| January 2010 Column By Dave Langston |
| Giving you all the news, trends, tips and tactics you want |
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Here I am, sitting behind my laptop writing to you at the Sands hotel in Las Vegas. We are attending the Shot Show in Las
Vegas with some of the biggest names in the industry. Our purpose is to film all of you favorite stars and manufacturers for
you to view. We will have the episode up where you can watch Ted Nugent, Michael Waddell, Jim Zumbo and others at this
event. I will let you know when it airs.
I received a very interesting email from a reader this week and I would like to share it with you. This reader put a lot of heart
and soul into the email. Here it is for you to read:
Dave,
Finally had some time to write a little bit about mule deer. In doing the research I have to try to find out why southeast Idaho's
mule deer herd is in the dumper like it is, I have found a few simple problems. First of all there is the range that the mule deer
used to utilize, second we have the sportsmen who have lost faith in the Fish and Game and last is the rules of the "game" have
changed and sportsmen are unwilling to change along with them.
The first problem is that the range has changed. The range that mule deer used to utilize was a good food source, but it was also
privately owned. The deer used to have this marvelous food source of winter wheat. Winter wheat used to exist in southeast
Idaho, especially, in great numbers, which bordered public land. The deer could use this forage in the fall, which has been
explained to me as the most critical time to pack on the fat reserves for mule deer. When the spring and summer green
everything up, there is great forage everywhere, however, when the fall comes around there is not necessarily anything to utilize
that isn't old and non-productive. This is where winter wheat used to be a great transitional food source. Now, due to the effects of
programs such as the Environmental Protection Act, this range that was bordering the public lands was turned into Conservation
Reserve Program. The CRP lands were effective feed for a few years, then it matured and became non-productive for much of the
game that was utilizing it. The game that was using and flourishing in the CRP were Sharp-tailed Grouse, Hungarian Partridge,
pheasants and mule deer.
After about the 5th year of the program being used in a big way, we had the huge winter die-off of 1992, which our herds have not
recovered from. The sharpies and huns are struggling as well. The mid-management practices of the CRP, a federal program, is
difficult and many people are hesitant to do mid management practices to keep the health of the lands up for fear of doing
something wrong. It is easier, in this situation, to do nothing than do something wrong. Therefore, we as sportsmen see, through
the game, the health of the lands. When game numbers are down, much of that has to do with the health of the lands. There have
been lawsuits from the so-called "environmentalists" to paralyze the management of these lands, furthermore enabling them to
become non-productive.
Secondly our faith in the Fish and Game has been diminished. Spending time with the Fish and Game, I have noticed that they
are just the face and sounding board for everything game related. We have wildlife getting hit on the road, which is a highway
safety issue that the Fish and Game has been taken it upon themselves to fix. We have federal agencies whose management
policies affect the Fish and Game populations in our state, which are ever changing and require upkeep on the information to see
how it will affect game populations, Fish and Game takes the responsibility of representing sportsmen. We have laws enacted,
policies changed, landowner shifts, and all sorts of information transfers and studies that require the Fish and Game to utilize their
time and efforts. This means that they cannot focus on fixing all of the problems that affect the production of the game animals.
Not only do they have all of these issues, but also they have sportsmen who are always willing to get in their face and try to
convince them how stupid they are. This is where the relationships between sportsmen, Fish and Game and landowners need to
be resurrected.
Most landowners produce the game. Slob sportsmen ruin the relationships with landowners. Fish and Game are the government
face for the sportsmen. If the relationships between the two are damaged, are landowners willing to work with Fish and Game to
improve things for the sportsmen they represent? I submit, no.
Lastly, the 1970's had policies like the ESA and the EPA enacted. We as sportsmen have failed to work by the changed rules.
Just like in the NFL, different rules are enacted, changing the play of the game. These changes are small, but they affect the way
the game is played. For some reason, sportsmen are unwilling to accept the fact that the rules have changed, thereby changing
the playing field. Sportsmen see some of the things that are now required of landowners to keep the runoff from the streams as
"farmer welfare", and thereby unwilling to work with or support the maintenance of the lands that have been historically utilized for
game production.
So, we as sportsmen need to come together, change our perception of those who are on our team and start working together on a
large scale. That is the only way we are going to get out of the situation we are in. This includes re-establishing relationships with
landowners, supporting the fish and game and evolving as sporting opportunity and game production evolves.
Sean Mottishaw
SFW Pocatello Chapter Chair
Vegas with some of the biggest names in the industry. Our purpose is to film all of you favorite stars and manufacturers for
you to view. We will have the episode up where you can watch Ted Nugent, Michael Waddell, Jim Zumbo and others at this
event. I will let you know when it airs.
I received a very interesting email from a reader this week and I would like to share it with you. This reader put a lot of heart
and soul into the email. Here it is for you to read:
Dave,
Finally had some time to write a little bit about mule deer. In doing the research I have to try to find out why southeast Idaho's
mule deer herd is in the dumper like it is, I have found a few simple problems. First of all there is the range that the mule deer
used to utilize, second we have the sportsmen who have lost faith in the Fish and Game and last is the rules of the "game" have
changed and sportsmen are unwilling to change along with them.
The first problem is that the range has changed. The range that mule deer used to utilize was a good food source, but it was also
privately owned. The deer used to have this marvelous food source of winter wheat. Winter wheat used to exist in southeast
Idaho, especially, in great numbers, which bordered public land. The deer could use this forage in the fall, which has been
explained to me as the most critical time to pack on the fat reserves for mule deer. When the spring and summer green
everything up, there is great forage everywhere, however, when the fall comes around there is not necessarily anything to utilize
that isn't old and non-productive. This is where winter wheat used to be a great transitional food source. Now, due to the effects of
programs such as the Environmental Protection Act, this range that was bordering the public lands was turned into Conservation
Reserve Program. The CRP lands were effective feed for a few years, then it matured and became non-productive for much of the
game that was utilizing it. The game that was using and flourishing in the CRP were Sharp-tailed Grouse, Hungarian Partridge,
pheasants and mule deer.
