PENNSYLVANIA'S FIREARMS DEER SEASON PROVIDES SUSPENSE

HARRISBURG - Anticipation is building and excitement will be in the air for the Monday following Thanksgiving, the opening day of the upcoming deer firearms season - Nov. 27 through Dec. 9. The Pennsylvania Game Commission reported deer may be plentiful in some areas and difficult to find in other areas, but added there is a good number of heavy-antlered bucks afield.

"When you reduce deer populations as we have in recent years in Pennsylvania, deer hunting is tougher," said Cal DuBrock, Game Commission Bureau of Wildlife Management director. "Deer are harder to see and harder to find. Pre-season scouting and remaining alert on stand are more important than ever in the approaching season.

"For some Pennsylvanians, decreased deer densities are welcome news. For others, they are not. But our deer population is stable in most areas and our antlered buck harvests over the past two years have been a 50-50 mix of yearlings and older deer. Pennsylvania's bucks are getting older and hunters are seeing the difference afield. As recently as five years ago, more than 80 percent of the antlered buck harvest was yearlings.

"Although hunters may not see a lot of deer in drives or on stand in many areas, the potential to shoot a large-bodied, rack buck is better than it has been for some time in Pennsylvania," DuBrock said. "But that doesn't mean you will, or that you'll even see one. It just means those bucks, which tend to be craftier than yearlings, are out there somewhere. They represent a considerable challenge and taking one is quite an accomplishment."

The buck harvest historically has been a barometer for Pennsylvania's deer population trends. During the 2005-06 license year, hunters took 354,390 deer - including 120,500 antlered bucks. In 2004-05, the buck harvest was 124,410. The similarities in the buck harvest over the past two years are indicative of a stable deer population, because the season structure for hunting bucks didn't change and hunter effort for bucks is relatively consistent through the seasons.

Over the past few years, increased antlerless license allocations and antlerless harvests have helped decrease the size of deer populations in many areas. The Game Commission manages deer with antlerless licenses, which are used by hunters to help remove adult females from the population. Over the past two years, the Game Commission has reduced antlerless allocations to maintain stable deer numbers in many Wildlife Management Units. The number of licenses allocated - and sold - strongly influence a WMU's deer harvest. So, too, can hunter access and weather.

"Antlerless deer license allocations over the past two years have been designed to keep deer populations in most WMUs stable as we evaluate the effect of recent deer population reductions on deer health, habitat health, and deer-human conflicts," explained Dr. Christopher Rosenberry, agency Deer Management Section supervisor. "Over the past year, we have implemented deer management measures with which we can evaluate and manage each WMU individually.

"Our objective is to manage a healthy and productive deer herd that provides recreational opportunities and acceptable ecological impacts and human conflicts. Of course, that's no easy task, and surely one that will always be influenced by Pennsylvania's changing landscape. But we strive to do the best job possible with the resources we have. We are committed to providing sound deer management recommendations."

Hunters shouldn't expect to see a dramatic change in deer numbers when they head afield, largely because whitetail populations aren't prone to big annual population swings, either from hunting pressure or as a result of increased recruitment. The deer populations many hunters are seeing afield are the result of successive years of increased antlerless allocations and antlerless harvests. Over the past two years, allocations were designed to stabilize deer numbers in most WMUs, excepting those with Special Regulations Areas, where efforts to increase the harvest remain strong.  

"Our reduced deer population is not bad for Pennsylvania," emphasized DuBrock. "It's better for deer health, better for our forested areas and better for landowners whose properties are damaged by deer populations. But please understand that the Game Commission is working to restore a balance between deer and their habitat and reduce conflicts in the process. We are not trying to drop deer populations any further than they are in most WMUs, and if measures of deer health and habitat improve, could actually allow them to increase in future years.

"Whitetails are important to Pennsylvanians, wildlife conservation and the state's economy. The Game Commission cares about the concerns of hunters and other stakeholders, and strives annually to manage deer as professionally and sensitively as possible. In recent years, many difficult decisions have been made in deer management to ensure the future of our wildlife resources, and the results of those decisions have caused some dissatisfaction. But having healthy deer and healthy habitat is fundamental to the deer management program.  Hopefully, we are enduring the worst and improvements will be seen in local herds and habitat and reductions in ongoing conflicts in the future."

