I didn't even hardly bother to hunt deer up here this year...total of 3 days time with bow and gun combined. I just carried the .223 for 1.5 months chasing wolves all over the unit. The late snows we had did a number for sure, but the wolves harassed and chased deer out of the yards into areas with less food where they starved. The deer that stayed in the yards were at an extreme disadvantage with the crust that formed in mid February. Most in the area where I camtrapped were dead before the late snow issue and starvation set in, and never did consume all the browse available from the logging jobs there. I didn't check your link yet but I am pretty sure I read the same story in our local newspapers...sure the DNR still omitting the fact that wolves make a huge impact on local deer herds in the wintering areas, and killing more than they ever eat(feeding the eagles, ravens, and crows - crows which never used to overwinter here, now all over the place due to all the carcasses/leftovers). We don't have the disease issues many face starting just 100 miles south of here, but climate and predators prove a heavy burden on the population.
I would admit that weather played a major factor in opening weekend here in Missouri, but that doesn't account for all of the 23% down that we were as a state. I think EHD hit us just as hard this year as it did last year, it just happened a little later in the year so not as many people realized it was happening. Once it gets close to deer season, most people refrain from tromping around on their land so they probably just didn't find as many as the did the previous year. I also think the coyote population has exploded in this area. I found a fawn carcass last season under one of my stands that was obvious predation. I have been getting groups of coyotes in my trail cameras all season long. They seem to be running in a group of 3 or 4 and frequenting my deer food plots. This seems to be the trend with everyone that I've talked to. I read an article from MDC where the MDC deer biologist admits that they need to look into changing some regulations to help the deer population recover. Atleast they seem to admit there's an issue and are working towards correcting it.
I think its interesting that the Northern regions, where everyone cries wolf, was not hit nearly as hard as much of the rest of the midwest.
