To be honest, I don't even remember where I came up with this graphic but do think it came from an honest source.
Sounds about right, when Europeans arrived in North America the game population started going down and hit it's bottom around 1900. Then during the 20th century the conservation movement really took root, and along with the national parks system Teddy Roosevelt started states started implementing hunting and fishing rules and bag limits. My dad, who grew up in the 60's, says he never even saw a deer here in Ohio as a kid. I remember when turkeys first started showing up 10-15 years ago, it's pretty common to see them now too. I think most animals' populations are back up to pre-European settlement numbers now.
^^^^ everything he said and kids nowadays hunt less.. fewer hunters.. NY fish and game just started ad campaign to encourage more women!
They claim there are fewer hunters and our DNR did some stupid things trying to sell more licenses. But as for the number of hunters, I will say without a doubt there are lots and lots more hunters now than there used to be. I could give lots of examples but one is right where we live. I used to be able to hunt 3 square miles anytime I wanted and would rarely see another hunter except for November 15 and Thanksgiving weekend. Now I hunt only on our land. To our north we have 7 hunters next to us. To our east we have 6. To our south we don't know how many but guessing 15. To our west we have 13. Holy rats. I used to have this land to hunt but now we are surrounded. Best if you don't have to track a buck...
We live right in the middle of suburbia and never saw deer unless we drove out about 15 minutes. Now we have a buck that visits our backyard that's only .6 acre and right on a main, busy road. I'd say the population needs a little thinning...
We've had a lot of deer in our suburban neighborhood all of the 28 years we've been here. They would sometimes walk down the street like a dog would just taking it slow. I remember seeing a rub on a tree in my backyard and if I want key up at night, would turn on the outside light to catch a glimpse. Never did though. Deer would stand outside and look in the dining room window. We still get plenty almost every night passing through. All this on quarter acre plots. Next county down they only have a bow season and they are overrun with deer. They call them suburban rats. The browse is good around homes because people don't plant deer resistant bushes and the deer feast on the plantings. Then they complain about the deer. Go figure.
I'm sure the car insurance companies would agree with you. I've heard from a couple sources that they constantly lobby the states to raise the bag limits on deer.
there are quite a few reasons that all add up, I too seldom saw deer 40 years ago now its almost a daily occurrence, another thing I notice that Raptors have made a huge comeback in our area starting to see bald eagles occasionally here in south central Va. the raptors are coming back I think due to a couple things, one, the Pcb's I think that's what they are called , that caused weak eggshells have long since been banned and 2 in our area the old practice of "hawk traps" used by chicken farmers was common until like 10 years ago apparently the penalties for them have been stiffened greatly im sure there have been things similar to what has brought the raptors back that affect deer populations as well, note also the primary predators have not bounced back as fast if at all, we have literally no mountain lions around here any more last verified sighting in Amherst county Va was back in the late 70's early 80's as I recall.
Mike, I think you have that right. The past three years I've seen a Bald Eagle twice. One male and one female. First time I've seen them in the 28 years we've lived here. They are now in the lower Hudson Valley, NY. They were only in the upper region on the Hudson River, but now seem to be moving inland and lower down towards lakes and reservoirs. Another, is the fact that a large Redtailed Hawk has moved in and it is huge. Largest one I've ever seen. A Cooper's hawk took a run at our bird feeders a couple months back. Never seen them here before. Mountain lions have been spotted here on an irregular basis. Some say they are pets that someone released, others say they've been released by the state. Truth is, that the state did release some a while back.
With no amount of exaggeration, most everyone I know who has been driving for a while has had one or more collisions with a deer. It gets worse every year. Shame that everyone's shrubs gets eaten up. Maine is more wooded now. "Maine has been harvested for timber for well over two centuries, yet the state has more forest today than 100 years ago. During the 1700s and 1800s much of southern and central Maine was cleared for farms. But since agriculture began declining in the 1800s much of that land has grown back to woods. Evidence of that is all over in the rock walls snaking through stands of mature trees"
I watched a national geographic program on Yellowstone last night and the elk and bison populations are way down. Oh, and the wolf populations are way up since they were reintroduced back there.
Same things here in OH. Bald Eagles nesting nearby, see Fox semi regularly, various types of Hawks everywhere...I've got a lil hawk that likes to poach his dinner off my bird feeder in the winter. I had never seen a wild Turkey here until about 15 years ago...now they are everywhere! And the deer, geez louise, they are over running the place, I have some Oak trees that I planted ~10 years ago, the big ones are 12-15' tall, but there are a couple that are only 3-4' because the deer eat the new growth off every year! I told the neighbor, who is big bow hunter, to PLEASE come and use my woodpiles as blinds when bow season is in!
We do have a LOT more raptors here in Ohio, to the point that I think it's time to start thinning the herd on hawks at least. I remember 10 years ago I could go rabbit hunting and could expect to kick up 10-15 rabbits in a day, now we're lucky to get 3 or 4. I blame the hawks, I see them daily hanging out by road ditches.
I have a sheriff deputy friend who has trail cam pics of a mountain lion last year on the Albemarle/Nelson border.
wow! no kidding? that's good only cats ive seen around here have been bobcats (plenty of them) they may have benefitted from the lack of mountain lions competing for prey I suspect their food sources overlapped somewhat