After about the 5th year of the program being used in a big way, we had the huge winter die-off of 1992, which our herds have not
recovered from. The sharpies and huns are struggling as well. The mid-management practices of the CRP, a federal program, is
difficult and many people are hesitant to do mid management practices to keep the health of the lands up for fear of doing
something wrong. It is easier, in this situation, to do nothing than do something wrong. Therefore, we as sportsmen see, through
the game, the health of the lands. When game numbers are down, much of that has to do with the health of the lands. There have
been lawsuits from the so-called "environmentalists" to paralyze the management of these lands, furthermore enabling them to
become non-productive.
Secondly our faith in the Fish and Game has been diminished. Spending time with the Fish and Game, I have noticed that they
are just the face and sounding board for everything game related. We have wildlife getting hit on the road, which is a highway
safety issue that the Fish and Game has been taken it upon themselves to fix. We have federal agencies whose management
policies affect the Fish and Game populations in our state, which are ever changing and require upkeep on the information to see
how it will affect game populations, Fish and Game takes the responsibility of representing sportsmen. We have laws enacted,
policies changed, landowner shifts, and all sorts of information transfers and studies that require the Fish and Game to utilize their
time and efforts. This means that they cannot focus on fixing all of the problems that affect the production of the game animals.
Not only do they have all of these issues, but also they have sportsmen who are always willing to get in their face and try to
convince them how stupid they are. This is where the relationships between sportsmen, Fish and Game and landowners need to
be resurrected.
Most landowners produce the game. Slob sportsmen ruin the relationships with landowners. Fish and Game are the government
face for the sportsmen. If the relationships between the two are damaged, are landowners willing to work with Fish and Game to
improve things for the sportsmen they represent? I submit, no.
Lastly, the 1970's had policies like the ESA and the EPA enacted. We as sportsmen have failed to work by the changed rules.
Just like in the NFL, different rules are enacted, changing the play of the game. These changes are small, but they affect the way
the game is played. For some reason, sportsmen are unwilling to accept the fact that the rules have changed, thereby changing
the playing field. Sportsmen see some of the things that are now required of landowners to keep the runoff from the streams as
"farmer welfare", and thereby unwilling to work with or support the maintenance of the lands that have been historically utilized for
game production.
So, we as sportsmen need to come together, change our perception of those who are on our team and start working together on a
large scale. That is the only way we are going to get out of the situation we are in. This includes re-establishing relationships with
landowners, supporting the fish and game and evolving as sporting opportunity and game production evolves.
Sean Mottishaw
SFW Pocatello Chapter Chair
| Idaho Whitetails By Dave Langston |
We all love hunting season. In fact, many outdoorsmen only venture into the field during the early September to late October
hunting season. Leaving the rest of the year to bird hunters, trappers, anglers and the like. Hunters in pursuit target elk, mule
deer and antelope every season faithfully. But, a “New Kid” on the block has emerged and Idaho hunters have taken notice. The
almighty White tailed deer, America’s number one big game species has taken a foothold in southeast Idaho and he is here to
stay and growing to trophy class sizes!
I grew up during my teenage years hunting whitetails in Texas and trust me, what you see on television is 70/30. About 70
percent is bogus hunting on ranches with feeders but the other 30 percent is honest hard hunting and these individuals had to
work to get these shots.
My experience has been long hours in the woods covering swampy boggy bottom land and seeing only the white flag of the
whitetails tail bounding over logs and blow- downs. This was all before store bought tree stands became popular. Now with the
advent of tree stands and all the other scents, camo patterns and even manufactured rattling horns whitetail hunting has
become the darling of the hunting industry.
Hunters spend tens of millions each year on new gadgets to increase their odds in bagging an old mossy back buck.
Personally, I do not believe you need to fall for all the hoopla. We never used scents or scent blockers, the camo pattern really did
not matter because the key to camouflage is movement. We still managed to harvest bucks and doe’s without spending a
fortune on gadgets and self-proclaimed miracle scents and food plots. But, I will say that tree stands have made the sport a bit
easier as they lift you off the ground and give you ten times more area to view than sitting in a ground blind.
Since most Idahoans have never hunted whitetails you are in for a real treat. If you love to elk hunt then whitetail hunting will turn
you into a deer-hunting addict. I love to mule deer hunt and I do believe a mature mule deer buck is one of the hardest deer on
earth to hunt. But I also have this addiction to large non-typical whitetail bucks that seem to know your every move and slip in and
out of woods and pastures like a ghost. These ghostly bucks keep me coming back for more.
If you are interested in getting hooked on a species that will completely take control of your life before and during the season then
white tail hunting is for you. Your best bet is the south fork of the Snake River hunting the corridor of woods on both sides of the
river. A good portion is private land but you can find public land by looking at a topographical map. Much of the public ground can
be reached by foot, but a small portion of hunters do access tough, out of the way areas by boat.
Hunting season is fast approaching and to hunt this area you have to make a choice or to have drawn earlier. Your best bet is to
go to http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/ for more information on seasons and requirements.
| Now booking for Seminars, Event MC, Speaking Engagements and Appearances 2010. Call 208-242-6161 or email WesternStatesSportsman@MSN.com |