Poser said:
http://www.northamericanwhitetail.com/2013/09/19/best-states-for-whitetail-hunting-in-2013/
One thing that I am getting sick of is the Mississippi ranking on all of these lists. No doubt that big bucks have been, are being, and will continue to be killed in MS, but to attribute this to a antler restriction that only protects yearling bucks is fairly ridiculous.
Actually, the AR's HAVE made a difference... not because protecting yearling bucks magically causes them to grow larger antlers in the future years, but because of the statewide change in hunter attitude to become more selective regarding harvesting of all younger bucks, even those young bucks which exceed the AR. Sure, the entire state is not on board, but it has made a difference overall in hunter attitude. Heck, when you have as many bucks as MS does, most don't have much trouble killing 2.5 or 3.5 y/o's despite being forced to pass on 1.5 y/o's
Furthermore, the data that the state game agency is releasing is absolute garbage and the Whitetail industry and QDMA are lapping it up. I recently heard a QDMA speaker quote this stat with a straight face: "40% of Bucks killed in MS are 4.5 years are older." I laughed out loud. I'm not slamming MS, by any means, but anyone who has been in the state of MS during hunting season (exclusive hunting clubs aside) is well aware of the fact that this stat is not only junk data, its insane to even throw that number, or anything close to it out there.
Actually the DMAP data is EXCELLENT, and the DMAP program is a huge asset MS has which makes it superior to TN. One just has to realize that the data has limitations and cannot be extrapolated to be applicable to the entire state. There are hundreds of properties in MS on the DMAP program, not just a few 'exclusive' hunting clubs. To remain the the DMAP program, EVERY single deer harvested must be weighed, jawbone pulled and saved for the biologist to age, lactation in does recorded, and points, beam length, and spread must be recorded on bucks. This data is then trended over the previous years in the program and the biologist makes recommendations for individual properties based on the landowners desired objectives (ie.... harvest more trophy bucks, more older bucks, more bucks in general, more deer in general, etc.... in other words, not every property is managed with the same goals in mind- other than herd health)
While TN's harvest data in the past has been far superior when extrapolating to statewide and occasionally even on county level, MS sample size is actually much larger and much more information is collected. Again, one just has to realize the limitations that MS data cannot be extrapolated to apply to the entire state.
Another point on DMAP... any property capable of sustaining 10 does per year harvest can enroll. And the program is completely free to the landowner. In TN, one must have 1000 CONTIGUOUS acres to utilize the TN version of DMAP... which is good for folks like BSK to keep them busy as a paid biological manager on some of the smaller properties :)
Again, I'm not knocking MS, I am merely criticising the propaganda campaign. Consider these factors:
1. Antler restriction protects bucks with less than 4 points, 12 inch spread in some parts of the state, 15 inch spread in others
2. Tens of thousands of deer are killed in front of dogs. I'm not knocking deer dogging, merely pointing out that it is is difficult to age a buck on the hoof and/or field judge antlers, when it is running. Are we implying that deer dogging culture in MS has teken to aging bucks on the hoof before shooting, or are we conveienatly overlooking this aspect of deer hunting altogether?
3. There is no check system
4. The harvest data is collected largely from the most exclusive clubs in the state which have their own management practices in place. In other words, Brett Favre kills a monster buck below the levee, it goes into data collection. Bubba Joe kills a buck in his backyard in Holly Springs and there is no record of it.
5. There is no way to verify this harvest data.
6. Outlaw culture, poaching and the killing of illegal bucks is rampant as is total lack of game law enforcement and consequences. Bucks not meeting the AR's are brought into deer processors with 0 shame or concern for infraction. I'm not criticising MS for this, but these aspects seem to conveniently "fly under the radar" with regards to MS being classified as a "progressive" deer hunting state. Furthermore, non residents in surrounding states are well aware that a fine for not having a license is actually cheaper than buying a non resident license.
Take these aspects into consideration and tell me with a straight face that 40% of the bucks killed in MS are 4.5 years old?
yes, I can tell you with a straight face that 50% of all bucks killed in MS are 4.5 yrs old or older (when looking at hundreds of DMAP programs and WMA data- again not statewide).
Heck, my friend on his 900 acre property last year killed 6 bucks... the YOUNGEST of which was a 5.5 yr old
My main beef with all of this is that the Whitetail industry is pointing to MS and saying "You are doing it right. While, TN, is apparently "doing it wrong." That is by no means a fair comparison because the date used to compare the two states is absolute garbage.
I don't believe it's just based on harvest data alone that causes the rest of America to believe that deer hunting is better in MS. There's a TON of other reasons why deer hunting and it's culture is better in MS
Remember, most of the pioneering deer biology out there came from MS state and GA. MS has been in the deer business for much, much longer than just about any other state.
Also, deer hunting is relatively new in TN (since the late 70's), whereas there have been huntable populations of whitetail in several parts of MS since the 40's and 50's
Combine that with proactive legislation to manage the herd (a good example would be the abolition of the requirement to use muzzleloaders in MS... why in the heck would a state that has too many deer want to limit/ reduce harvest during a portion of the season?)
And MS is much more friendly to youth hunters than TN. In addition to dedicated juvenile weekends, youth were allowed to use rifles during muzzleloader season (before doing away with ML season this year). This allows much younger kids to get into the woods with their parents and actually be the hunter instead of just the observer... sure, TN now allows youth to use crossbows during ML season, but my kids prefer their centerfires. TN requires mandatory hunter safety beginning at age 10... I'm definetly a proponent of formal hunter safety classes, but 10 is a bit young. Heck, I wont even be allowing my oldest (who is 11) to carry the rifle to/ from the stand. But I will say, TN DID make a favorable change to youth license costs a couple years ago... before that, a nonresident 12-16 y/o had to purchase an ADULT nonresident hunting license ($271), when most other states give nonresident youth a huge discount.
Speaking of hunting licences... they are more affordable in MS as well. The MS version of the TN's sportsman's licence costs residents a whopping $35 (must add $10 for ducks and $10 for saltwater fishing). How much is TN's sportsman's license now for residents??? $150 or so??
Which probably leads to the overarching Achille's heel TN and TWRA has when attempting to manage hunting...
Because hunting in TN is primarily funded by hunting license sales and limited by no state monies, every management decision TWRA has to make has to be done with regards to how it will affect license sales and revenue generated. That's not TWRA's fault, just the hand they are dealt. They've done a great job managing TN's wildlife with so little resources, and have been incredibly creative in creating 'add on' licences (the additional fee to shoot does during rifle season--- even for kids), but their hands are tied regarding many management decisions based on revenue generated.
Oh, btw, public land is unreal in MS... have you heard MS recently bought one of the 'exclusive' big buck hunting clubs outside Port Gibson and have turned it into a paid bowhunting paradise? 3500 acres, 6 are drawn each weekend for a 3 day hunt for $300. Tons of 130"- 160" bucks killed off that property in the past years. Fee schedule was set to make it revenue neutral for the state (ie, no additional state monies will be needed to maintain the property) So, if drawn, it's like doing a $2000 Tara Wildlife hunt for $300 (minus the lodging and meals)... just another option that's out there for many who are interested
I guess to sum it up is that there is a reason why deer hunting in MS is superior to deer hunting in TN. Don't get me wrong, I still LOVE to come back home to TN to hunt. I'll always consider TN 'home'. But when it comes to all aspects of deer hunting (freedom to use more/ different weapons, more freedom and better advice from biologist to manage individual properties, and just the longstanding culture of deer hunting in MS), MS wins over TN hands down. Lots more reasons to love hunting in MS than just the facts that MS kills more older deer and bigger deer than TN.
