Edwards/Real Counties Hunting Thread

[rosco11]

Sorry to hijack Patton but I need the attention of this audience.

Any of you guys in Real county seeing/hearing more coyotes than ever?
Anyone actually seeing fawns?
What percentage of your fawns survive if you were to guess?
How are y'alls deer populations doing in general? Growing or depleting?

If you have good or bad news please let me know. Post here or Pm me with details.

We are in Southern Real County about 6 miles west of Concan up 1051 on 830 acres low fence. Our deer numbers are a joke. Less than 15 different deer have been seen on camera since July. Zero fawns have survived the last 3 years. So far this season we've recorded 17 sits, 1 aoudad was seen, one coyote, one fox, 4 turkey. I've hunted here my whole life and over the last 5 years things just continue to get worse.

I know of roughly 38,000 acres of other land owners/lease members that can answer the above questions with answers you don't want to hear if you're a deer hunter.

Examples like: 4000 acres 7 deer taken a year if they're lucky; 6500 acres .65 deer seen per hunt 100 sits recorded 7 deer shot last year; 1600 acres 0 deer seen on camera since July 2 doe shot the only 2 deer they've seen; 1000 acres high fence had a healthy axis herd two years ago now has zero, one whitetail seen so far this season; 12,000 acres - ranch manger works 8,000 of it he just killed coyote number 48 for the year zero fawns have survived; 2100 acres 10 deer seen all season last year 2 deer killed.

I've spoken with a biologist and we have pieced together enough reports to confidently say there is a serious coyote problem depleting the deer population between Knippa to Vance and East of Concan to Barksdale.

I'm trying to round up everyone/anyone else that is experiencing similar conditions in this area so I/we can approach the state for assistance in predator control. The more the better so please speak up if you're seeing the same.

If you are hunting West and North of this area you might not be affected yet but know that this is spreading both North and West of the area I've outlined.

If you are a lease member/hunter in this area please try and be respectful of our natural resource and abstain from shooting a ton of doe. I understand you've paid a lot to hunt a piece of property and want to get your money's worth but try and only take what you truly need. This area is going to need a lot of help before it recovers.

Sorry to be a downer but I thought y'all should know.

I'm in 5500 acres with several other guys. My direct hunting area is rocky and has a bit deeper canyons than the rest of the property. With that I have a smaller population but it makes it easier for me to track. I'd say my population has grown 40% over the past three years. We have managed our property a little better over this time and I've certainly have used disciplined mgmt on my area. Last year we did hear coyotes multiple times in the early evenings for the first time in the six years my father has been on the ranch. No one ever saw one though. However our fox population is strong but tiny little critters. We're off 377 45minutes west of Rocksprings then 30minutes down a dirt road

[BURTONboy]

Sorry to hijack Patton but I need the attention of this audience.

Any of you guys in Real county seeing/hearing more coyotes than ever?
Anyone actually seeing fawns?
What percentage of your fawns survive if you were to guess?
How are y'alls deer populations doing in general? Growing or depleting?

If you have good or bad news please let me know. Post here or Pm me with details.

We are in Southern Real County about 6 miles west of Concan up 1051 on 830 acres low fence. Our deer numbers are a joke. Less than 15 different deer have been seen on camera since July. Zero fawns have survived the last 3 years. So far this season we've recorded 17 sits, 1 aoudad was seen, one coyote, one fox, 4 turkey. I've hunted here my whole life and over the last 5 years things just continue to get worse.

I know of roughly 38,000 acres of other land owners/lease members that can answer the above questions with answers you don't want to hear if you're a deer hunter.

Examples like: 4000 acres 7 deer taken a year if they're lucky; 6500 acres .65 deer seen per hunt 100 sits recorded 7 deer shot last year; 1600 acres 0 deer seen on camera since July 2 doe shot the only 2 deer they've seen; 1000 acres high fence had a healthy axis herd two years ago now has zero, one whitetail seen so far this season; 12,000 acres - ranch manger works 8,000 of it he just killed coyote number 48 for the year zero fawns have survived; 2100 acres 10 deer seen all season last year 2 deer killed.

