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    Mule deer restrictions

    Just received this from TPWD.





    In my opinion, this needs to happen. Reason??? Because many Panhandle landowners are simply putting too many hunters on their property. I've got a neighbor with 3 hunters on a half-section (320 acres). That's fine if you're in the Hill Country, but in the Panhandle, it ought to be ONE hunter per half-section, IMO. Discuss...

    #2
    In mule deer country, it should be 1 hunter to 1,000 acres (or more). You're right though. More and more landowners are wanting to cram way too many hunters on their land. I can't blame them for wanting to maximize revenue, but as a hunter I am not interested in paying to hunt a place that only has 1 shooter buck for every 3-5 hunters. People do it though, so I guess it isn't all the landowners' fault.

    Comment


      #3
      agree with above. AR or some other kind of limits should extend across the entire southern plains/panhandle.....deer numbers are generally too low in these areas (especially the southern counties - Gaines, Andrews, Yoakum, etc.).

      something needs to be done....

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by Shane View Post
        In mule deer country, it should be 1 hunter to 1,000 acres (or more). You're right though. More and more landowners are wanting to cram way too many hunters on their land. I can't blame them for wanting to maximize revenue, but as a hunter I am not interested in paying to hunt a place that only has 1 shooter buck for every 3-5 hunters. People do it though, so I guess it isn't all the landowners' fault.
        I would not be surprised to see them eventually intervening with regards to the total number of deer (whitetail, specifically) that can be taken from a given acreage (i.e. smaller properties). Maybe we'll all be MLDP someday.

        Comment


          #5
          Doubt I'll ever hunt MD in any of the counties but sure sounds like a good idea to me

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Etxbuckman View Post
            I would not be surprised to see them eventually intervening with regards to the total number of deer (whitetail, specifically) that can be taken from a given acreage (i.e. smaller properties). Maybe we'll all be MLDP someday.
            I doubt that...and would disagree with it if they did.

            Comment


              #7
              I got the email too and also completed the survey as I generally agree with the proposal. After eight years on my place, I think I've only seen one, maybe two bucks that would have remotely come close to being legal.

              The only hang up I have is that I'm not sure to what extent, if any, the drought is taken into account within their data. The proposal reads as if over-hunting is the sole culprit for low numbers of quality bucks and I'm not sure that's the case.

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by Etxbuckman View Post
                I would not be surprised to see them eventually intervening with regards to the total number of deer (whitetail, specifically) that can be taken from a given acreage (i.e. smaller properties). Maybe we'll all be MLDP someday.
                They do have MLD for mule deer, but most ranchers aren't on it.

                Part of the out of whack buck-to-doe numbers is that you can only shoot bucks and no does, unless you're on MLD. Packing in too many hunters where everybody feels like they need to kill something to get their money's worth, and all they can kill are bucks....and then factor in the huge die off from the drought a few years ago.... All that adds up to a lot of young bucks being killed.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Etxbuckman View Post
                  I would not be surprised to see them eventually intervening with regards to the total number of deer (whitetail, specifically) that can be taken from a given acreage (i.e. smaller properties). Maybe we'll all be MLDP someday.
                  I'd hate to see it come to that. I think we all got spoiled for the last 3-4 decades with the hill country numbers of whitetail deer, though. Now that many of the prices have gone way up down there, and many places either cut up/high fenced/etc, lots of folks have started heading up towards the Panhandle, and the land simply cannot support the hunter numbers many other parts of the state can. I expect to see AR for whitetail up here, soon, if hunting pressure continues.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by Abctx View Post
                    I'd hate to see it come to that. I think we all got spoiled for the last 3-4 decades with the hill country numbers of whitetail deer, though. Now that many of the prices have gone way up down there, and many places either cut up/high fenced/etc, lots of folks have started heading up towards the Panhandle, and the land simply cannot support the hunter numbers many other parts of the state can. I expect to see AR for whitetail up here, soon, if hunting pressure continues.
                    Instead of AR, I think it would be better if the state issued permits to each landowner, and that's all the deer that could be killed on that place. Pretty much the same as MLD, but just do it for everybody. If a place that is 1,000 acres only gets 1 or maybe 2 buck permits, then it'd be pretty hard to find 6 guys from Dallas to join the lease.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      If they are basing it on the success of the whitetail program, why no unbranched MD?

                      Comment


                        #12
                        The drought back in 10-11-12 most certainly DID affect the fawn crop in those areas.

                        Also, I get 2 muledeer MLD doe tags per year. They're good in bow season and the two weeks of mule deer rifle, only. I'm certainly not gonna risk scaring off a buck by shooting at a doe during rifle season, most of the time, when the season only lasts 2 weeks and I've got a limited amount of times to sit and hunt.

                        I often wonder if hunters would be MORE selective if they had MORE time to rifle hunt mule deer, or if it would simply be an opportunity for more hunters to shoot anything with antlers...

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by Shane View Post
                          Instead of AR, I think it would be better if the state issued permits to each landowner, and that's all the deer that could be killed on that place. Pretty much the same as MLD, but just do it for everybody. If a place that is 1,000 acres only gets 1 or maybe 2 buck permits, then it'd be pretty hard to find 6 guys from Dallas to join the lease.
                          I agree with this. It's was also pretty easy to get mule deer doe tags. I think we were getting around 8 doe tags for 4K acres. But it was nothing to see 100+ does in our wheat field.
                          Last edited by panhandlehunter; 12-07-2017, 02:17 PM.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Originally posted by Shane View Post
                            Instead of AR, I think it would be better if the state issued permits to each landowner, and that's all the deer that could be killed on that place. Pretty much the same as MLD, but just do it for everybody. If a place that is 1,000 acres only gets 1 or maybe 2 buck permits, then it'd be pretty hard to find 6 guys from Dallas to join the lease.
                            That's exactly what they do with the antlerless permits. I get one tag every year.

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Originally posted by Abctx View Post
                              The drought back in 10-11-12 most certainly DID affect the fawn crop in those areas.

                              Also, I get 2 muledeer MLD doe tags per year. They're good in bow season and the two weeks of mule deer rifle, only. I'm certainly not gonna risk scaring off a buck by shooting at a doe during rifle season, most of the time, when the season only lasts 2 weeks and I've got a limited amount of times to sit and hunt.

                              I often wonder if hunters would be MORE selective if they had MORE time to rifle hunt mule deer, or if it would simply be an opportunity for more hunters to shoot anything with antlers...
                              I think there would be more deer killed if the season lasted longer.

                              Comment

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