2009 Wisconsin Hunting

[cschauf]

[font=calibri]Letter I sent to Mr. Matt Frank - Wisconsin Department of Natural Resourses Secretary (the boss). If you agree please email him at DNR.Secretary.Frank@wisconsin.gov[/font]
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[font=calibri]Also , write a letter to your editor. Here is a website that you can submit letters to many WI newspapers.
http://publishaletter.com/writealetter.jsp
 
Here are links to contact a few local TV stations. I ask every concerned hunter in WI to do that same! We have to be heard! I know there are a LOT of you out there. PLEASE - Speak up and be heard.
 
wxowae@wxow.com 
news8@wkbt.com
http://www.fox2548.com/subindex/about_us/contact_us  
 
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[font=calibri]Dear Mr. Frank,[/font]
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[font=calibri]                              My name is Chad Schauf. I live and hunt my own private land in Monroe County. I want to let you know that our deer herd is pathetically low. In my 31 years of hunting in WI, I have never had such a terrible hunt. Hours and hours on stand this gun season and I only saw a couple of deer. This is 120 acres of private prime hunting land. We have farmers crop's, two water holes, and three of our own food plots. This is the 5th season that we have owned and hunted this land and we have never shot even one doe on that property. Still, we see no deer! I spent a ton of time bow hunting this property this year as well. Both before and during the rut. In that time (I don't really know how many hours, probably over a hundred), I saw only three deer. Two small bucks and a larger racked buck. Not one single doe. I would sure like to know why the Wisconsin DNR wants our deer herd so small? I keep hearing things like population goals are 20 percent over goal for our area. Well, not my goal or any other hunter that I know of. Myself and my extended family and friends have a long history of deer hunting. It's something that I have looked forward to since as long as I can remember and I am almost 42 years old now. That family tradition is quickly fading away thanks to the Wisconsin DNR's deer population goals. The frustration is almost unbearable at this point. Not just for me but for my entire family and friends that I have hunted with my entire life. The young boys that I have been mentoring are simply losing interest in hunting deer. And why wouldn't they? They sit there hours and hours and hours and don't see any deer. Who would enjoy that? We practice QDM on our property and so do most of our neighbors with land surrounding us. Yet, after speaking with them during this year's gun hunt, they are just as frustrated as I am. Very few deer seen![/font]

[Washburn]

You say that you have not shot a doe in 5 years on that property. By choice? How many bucks have you shot during the past 5 years, both bow and gun?

[cschauf]

We haven't shot one because we see very very few. Believe me, I am primarily a meat hunter and will shoot a doe if there are plenty to go around. There are 4 of us who own this property and we all hunt it. Plus some friends and relatives. 2005 was our first season. Between 2005 and 2009, 4 bucks have been taken on that property and that is all. Not that we didnt try. Just that the number of deer sightings keeps going down and down and down. I am sure there are many reasons but undeniably the #1 reason is too many people shooting too many deer!

[Washburn]

what unit do you hunt, 72?

[cschauf]

Yes. How did you know that?

[Washburn]

just guessing....used to hunt the area alot, mostly for turkeys and grouse.

[cschauf]

Well I wouldn't waste your time deer hunting in this are. Dont get me wrong, there are pockets of deer but it is progressivly getting worse and worse year after year. My parents have another 120 acres just over the hill from us where a few does were seen this year but there used to be a LOT more. We are surounded by three other properties where there are deer hunters (almost exclusively gun hunters) and there was very little shooting. If the DNR has their way (population goals of maybe 15 to 25 deer per square mile), a hunters chance of bagging a deer will be slim to none!
 
Plenty of turkeys though!

[highview72]

I just have to add one thing in that the 15 to 25 deer per sq. mile thing is actually per sq. mile of suitable deer habitat. That means anything any solid woodlot over I believe 10 acres and the first 300' of field surrounding it. So in other words no marshes or smaller woodlots are even considered deer range. So if a unit is say 100 sq. miles large but only 50% is considered deer range ...now your down to 50 sq. miles. If the goal is 20 deer per sq. mile of deer habitat the overall goal would be 1000 deer for that unit. Doing the math that equals approximately 1 deer per 32 acres of deer range. When you look at it that way you realize how low those population goals really are.

[cschauf]

The DNR actually calculates the total area of suitable hibitat vs urban or non-suitable habitat either per unit or per county I can't remember, and uses that information to estimate population goals. So that tells me that they do not consider non-suitable habitat when setting their goals. All I know is that hunting around here is quickly becoming something that is definately not as fun as it used to be. There are a lot of things I would like to see then do differently. A point restriction on bucks like the state of PA is doing would be fantastic! I dont think there needs to be a deer around every tree but holy cow, everyone I have talked to from a lot of different areas this year is saying the same thing. Either very very few deer or nun at all even spotted this year. And it's only going to get worse if the DNR keeps doing what it is doing.

[highview72]

Yes but how do they calculate what suitable habitat is? They certainly do not consider anything rural as suitable. No fields other than that 300' around suitable woodlots. No marshes or fenceline or creek bottoms. Only woodlots with 10 connecting acres or more. For example the suitable deer habitat in unit 45 is 97% but the suitable habitat in 80B is only like 35%. So only 35% of the total sq. miles within unit 80B is even considered deer habitat even though its probably 80% rural. There might be 200 sq. miles in unit 80B but they dont even look at anything but the 35% that is considered deer habitat. This info all came up after the 2008 gun deer season. You can look it up. 20 deer per sq. mile and 20 deer per sq.mile of deer habitat are two totally different things other than in the northern forest.