I've spoken with a biologist and we have pieced together enough reports to confidently say there is a serious coyote problem depleting the deer population between Knippa to Vance and East of Concan to Barksdale.

I'm trying to round up everyone/anyone else that is experiencing similar conditions in this area so I/we can approach the state for assistance in predator control. The more the better so please speak up if you're seeing the same.

If you are hunting West and North of this area you might not be affected yet but know that this is spreading both North and West of the area I've outlined.

If you are a lease member/hunter in this area please try and be respectful of our natural resource and abstain from shooting a ton of doe. I understand you've paid a lot to hunt a piece of property and want to get your money's worth but try and only take what you truly need. This area is going to need a lot of help before it recovers.

Sorry to be a downer but I thought y'all should know.

We get invited to hunt a place south of Camp Wood and this year the yotes were heard quite often and deer numbers were WAY down. We chalked it up to acorns as this was the second weekend in November. But I can tell you in 12 years of hunting that place this is the first year ive ever heard them.

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[deep n the heat]

I’m just west of barksdale and I have heard them a couple of times this season but have not seen any. Our numbers are about the same as normal but the bucks have not been around much since September. A state trapper has signs on our place but idk if he is actively trapping.

I hunted a 10,000 acre ranch out of Reagan wells about 8 yrs ago and the deer numbers drastically fell over the last few years we were there. Biologists speculated some kind weed was interfering with their reproduction. Idk. The exotics seemed to fair ok.

[TCB]

I've hunted outside Campwood for 20+ years. The deer numbers have been down...at the feeders. Still getting lots of pics before the bumper acorn crops the past couple of years. I've had my son hunting most of the trips with me so I haven't really had the chance to sneak around to see what's moving.

We have seen an occasional coyote and did hear them on the last trip back to our East. However, we saw no less than a dozen cottontails driving in that morning. No way there's that many bunnies and a heavy predator problem.

May try to slip down again in the next couple of weeks.

[IDFWU]

We are on 55 about 13 miles north of Uvalde. We hear Coyotes pretty much every hunt, and see them from time to time as well. I think there is deff something to this coyote thing. Our deer numbers aren't what they used to be.

Ballgame, I sent you a PM.

[ballgame]

I've hunted outside Campwood for 20+ years. The deer numbers have been down...at the feeders. Still getting lots of pics before the bumper acorn crops the past couple of years. I've had my son hunting most of the trips with me so I haven't really had the chance to sneak around to see what's moving.

We have seen an occasional coyote and did hear them on the last trip back to our East. However, we saw no less than a dozen cottontails driving in that morning. No way there's that many bunnies and a heavy predator problem.

May try to slip down again in the next couple of weeks.

So I hunted our property since I was born. From 2000 to now I have hunted it really hard bow only and have really watched everything closely.

I have said and thought the same thing about the yote/cottontail population.
But Our cottontail population is better than I can remember and so is our Turkey population. Jackrabbits on the other hand are nonexistent. Can't remember the last one I've seen, it could have been 6+ years ago. I agree the cottontail population should be going the other way but for whatever reason ours is growing.

Have you noticed over the last 5 years how more people seem to complaining or attributing less activity due to acorns crops. I agree they do spread the deer out and they don't hit feeders as much. That being said you've hunted near CW for 20 plus years, could it be that you have less deer and the acorns are effecting the hunting more so than years past? I seem to fight the acorns all season now but in the past they were all pretty much cleaned up by thanksgiving.

If you're in Campwood this problem is heading your way, you're just now seeing them move in IMO

How many of y'all have had legitimate archery shots at coyotes? I'm not talking about 50 yards running?

Within 2 miles as the crow flies I know of 3 legitimate archery misses at coyotes. 14 yards walking, and (2) 30 yards standing. Pretty rare in that country.

Everyone needs to report their Fawn crops if possible this is a leading indicator.

