LAST EDITED ON Mar-05-06 AT 07:34PM (MST)[p]oregonbowhunter, if you came up with an idea, we'd all be real happy! A quick recap on the predator issue for you. The goverment used to have hired trappers and lion hunters and they used to put out 1080 poison baits for coyotes. Lions didn't exist in my country. State harvest records back that statement up as well as conversations with the government guys. In college guys taking wildlife mangement were taught that predators could not control a prey species. This theory based mostly on the lynx/snowshow hare relationship and assumed to be true for all. Game managers were taught and believed it was impossible for predators to have any impact on game animals. As time went on Nixon outlawed the use of 1080 poison in about 1971. Then fur prices went sky high and trappers were taking lots of coyotes and cats. That slowed down about the mid to late 1980's. Most agree that mule deer populations were at an all time high about 1988. Hunting was good! I saw lots of deer! We had our drought years and our bad winters and the deer survived and prospered. Heck they evolved thru all that stuff, they can handle it. Then the elevation of the status predators came about. Lions were made big game animals, some states outlawed trapping, and predator populations took off. Lions have been completely protected for 30 years in CA. And lions do migrate to find open territories. You can have a lot of lions around and never see any, cats are just like that. I agree that habitat is the #1 thing in having game populations, no habitat no deer, that's simple to see. But I believe that high predator numbers can trump the habitat card. What does it matter what shape the range is in if 80% of the fawns are eaten in the first year. Do a google search, type in mule deer, predators, coyotes and see what comes up. There were some long term studies done in CA, one for 15 years. The deer herd went from 18-19,000 animals down to less than 2,000. The scientists arrived at the conclusion that the lions were the main culprit. One lion for every 30 deer is way to high! Do you hear that study ever sited as proof? Nope it's the lack of rain or too much snow or not enough rain in june, or too much rain in april, etc etc. I strongly feel that it's just politics at play. What game department will, would, or has stood up and said we need extensive predator control work if we are to increase our deer herds. None. Everyone is afraid to honestly take the issue on. Can you imagine the letters to the editor that would create !!! Those good old days are gone. We will have low deer numbers for along time. I can't wait till the wolf gets here.
----------------------------------------
Measure wealth by the things you have,, for which you would not take money.