Sportsman's Blog

Before I get deep into the crux of today’s blog post, take a look at these three videos taken about 5 1/2 weeks ago on my farm using the new Cuddeback Attack trail cameras.   Each video lasts about 30 seconds and in general shows a small buck browsing on some field corn.

At this stage during the crop growing year it appears the deer is consuming the secondary, more immature ears of corn that commonly grows on the corn stalks.   Thus, this deer AT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR does not appear to be doing any particular damage to the standing corn or its eventual crop yield.

That being said, earlier in the summer when all of the corn ears are immature and this deer goes browsing throughout the field…significant damage can then occur when deer choose to dine as you have witnessed.

Shifting gears just a bit…I did something fun with these videos.   I showed them to the neighbor who rents my farm and grows these crops.   This particular farmer also happens to be one of my hunting buddies each fall.   I told him, “look at that deer.   It just stands there defiantly taunting you to come get him if you don’t like what he’s doing.”

My buddy agreed, this fall that particular deer is what he is targeting as the deer of his choice during the firearms season.

Now, keep in mind this vendetta brewing between the farmer and the buck deer is all in good fun.   After all, isn’t that what the hunting experience should be all about anyway?   Everyone heads out into the woods for very personal reasons…and it’s quite fair to say not every hunter is motivated by the same set of factors.

Yet, oddly enough…if this deer traveled just 7 miles to the northeast of my farm’s location…it would then exist in a Minnesota deer zone protecting bucks like this one.   In fact, here in Minnesota we have a three year experimental project underway that protects bucks that don’t sport at least 4–points on one antler.   This buck clearly does not.

Yes, the antler-obsessed hunters here in Minnesota have long pushed for legislation to manage the hunting experience the way they believe it should be conducted.   Apparently it’s not good enough to use self-control whereby selectively harvesting a mature deer that fits the criteria of a specific hunting party.   Nope, this group of folks want to see Antler Point Restriction (APR) rules spread across the land like a wildfire on the windy prairie.

Okay, I’m not going to discuss the pros and cons of APR in this blog posting.   Instead, what I am going to underscore is the misguided notion among some that all of us hunt for the same reasons.   In fact, I will even go so far as to say pushing for the establishment of certain minimum restrictions on the size a buck deer before it can be legally harvested is downright selfish on the part of the hunters requesting such a prohibition.

This farm where I now hunt and live was first settled by my family back in 1856–-two years before Minnesota even gained statehood.   My ancestors traded provisions for venison with a friendly tribe of Chippewa Indians during those first years so I have a long-standing familial connection with deer hunting taking place on my property.   Indeed, I take personal exception with anyone pushing for game management actions only to better satiate their obsession for shooting a big deer.

Don’t get me wrong…I like big deer, too.   Over the years this farm has been home to some big deer as shown here and here, for example.   Yet, I am fervently opposed to the DNR telling me I am restricted from shooting certain deer because their management objectives are geared solely to satisfy the whims of a certain class of hunters.   When you manage for some hunters and not for all…it fuels a certain elitism that simply has no place in hunting, at least not in my honest opinion.

Yes, thank goodness I still live in a MN deer hunting zone that is not yet affected by rules governing the size of the buck I can harvest in my woods.   Just like the farmer who plans to hunt the particular deer shown in the videos this November, our reasons for hunting are often quite varied and not always fueled by the same passion for large racks.

I think it’s high time both hunters and DNR game managers alike begin to recognize there are differences in what drives each of us to pursue this wonderful sport called deer hunting.   To think we all go hunting for deer sporting massive racks is, well…rather naive at best.   If game management doesn’t involve the physical health of the deer herd, then it ought to be up to the individual hunter—and only that hunter—to choose what constitutes a “shootable” deer.

©2011 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Filed under: Current Outdoor Issues, Department of Natural Resources, Fish/Wildlife Research and Management, Hunting | 2 Comments »

The Minnesota DNR held a final teleconference today on their Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance efforts new Pine Island, Minnesota—the location where a single deer tested positive for the disease late last year.

I won’t cover most of the details that can be read in the press release found HERE, but what follows are some tidbits of information gleaned from the question/answer session of the teleconference:

• The MN DNR was very pleased with the cooperation and assistance by the public on this matter.   In particular, they were impressed how well the private landowners and several conservation organizations worked together on this important effort.
• The fact that no additional deer tested positive is seen as great news from the DNR that this situation was caught on the front-end so early.
• This fall hunters can expect a CWD Zone declared in the hunting regulations.   It will likely be the same area that was used in this most recent surveillance effort.
• This means there will be continued MANDATORY testing of all deer taken within this zone.   In fact, many people in the public have been requesting this mandatory testing continue.   There will be voluntary testing in many of the deer management zones surrounding the CWD zone, once this is established.
• It also means this zone will likely see more liberalized season and bag limits.   This is mostly due to the fact the area tends to have a high wintering deer density which can add to the CWD problem.
• It is highly likely the fall firearms season for the CWD zone will be lengthened with fewer restrictions.
• At this point the DNR is not sure if this will be a short or long term management concern.   It will depend on what happens in the future in regards to testing results.
• The DNR hopes to have the fall deer hunting plans (hunting regs) finalized within the next month or so.   This will give hunters in this area ample lead time so they can plan their fall hunting activities.
• Lou Cornicelli, DNR big game coordinator, indicated that within this recent testing area on average there are 3.5 to 4.5 deer harvested per square mile (during a normal fall hunting season).   Because this area historically has such high deer densities, that is the reason why the DNR will likely want to increase those harvest numbers.
• In fact, the DNR figures this fall they will likely get a surveillance size quite similar in scope to what was recently just accomplished.
• The DNR will not be doing any additional population assessments until late fall/winter.   With the summer foliage and dispersion of the herd it is just too difficult to do with any effectiveness.
• Expect the recreational feeding ban for deer to remain in effect for some time within this CWD area of concern.