[gander]

We hunted a ranch near Campwood that had the West Prong of the Nueces ran through it. We were on it for 4 years and by Christmas the first year we had seen almost no deer. We hunted 4000 acres and I'm talking we had shot maybe 2 does between the 12-14 guns on the lease and that wasn't because we were choosing not to. Come to find out they had a bad anthrax out break and the deer numbers just weren't there anymore. We saw tons of cottontails, turkeys, and even pigs, but the deer just weren't there. By our last year on the place we had started to see "better" numbers (one deer every other sit) but we had found a new place in Junction so we were headed that way. Is an anthrax outbreak not something y'all think might be actually what is causing this? I'm honestly just curious because it sounds an awful lot like what we experienced.

[ballgame]

We hunted a ranch near Campwood that had the West Prong of the Nueces ran through it. We were on it for 4 years and by Christmas the first year we had seen almost no deer. We hunted 4000 acres and I'm talking we had shot maybe 2 does between the 12-14 guns on the lease and that wasn't because we were choosing not to. Come to find out they had a bad anthrax out break and the deer numbers just weren't there anymore. We saw tons of cottontails, turkeys, and even pigs, but the deer just weren't there. By our last year on the place we had started to see "better" numbers (one deer every other sit) but we had found a new place in Junction so we were headed that way. Is an anthrax outbreak not something y'all think might be actually what is causing this? I'm honestly just curious because it sounds an awful lot like what we experienced.

We been through a couple of the Anthrax outbreaks and they were a cake walk compared to this.

After antrax is gone the Fawns replenish the population. No fawns are making it thus no population growth.

The drought around 2012 had a significant impact no doubt but since then the coyotes have moved in. Pretty much a death sentence.

Despite good rains and improved habitat our numbers continue to go down. We havent killed a doe since 2006 and still our population has not increased.

In 2013 we had double the deer we have now.

We took 3 bucks that year all 5.5 or older since then nothing.

[Balcones_Walker]

We been through a couple of the Anthrax outbreaks and they were a cake walk compared to this.

After antrax is gone the Fawns replenish the population. No fawns are making it thus no population growth.

The drought around 2012 had a significant impact no doubt but since then the coyotes have moved in. Pretty much a death sentence.

Despite good rains and improved habitat our numbers continue to go down. We havent killed a doe since 2006 and still our population has not increased.

In 2013 we had double the deer we have now.

We took 3 bucks that year all 5.5 or older since then nothing.

Not having this problem, about 25 miles west of Barksdale. Once in awhile we'll hear a coyote; I got a couple last year. Bumper crop of acorns this year, that slows them down at the feeders.

[35remington]

Sounds to me like y'all need some coyote hunters with NV and thermal. If only I knew a guy . . .

[ballgame]

Sounds to me like y'all need some coyote hunters with NV and thermal. If only I knew a guy . . .

Ive had 2 professional varmit hunters on our particular place. We did countless hours of this with no shot opportunities. This county is particularly rough terrain and mostly canyons where the wind swirls.

Professional Trapping is really the only solution I see.

[35remington]

Ive had 2 professional varmit hunters on our particular place. We did countless hours of this with no shot opportunities. This county is particularly rough terrain and mostly canyons where the wind swirls.

Professional Trapping is really the only solution I see.

Snares on barbed wife fences are very effective out towards Leander/Liberty Hill.

[Fordnandez]

Killed dozens of fox but I have yet to see a coyote on our lease in North Edwards county. We have tried several different calls with no luck. It is strange because the main ranch guide says he see’s them all the time and they have been particularly bad this year. The guy to our south says he always sees them also but I did not ask if they were particularly bad this year.

I have not seen many fawns this year so I suspect the coyotes are out there.

[megger89]

Anybody need help with predator control?

[Charlie]

I am in northern Edwards county, about 20 miles southwest of Telegraph as the crow flies. The local rancher says that the varmint numbers are at an all time high right now. I now hear coyotes every time I’m at the ranch, and I’ve never heard nor seen one before last year - not even on a game camera.

We still have a ton of white tail, Axis, and blackbuck. But our turkey numbers have dwindled recently- there were so many before that we dreaded them coming to feeder because they ate all the corn before the deer came in. And we hardly ever see rabbits now; there was a surplus in recent years. I suppose the predators are starting to take a toll.