germain

Read my whole post T.I agree that the herd needed reduced but to what point?Even though deer may not be the main culprit it is obviously the easiest action to take.Too much political pressure to take action on acid rain and a closed canopy.
Now you say there's less food for the deer to eat.That's not true.I've seen my share of oaks with regen in open areas.I've also seen loads of beechnut and red maples which deer thrive on.True beechnuts aren't reliable and maples are browse but then again acorns are over rated.Kind a like sugar is to us,quick shot of protein but nothing really great in the long run.But then again we both know it's not about food for the deer in the NC.It's about lumber,money,tourism,and bird watching.

ddear

The deer did it by doubling the buck harvest from 1953 to 1985 ,without mass stravation and diesease and an unhealthy herd with low recruitment and survival rates. The herd did the exact opposite of what the experts predicted would happen and we still have 26,529 SM of forested land.

PABowhntr

Yep, I read the article in the Outdoor News this past week. Does that mean that in the next 40 or 50 years we can expect to have deer numbers again like they were back in the 1980s and early 90's?

MikeE51848

Here's a little un-planned experiment that happened in my back yard. A year ago, we had some large white oaks removed due to encroaching on our house. They were next to, but over-shadowed, some smaller, acorn producing oaks in the yard. The other day, while cutting the grass, I noticed dozens of oak seedlings, all through this area. And I have more deer passing through the backyard than I saw all hunting season.

germain

I took some trees down two years ago and have young oaks growing.The key is sunlight.

BTBowhunter

my camp on the fringe of the ANF had hundreds of oak seedlings sprout year before last in an area with excellent light. All gone! The maples are doing fine, however.

Once again, my yard and your yard dont really mean much in the big picture.

I didnt always agree 100% with Roger Latham and I dont always agree 100% with Gary Alt but it does show just how long certain segments have been crying "no deer"

germain

I haven't heard many say there are no deer BT,just very few.

ddear

It also shows that the PGC and it's so called experts ,have been crying wolf and predicting a disaster way back in the 1950"s. But the deer proved them to be wrong and the buck harvest tripled and we now how more forested land than we did then.

PA GOBBLER

im starting to wonder if the person who started this post even hunts.. id be curious to know

ddear

He is a hunter ,but he is a trophy hunter that doesn't care if if 79 K hunters don't harvest a buck .as long as he can have a better chance of harvesting a trophy.