The larger proportion of 2.5-year-old bucks in the deer population is the direct result of antler restrictions, which were started in Pennsylvania in 2002. Designed to increase the percentage of older bucks in the deer population by protecting yearlings, antler restrictions again will limit the taking of bucks in all Wildlife Management Units in the upcoming season. Consult page 57 of the 2006-2007 Pennsylvania Hunting and Trapping Digest for additional details on restrictions. All antler points - with the exception of the main beam tip - must be at least one inch in length to be legal.

Today, whitetail bucks are bigger and smarter, and that means hunters face greater challenges afield. Most welcome those circumstances. But it can be a humbling experience, especially when the actions of other hunters further educate and influence the movements of older bucks. Therein lies the challenge. Strategy is important, as are patience and time afield. The rest, is up to the buck!

"Every hunter knows that a variety of factors influence where deer will be when the firearms season opens," DuBrock said. "And that can change within hours after daylight as deer respond to hunter movements or pressure. If you cannot put yourself in a location where deer come to you, then it's probably best that you go to them. Still-hunting and organized drives are both time-proven ways to take whitetails. Remember, changing your approach can make a difference. In fact, it may be one of the best ways to improve your chances."

Preseason scouting is always worth the time. Try to locate the general areas deer are using in mid-November, and then fine-tune your efforts to choose hunting locations closer to the start of season. If you're hunting on state lands that receive considerable hunting pressure, try to select locations in thick cover, particularly in areas loaded with mountain laurel/rhododendron and hemlock or scrub pine. If you're familiar with deer escape routes in your hunting area, concentrate on hunting near those outlets on high-pressure hunting days such as the first two days of season, and both Saturdays.

The best hunting day of the firearms deer season historically has been the first day, because of the large number of hunters participating on the opening day. Last year, 33 percent of the overall firearms harvest (45 percent of antlered bucks) was taken on the opener. The second best day was the first Saturday, followed by the second Saturday and the second day (first Tuesday). Combined, these four days accounted for about 70 percent of the two-week firearms season harvest in 2005.

"Deer season isn't over after the first two days," emphasized Rosenberry. "Last year, only about 40 percent of all hunters who harvested a deer in the firearms season got theirs on the first or second day. There's plenty of opportunity for those who stay with it."

Hunters are reminded they must wear 250 square inches of fluorescent orange material on the head, chest and back combined at all times while afield. They also are advised that it's illegal to hunt, chase or disturb deer with a firearm within 150 yards of any occupied building without the occupant's permission.

All hunters who take a deer must fill out their harvest tag and attach it to the deer's ear before moving the carcass. The tag can be secured to the base of the ear with a string drawn very tightly, if the hunter plans to have the deer mounted. Cutting a slit in the ear to attach the tag will require additional work by a taxidermist.

The harvest report card - provided with every license sold - must be mailed to the Game Commission within 10 days after taking the deer. Hunters who lose or misplace a deer harvest report card are urged to use or copy the big game harvest report card found on Page 33 of the 2006-2007 Pennsylvania Hunting and Trapping Digest, which also is provided to all license-buyers.

It is illegal to use a vehicle to locate game; to have more than 25 people in a hunting party; or to use portable two-way radios to alert hunters about the presence or approach of game.

Deer hunters in WMUs 3C, 3D and portions of 3B, 4E, and 2G with an unused bear license also are reminded they may take a bear from Nov. 27 to Dec. 2 in the state's extended black bear season.   Bear licenses must be purchased prior to Nov. 27. Bear licenses may be purchased at any issuing agent or through "The Outdoor Shop" on the Game Commission's website (www.pgc.state.pa.us).  Web orders are provided a "web order number" that must be written on the current general hunting license and signed.

Created in 1895 as an independent state agency, the Game Commission is responsible for conserving and managing all wild birds and mammals in the Commonwealth, establishing hunting seasons and bag limits, enforcing hunting and trapping laws, and managing habitat on the 1.4 million acres of State Game Lands it has purchased over the years with hunting and furtaking license dollars to safeguard wildlife habitat.  The agency also conducts numerous wildlife conservation programs for schools, civic organizations and sportsmen's clubs. 

The Game Commission does not receive any general state taxpayer dollars for its annual operating budget.  The agency is funded by license sales revenues; the state's share of the federal Pittman-Robertson program, which is an excise tax collected through the sale of sporting arms and ammunition; and monies from the sale of oil, gas, coal, timber and minerals derived from State Game Lands.

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