooting.

5) Amish, DMP and poaching will affect an area that for sure, did it affect your spot, I have no idea but these issues can decimate the local population!

6) More hunters planting food plots and sitting in trees = less deer movement (Thanks for feeding the deer!)

7) Winter coats are in for deer, try putting on all your heavy cold weather gear and see if you want to move around when it's 50+ degrees out!

 

One other thing that you might want to add to your list is the possibility that the DEC has absolutely no idea how many deer are out there and are just winging it with some occasional years of offering too many antlerless permits for the size of the population. A few years of that nonsense, and sure as hell you will be hearing some unanimous negative reports and results.

[thphtm]

Yeah but during the summer months they are nocturnal and also aren't in the peak rut

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I think you have that backwards. I have trail cam. pictures that show deer out and about  morning, noon and night all Spring and Summer. Right after bow opened they went nocturnal , do not want to get overheated with this weather , unless pushed and conserving energy this time of the year.

[fasteddie]

The guy I work part time for doing Real Estate signs , hit a doe this am around 6:15 with his Toyota Truck . Did a lot of damage to the bumper , fender , headlight , etc .. His truck only has 350,000 miles on it and he just had the frame replaced along with brakes and a few other things . Damn Varmints ! 

[The_Real_TCIII]

Was it a Tacoma? My BIL just got his frame replaced, it's a 98. They recalled it. They had it for

Most of the summer and gave him a Highlander to use. Sweet deal

[coonhunter]

My buddy and I had some more good action on public land today. We filled a couple doe tags in one unit this morning. Then we went to another state land in a different unit about 10:00. We set up on opposite side of an old beaver pond that is now basically a nasty swamp now. I had a nice two year old 8 chasing a doe around me for about half an hour before working out of my sight towards my buddy. A little while later, I heard his gun go off.  It was a nice 8 point with a 16 inch spread and decent tine length. By far his biggest buck to date. It was a good lesson for him because he tried every excuse not to get up this morning.

 

Around here the problem is there is just enough pressure the first few days, that the deer find the posted land and unhuntable areas and hole up for days. The pressure drops off to almost nothing, and they return to where they were. We just pay attention to where people are hunting, and get away from them. I think the deer take from our two units will be down this year because there just does not seem to be anywhere near the hunters anymore. And most of them only hunt a little bit the first weekend.

[Skillet]

Reasons aside, this just shows how right DEC is. This low 2015 harvest, is unacceptable. It's definitely time to put an early (September) ML season in place, in the southern zone. We gotta knock those doe numbers down next year. We hunters just aren't doing our job. This herd is out of control! It's HUUUUUUUUUUGE!!!!

[Nomad]

I can't add much I haven't had a bad gun season since the late '70s ' Tonight I saw ten deer in two hours . But i go where they are this time of year , I'm the thickest nastyest stuff I can find . Forget the open woods and fields get in the thick stuff and where they stage for darkness.

I was sitting on a bucket in a spot I just picked out on my walk in . My bow and gun stands would be a waste of time in this part of the season .

We all know the deers patterns change , so should yours .

[grampy]

I can't add much I haven't had a bad gun season since the late '70s ' Tonight I saw ten deer in two hours . But i go where they are this time of year , I'm the thickest nastyest stuff I can find . Forget the open woods and fields get in the thick stuff and where they stage for darkness.

I was sitting on a bucket in a spot I just picked out on my walk in . My bow and gun stands would be a waste of time in this part of the season .

We all know the deers patterns change , so should yours .[/quote

Absolutely right on! Jumped a nice buck today in the thick stuff trying to push out a doe to my buddy. Too bad I didn't have a buck tag!

[The Engineer]

Here is what I can say from my area and who I spoke with.

I am in 4P by Stamford but 4 miles from 4O. I scout from July on. I was seeing a dozen doe and 3 bucks at times up to 2 weeks before opening gun a day I saw a 6,5,4 and a very young spike. 2 weeks before opening day I saw my white whale a sick 10. But that is later. I made the decision that I would only take this year and regardless leave the rest to build a herd.

I was up for opening week until after thanksgiving.

On opening day which 25 degrees my white whale came within 50 yards but my gun jambed 3 times. What I observed through the scope of my gun was my 10 a 4 and 2 doe all together following my neighbor on his quad never seeing him just listenin until he stopped and walked in the other direction. I could see their heads all turning in unison.

The next morning 30 degrees out and only saw a few doe.

Speaking to my dairy farmer neighbor who owns 600 acres mixed with pasture and woods said he saw the same deer in the same areas never once crossing the property. He called it "Pocketing". The rest of the week it use kept getting warmer and all my usual doe were just getting less and less during the week as the weather got warmer. On Tuesday morning at 7:15 am I heard coyotes in the mountains around my location and didn't see anything for 36 hours. It just dried up instsntly . On Wednesday night I heard the coyotes about 2 plus miles away. Thanksgiving morning saw 4 doe again. The rest of the week a few doe and the very young spike buck that could be a doe with spikes. Left on saturday. The following week got back up in the woods on Saturday morning. The temp was 35 and saw nothing. Come back out at 9:15 and did some chores. Load chores like throwing logs into a wheel borrow. That's when I saw my white whale about 150 to 200 yards into the woods. Just walking without a care in the world. That long story basically I got him. The big 10.

The next person I speak to is the deer processor. He got a deer but as of today this his lowest butchering number to date. Only 208 total deer. Last year was the lowest he thought at 256.

What he noticed was the following less bucks but a little older and higher points. More doe but smaller.

His thoughts were people were nervous about shooting until a legal buck was positively IDed. Most got away or not seen at all. But they will be smarter next year and even tougher to get. For the doe his thoughts were the first doe seen was taken. Nothing selective about it.

Youth hunt over all was not that major as most kids are not into hunting but video games. I agree with that statement. When I hit 14 small game hunting was on and I grabbed my hunting mentor and kepted him moving.

Long story short (Too late)

I think all of the reasoning in the first post are playing a part in the lack of deer. Weather, some pressure, coyotes etc. But after this year I think our tactics need to change as deer are getting smarter. Why? Because more people are hitting the woods more (not hunters) mountain bikers, more quads hikers etc. Back in the day you would jump a deer from 100 yards away and they would never look back. Now a deer will lay down or not move until you are almost stepping on them.

We need more hunters and more drives to get them moving.

This is what I see and hear in my area.

We need to get more hunters in the woods on private lands.