The Never-Ending Question

By Merrill Sweitzer

How many deer do we really have in Pennsylvania? That's a question that never seems to go away - especially after the sparse deer sightings in 2007.

Here are some things to consider when attempting to answer this question:

• How many coyotes, black bears, and bobcats are there, and how many deer did they kill in 2007?
• How many deer were killed during the hunting season by hunters?
• How many road kills were there?
• How many deer were killed during the combined archery seasons?
• How many deer were killed in archery season that were not reported?
• How many deer were killed during the combined muzzleloader seasons?
• How many deer were killed out of season between Jan. 15 and Oct. 1 by property owners and poachers?
• How many deer died from age?
• How many starved to death?
• How many deer died from ice-related injuries?
• How many deer died from disease?
• How many fawns were produced in 2007?
• How many fawns were killed by coyotes, by black bears and by bobcats?
• How many fawns have been born in each of the past 10 years?

Just to throw out some numbers as a point of reference, let's assume there are 160,000 coyotes, 12,000 black bears, and 5,000 bobcats in Pa., and each killed one deer in 2007. That would be a total of 177,000. Add 300,000 kills by hunters (100,000 bucks and 200,000 does) and now the figure grows to 477,000. Add another 40,000 deaths from road kills, and how about the 200,000 fawns that were lost as a result of the 200,000 doe shot by hunters? Now our total death for 2007 is 717,000.

That's 717,000 deer compared to the total deer population of what? Eight years ago, the PGC deer herd estimate was about 1,500,000. I don't know what the PGC estimate is for 2007, but I would venture to guess it is way below 1,000,000. Subtract 717,000 from 1,000,000 and what do you have left? 283,000. That is certainly a shocking figure - no wonder the hunters are alarmed! No wonder there is little deer sign or deer sightings in the woods. If this 717,000 mortality rate continues in 2008, 2009, and 2010, there will be no deer left to hunt.

When are the Pa. hunters going to be told the truth regarding the number of white-tailed deer that we have in Pa., and when will they be given an accurate mortality figure? When is the PGC going to stop killing the deer? We need a moratorium on antlerless deer on public land, and the PGC needs to seriously consider the impact of predators on our deer herd.

Why couldn't we have a hunter questionnaire issued with each hunting license to enable the PGC to gather hunter opinions, observations, concerns, and suggestions? Compile the hunter input and publish the results yearly, including a copy with each license issued.

The PGC needs hunters, and hunters want deer. Sorry, Mr. Roe, but squirrels just don't cut it. Unfortunately, there is a huge communication gap between the employer (PGC) and the employee (the hunters). There is a lot of valuable customer input out there that is not being collected and considered.

Management of the deer herd in Pa. is important, but it can only be accomplished with good communications and feedback between PGC and the hunters. Pa. hunters are customers and need to be treated accordingly.

Pennsylvania has an estimated 1.4 million hunters and anglers spending more than $3.5 billion a year on hunting and fishing, creating 51,000 jobs and $1.7 billion worth of paycheck income, generating $371 million in state/local taxes. These are substantial contributions to the economy of Pa. which continue to depreciate.

With strong urging from the Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), it appears the PGC has a goal to reduce the deer population to five deer per square mile (640 acres) in the 12-county area of north-central Pa. known as the Pennsylvania Wilds.

Having personally hunted in Lycoming County (2G and 4D) for the past 10 years, I have seen the deer herd dissipate each year. But without a doubt, the 2007 deer sightings were the most sparse yet. The absence of deer tracks after a snowfall merely confirms what we already know: the deer are just not there.

We can only hope that the proposed "independent" audit is truly that and will shed some light on the deficiencies in the deer management plan. An objective analysis of the deer management plan is long overdue. Whoever does the audit should identify facts bearing on the problem, discuss and draw conclusions from the facts, and make recommendations.

If there is not a solution to this problem soon, the economic impact for Pennsylvania will be huge. Preserving the sport of deer hunting will be huge also. Both depend on the resolution of the current deer hunter dissatisfaction with the existing PGC deer management programs, its policies, procedures and practices that are producing a few large antlered bucks and a rapidly disappearing white-tailed deer population.

Merrill is a USP Member who lives on Jobs Run Road east of Salladasburg in Lycoming County. He is a retired Lt. Colonel in the United States Marine Corps and an avid deer and turkey hunter.

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