– = End of update = –

©2011 Jim Braaten.  All Rights Reserved.  No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Filed under: Current Outdoor Issues, Department of Natural Resources, Fish/Wildlife Research and Management, Hunting | Comments Off

A quick update as to where things currently stand with the Minnesota DNR’s Chronic Wasting Disease management efforts near Pine Island, Minnesota.   In a nutshell, efforts are progressing nicely as the DNR is pleased with the on-going testing efforts.

Here are some tidbits I gleaned from today’s teleconference:

• The Minnesota DNR website has been updated including maps indicating where the samples have originated in the CWD surveillance area.
• Landowner shooting permits ended as of February 28^th.
• In total, approximately 300 landowner shooting permits were distributed resulting in nearly 500 deer taken for sampling.
• Dr. Lou Cornicelli, CWD Response Team incident commander, has high praise for the landowners in this area.   He states they did a fantastic job in helping with the testing effort.   He goes on to say they have been very supportive and overall been just tremendous people to work with during this phase of the response just ending.
• Over the next two weekends the USDA sharpshooters will be working aggressively to complete the deer sampling effort.
• So far the sharpshooters have accounted for about 100 deer.   They were trying to work properties adjacent to where landowner shooting was taking place, but the deer were too scattered to get desired results given their techniques.
• As of now about 645 deer have been taken in the testing effort (this includes yearlings which are tested but not included in the study numbers).   Of that 645 deer, 427 deer fall within the surveillance group for the study (remember, 900 deer total are needed).   That being said, this CWD management effort is about 1/2 way there in terms of the sample numbers needed.
• A total of 603 samples have been returned from the testing lab so far all showing negative (no disease present).   The DNR feels they are getting good distribution throughout the surveillance range for these samples.
• The DNR also did an aerial survey on Monday and found the deer densities (distribution) are still where they expected them to be.
• The aerial survey also showed 100% compliance with the recreational deer feeding ban so no enforcement activities have been necessary.
• In terms of the available venison, so far the list has grown to over 300 people meaning nearly all of the harvested deer for sampling is eventually going into the food chain.

– = End of update = –

©2011 Jim Braaten.  All Rights Reserved.  No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Filed under: Current Outdoor Issues, Department of Natural Resources, Fish/Wildlife Research and Management, Hunting | Comments Off

Just quickly, here are some tidbits of information as gleaned from the Minnesota DNR’s weekly teleconference on their Chronic Wasting Disease testing effort near Pine Island, Minnesota:

• First off, these weekly briefings might be put on hold for future weeks until either a significant discovery occurs or until greater numbers of tested animals have been completed.
• On Monday night there was a public information meeting in Pine Island (MN) where over 350 concerned citizens turned out to show their interest in this subject.   The meeting was very civil, polite and most would agree it was constructive.
• In general, the Minnesota DNR is finding great cooperation from both the general public and landowners on this effort now three weeks into it.   Dr. Lou Cornicelli states he could not be more pleased with how everything is working out so far.
• At this point 300 shooting permits have been issued to cooperating landowners.   On average about 25 more permits are being issued daily.
• As of 9:00am this morning there was a total of 260 deer that have been killed for testing.   Of this, only 180 deer are considered adults.   Note: Only adult deer are being counted toward the 900 deer that are needed for the completion of this CWD survey.
• However, ALL DEER are being tested as part of the effort.
• So far, there have been 240 test results returned with NO POSITIVES for CWD.
• It should be noted that deer less than 12 months old generally do not test positive for CWD…that’s why testing adults is more important.
• Due to the warmer weather as of late, the DNR has been forced to go out and get a bigger cooler facility (available tomorrow) so they can handle all the carcasses while the testing samples are out.
• A list of about 200 people from the general public has put in a request for deer meat.   Bottom line is most of the deer taken in this surveillance effort will be consumed once they have been tested safe.
• The MN DNR signed a contract late last week with the USDA Wildlife Service team (sharpshooters) who have used this week to establish landowner contact and formulate their culling plans.
• It was pointed out that the sharpshooters are able to kill the deer over bait because ALL deer that come to the bait are subsequently killed for testing.
• The sharpshooters will likely begin their efforts early next week.   They expect this involves about 8 to 10 shooters who generally work alone or in teams of two.
• The DNR felt it necessary to supplement the efforts of the landowners with the federal sharpshooters in order to get the necessary testing samples taken prior to spring.
• A deer feeding ban went into effect in four counties as of Monday.   During the aerial fly-overs the DNR was able to identify 39 recreational bait sites where people were feeding deer.   As of today, 25 of those people have been contacted or attended the public meeting on Monday night.   So far everyone has suspended those feeding efforts as requested.   The remaining 14 sites will be contacted today or tomorrow.   Generally there’s been good cooperation all around.
• Oxbow park has a deer population of about 100 animals and the sharpshooters will likely be working at this location.
• It was asked if the recent warm weather has created any concerns for the DNR.   At this point it has only created meat storage issues.   However, if the warm weather continues and more of the snow pack disappears rapidly…this could become a bigger issue.   Here in Minnesota after March 1^st all bets are usually off with counting on snow to linger for any big duration of time.

For additional information on Minnesota’s ongoing CWD effort please click HERE.

– = End of update = –

©2011 Jim Braaten.  All Rights Reserved.  No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Filed under: Current Outdoor Issues, Department of Natural Resources, Fish/Wildlife Research and Management, Hunting | Comments Off