New mule deer video airing

S

Salmonfg

Guest
For those of you who subscribe to the Sportsman Channel, there is a new program about mule deer airing this week and next (also into the future). It is titled "Mule Deer: Saving the Icon of the West." The idea and much of the subject matter for the show was generated by the Mule Deer Working Group, a Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies-sanctioned committee that has been working on mule deer issues for several years and has produced many publications intended to improve mule deer management. There is a trailer/promo for the show at http://www.thesportsmanchannel.com/programming/descriptions/description.php?ID=503 , as well as air times.

Tom Keegan
IDFG Salmon Region Wildlife Manager
 
Go to the Mule Deer Working Groups web sight. Great place to learn a lot about Mule Deer.

Those who say preditors don't have much to do with lower Mule Deer
populations need to read some of the studies you can find there.
 
I am excited to see it.
Sorry in advance for the following cynical response, but let me guess:
Mule Deer are on a constant decline due to:
-Lack of winter Range
-Change in habitat
-Predators

I just hope this program spends some time talking about:
-Who is going to lead the solution
-How we can solve it

I believe it is time to quit talking about the problem, and start demanding some solutions. Game Management as is, IS NOT going to get it done.
We need money spent, new solutions, and we need to QUIT saying nothing can be done.
We can solve this problem, not with 29 units in Utah, not with less hunters, but with Money, and NEW solutions.
We need to treat every Female Deer, as a resource that cannot be eliminated! Whatever kills a DOE, needs to be stopped. We can fix it through: New Technology, and Funds.

ok, I am done.
 
Bowhunt.

I agree with your call to action. What I don't understand is why 29 units (or the concept of smaller management areas) is not going to allow for helping?

So far I have people saying a shorter season doesn't effect the deer and people such as yourself saying less tags won't effect the mule deer. I guess that can be argued.

However, I really don't see how you can blame or say that having smaller management units won't allow for helping out mule deer in the future?

Should we just open up the Limit Entry areas to General? If not, then what you say makes no sense. Couldn't we have more tags and larger management areas if we got the book cliffs and the others over to general hunts? And by your logic those smaller limited entry units and lower tag numbers aren't helping.
 
LAST EDITED ON Dec-28-11 AT 06:49PM (MST)[p]Bowhunt,you are right. Funds are what make things happen.

I wonder if Founder could line up a live feed of this program onto this sight and follow it up with a fund raiser for a few good Mule Deer causes.

And maybe get some of these Biologist from the Mule Deer Working Groups to log on here and point people to some shovel ready projects.

Most folks don't get [or watch] the Sportsman channel.
 
LAST EDITED ON Dec-28-11 AT 07:28PM (MST)[p]LAST EDITED ON Dec-28-11 AT 07:25?PM (MST)

I get so sick of groups like the muledeer Foundation saying that poor habitat, development and weather are the cause to the muledeer decline. While those are major factors, in my opinion they are over shadowed by miss managment from the Game and fish departments. Take wyoming for example the wyoming game and fish have admitted we lost 75% of our deer in western and south western wyoming last year but yet we had a full length season this year and the same amount of tags were issued this year as last.Nothing was done and will ever be done from a management stand point to help the herds come back. Energy development continues to destroy western wyomings winter ranges. Making it even harder for the deer to survive yet the game and fish are still letting just as many people as always hunt these deer and doing nothing from a managment stand point to counter act the efects on the herd from energy development. Its these types of issues that need to be brought to light by groups like the MDF and TV shows like this one. If they dont they will never get to the true hart of the problem that is making our muledeer herds decline.
 
Wyoming lost up to 75% of the FAWNS in some areas. Not total deer.

After reading all the bashing of wildlife agencies I wonder why some of you don't go out and get a job with them. You seem to know everything, and if you want to change the way deer are managed, go get a job and do it yourself.
 
I have been looking at deer in wyoming almost everyday since Nov and I am here to tell Its 75% of our total deer not just fawns we lost in some areas its even more than 75% some areas there are no deer at all. Besides 75% of fawns is alot to loose and something should have been done from a management stand point to help the herd out. With a loss of 75% of our fawns like they say how many mature do you think we lost(almost all bucks over 3 years old are now dead)? Think before you before you get on here and defend incompetent wildlife agencies like the wyoming game and fish.
 
LAST EDITED ON Dec-30-11 AT 10:45AM (MST)[p]Hi All,
Hope your holidays were good, here are some more thoughts:

-29 units will not fix a declining Deer Herd, it will fix a declining Buck to Doe ratio, since they have mandated an increase...but it will not increase Deer numbers. Hey it is fun to see a herd of 5 deer and have 3 be bucks, but I would rather see 25 deer and have 3 be bucks.
Killing less bucks, and mico managing will not create more DOES.

-The FG does a great job! I think they have identified the causes of the declining herds very well. WE JUST NEED TO FIX IT.
We cannot fix it by business as usual, and by business at current prices.

-New technology, new ways of handling the declining FEMALE DEER POPULATION, have to be created and deployed FAST!

Predators, we need a new way of controlling Coyots
Winter, we need new and cheaper ways of feeding
Range, we need cheaper and faster ways of fixing it.

We have lived with the old way of managing Deer for 50 years. At the same time, we have changed the way we do everything else. It is time to change.

It is going to take, MONEY, and Politics to get it done.
Our Western Leaders, Primarily Governors, need to understand that we will not re-elect them unless it is fixed.
 
Hi NON,

In my humble and un-educated opinion...it should come from 2 places:

1: Re allocation of FG funds to focus on fixing not studying. You can find out how much they spend easily.

2: Addition funds diverted to this Shrinking Revenue Stream, by each state. Go see how much Idaho lost this year due to shrinking herds.

States need to focus on getting the revenue back, and it will only happen when they fix herds.
We need to focus on diverting the attention of our Government to this issue.
 
looked at the trailer and set the dvr!! Man are they true with the increase in the wolve population it is hurting the mule deer drastically.
 
bowhunt-Good points,but in this day and age,finding any funding at all from most state govts will be next to impossible.I agree that G&F depts could shift funding.After all,mule deer are the cash cow of most western G&F depts.I wish they would put more priority on protecting and expanding herds.I usually attend all meetings put on by G&F,but my frustration level has reached an all-time high.The Wyoming Range Initiative meetings they put on appear to me to be nothing more than a sham to make the public think that they care what we think.The first round of meetings were very well attended.The follow-up meeting(around a month ago)was not well attended at all.Kinda looks like a lot of people feel the same way I do.I did not attend the follow-up meeting,but a couple of my buddies did,and they told me only a few were in attendance.As far as the wolves go-why are herds decreasing in areas where there are no wolves?There are so many factors involved in this.G&F cannot control most of those factors.The only thing they can really control is when and how many of us hunt.In spite of constantly decreasing herd numbers,it's business as usual with G&F.In spite of a staggering loss from last winter,all seasons remained the same,including doe hunts in most of sw Wy.I'm no biologist,and I really don't know how you fix this.All I know is what most states are doing isn't working in terms of raising deer populations.Looking forward to seeing this program.
 

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