Uncertain is located in WNY and not sure what my age has anything to do with it but I have hunted the woods of NY and PA for the last 38 years…….Does my opinion count now?? How so???…….other than anecdotal stories about how you see bigger deer than you did when you were a kid. EXACTLY the kinds of “stories” that have little to no value in this discussion. I see and kill WAY bigger bucks in NY than I ever did when I was younger as well. Obviously not due to AR or any other imaginary factors.
They have done NOTHING to measurably or significantly improve the quality of bucks in the state. ANY program geared towards improving a deer herd should provide MEASURABLE results in no more than 3 years and it’s been 22 years since AR were started in PA LOL. I hunt literally right above you (within an hour of PA line) and we only venture down there if we are EXTREMELY bored and just a tad lazy as the drive to QUALITY state land in Ohio is under 3 hours. I don’t know of a single person that given the chance to hunt ANY state in the country would even name PA in their top 15 choices…….and that’s after 22 years of AR Right above you in WNY I realize the reflex reaction is to give personal perspective or anecdotal stories of someone seeing more or bigger deer. They are just meaningless……..The difference in the deer I see now vs when I was younger is unreal. Tons more, bigger and older…….and AR has absolutely NOTHING to do with it.
It's always puzzled me why a state would allow more than one buck per hunter per year? I've heard complaints of too many doe in some areas of certain states, but not too many bucks. It's usually the doe that need to be harvested to try to maintain a healthy buck to doe ratio, not the other way around. What am I missing?
Ask the PA hunters. They will tell you. Since you are the expert on the subject then produce some data.
Exactly. I already mentioned that I've asked a LOT of hunters if they have seen evidence of more bigger bucks since AR's took effect, and the answer from almost every one of them was a resounding YES. Why wouldn't I believe what they're saying, especially since it's what I've seen? Maybe, because they're just "stories"?
For the most part, I agree. Wish Maryland was a one buck state, but i do enjoy hunting bucks in general. So im torn on which way i would want it. So as of now MD is a 3 buck state across all weapons. I cant find a doe to save my life. If i had to guess, i probably see 10 bucks to 1 doe. Not counting fawns. Majority of these bucks are 1.5-2.5 year olds. As of now ive only seen 3 mature bucks in person, while hunting this season.
Ha, 35 i think just during the normal seasons. 15-Bow, 10-Rifle, 10-muzzleloader. Then there are special hunts and areas that dont count towards that bag limit. Dont know why everyone doesnt come to MD! Haha
I like anecdotal stories around the campfire as much as the next guy but they are completely useless in this discussion.
