No...what I'm saying is the number of people hunting is and will continue to decline.
Open house meet-greet
- Thread starter brock ratcliff
- Start date
No...what I'm saying is the number of people hunting is and will continue to decline.
That is simply not true around my area. Maybe declining from historic highs, but not anything recent. You have to consider that as many farms are sold and put into 10 acre lots, people are buying those lots and each lot will have a tree stand sitting behind the house. There are a lot less larger private land owners, and a TON more smaller private land owners. These people are not required to buy a hunting license yet they are still hunting.. I see it more and more every year. If the lot has a tree in it or big enough to fit a ground blind in it, there will be someone hunting it. The number of licenses sold do not accurately reflect hunter numbers.
Not entirely true Lundy. I just bought a property. I plan on hunting it. I am still going to buy a license. It certainly isn't going to be the only property I hunt. I would venture a speculation here that most people willing to hunt their 10acre parcel are probably willing to get a license to hunt public land or any other parcels they previously had permission to hunt. I can't think of a single person I know that owns large land that EXCLUSIVELY hunts their own land only.
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There has been an increase (about 10%) in license sales since the mid 90's. I would suspect having a good deer herd for several of those years is the reason for that.
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I disagree. There are not as many "general participants" as there once was, when everyone went out to shoot a few rabbits and squirrels every year. But, I think as a whole, today's hunters are more "serious", with more time, money, and effort invested in the pursuit.
Mountaineer
Banned
Please direct me to publicland that has a Hunter participation problem in Ohio.
In my world, Hunter densities continue to rise and rise unlike ranch rex :smiley_bril:
In my world, Hunter densities continue to rise and rise unlike ranch rex :smiley_bril:
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Lundy
Member
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Hey hickslawns, it wasn't me saying anything this time!!
I'm just doing what Joe told me to do "get the fuck out of the way" for now.
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Hey, it wasn't me saying anything this time!!
I was gonna let you take the blame though!
Milo
Tatonka guide.
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I agree with this for sure, some self inflicted and some not so much self inflicted..
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"For example, deer numbers have been increasing for the last 50 to 75 years and they still are. More and more deer populations are becoming unhuntable for various reasons. We believe this will continue, at least in parts of the whitetail’s range. Another trend that we see is decreasing numbers of deer hunters. Since 1975, there has been a steady decrease in the percent of the population that hunts. It has fallen from 8% down to about 6%. At the same time, the total number of hunters has decreased from 17% to slightly over 16%. This is a small decrease but it seems to be real and follows a fairly steady increase for many years in total number of hunters...So it looks like in the future we will often be faced with too many deer and fewer hunters."
You dirty dog! LonewolfNopack- I am not going to repeat it. Sounds like you already read it. lmao
Sorry Lundy. My bad.
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I still do not agree. 6% of total population? What is the difference in the population from 1975 to today? Is 8% in 1975 about the same as 6% today? I don't see us running out of deer hunters, Mike, not in our lifetimes. Look at the boom in archery hunting, or heck, how about the hunter-related industries? In the 1970's you could buy Bear bows and Pete Rickards deer pee...compare that to today. Its a different world, yes. Dying, heck no!
Regarding urban sprawl and people moving into "deer woods"...I think the market has taken care of most of that. I haven't noticed many new developments popping up recently. People will not continue to move away from employment venues with gas approaching 4.00/gallon. The trick to dealing with deer in urbanized areas will be to get access via the community, as they have done around New Albany, and many other neighborhoods. People will get tired of the landscape eating vermin and allow bow hunting when it becomes a real issue, if that option is presented. Speaking of which, Tonk should NEVER list contraception as an option....Not when there are plenty of folks willing to shoot deer for free!
Regarding urban sprawl and people moving into "deer woods"...I think the market has taken care of most of that. I haven't noticed many new developments popping up recently. People will not continue to move away from employment venues with gas approaching 4.00/gallon. The trick to dealing with deer in urbanized areas will be to get access via the community, as they have done around New Albany, and many other neighborhoods. People will get tired of the landscape eating vermin and allow bow hunting when it becomes a real issue, if that option is presented. Speaking of which, Tonk should NEVER list contraception as an option....Not when there are plenty of folks willing to shoot deer for free!
Mountaineer
Banned
How do deer populations increase on lands that have open door policies?.
Who is writing this stuff??
Who is writing this stuff??
1976 population was - 218,035,000 x 8% = 17,442,800
Current Population - 313,132,714 x 6% = 18,787,963
1.3 million more hunters now...
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hmmm. Thanks.
I have to believe that today's hunters spend far more time in the field than did hunters of 50 years ago. I know I base things off personal observations, and they are not necessarily reflective of the whole, but my Dad and his bowhunting buddies probably only bowhunted a half dozen days a year when I was a kid. Mostly, they would take off on Saturday morning and return Saturday evening. That was it. They would hunt all of gun season, so essentially, they hunted 12 days a year at most. Mix in a couple of Saturday rabbit hunts and they were done. The idea of owning more than one bow, a couple of shotguns, and a 22 would have been obsurd to them. There may not be as many hunters today, but I believe we are far more passionate about it than our forefathers.
My Dad didn't hunt, but listening to my uncles and great uncles, I would tend to agree with you. In regards to weaponry available, I have a couple I have been waiting on the right opportunity to spill some blood with.