When Thinking Of Black Bears, Think Mississippi?

Hat tip goes to Rex Howell of Deer Camp Blog for the news tip!

David McFadden of Water Valley, Mississippi set up his trail camera just after Christmas hoping to catch a shot or two of deer in an area he hoped to hunt. After retrieving his memory stick, he was disappointed to find no pictures of deer but he did capture a photo of a black bear, which is quite unusual for Mississippi.

Get the whole story from the North Mississippi Herald.

Tom Remington

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EHD A Bit “Ho-Hum” In The Deep South

We are at a point where it would be safe to say that this year’s outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) is quite widespread. Here’s a list of states that have confirmed cases of the virus that is carried to deer by biting midges or no-see-ums: Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, New Jersey, Montana, Mississippi and Georgia. In addition, some states are waiting for test results to confirm what they already suspect – South Carolina is one such state.

To confirm the presence of the disease, blood and certain tissue has to be analyzed.

According to both the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and the Alabama Department of Conservation, dealing with EHD is quite routine. Charles Ruth, Deer/Turkey Project supervisor for the South Carolina DNR says flair-ups in that state seem to run in cycles of 3-5 years and there’s a reasonable explanation.

“This is probably related to the fact that once deer are exposed to the disease they are more resistant to it. Therefore, if you have disease one year the deer become exposed or inoculated to the disease and you do not see much disease activity until there is turnover in the deer population. After several years you are dealing with another cohort of deer and their systems are ‘naïve’ to the disease. The last time there was significant hemorrhagic disease activity in South Carolina was in 2002, therefore, disease activity could be relatively high this year.”

This theory is confirmed by a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

“We have some cases every year,” said Keith Guyse, a whitetail specialist with the Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division in the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. “In the Coastal Plain, the virus is there frequently enough that deer have been exposed to it and have some resistance to it.

Both representatives indicate that EHD in their respective states is pretty much routine only because of the build up of a certain degree of immunity. Therefore, these southern states don’t see wide outbreaks of the disease that often. When EHD hits the more northern climes, EHD seems to grab harder. Ruth explains.

Deer likely die in South Carolina each year from hemorrhagic disease, however, there is no indication that a major outbreak has occurred in the state since the mid 1970s. The disease is part of life for deer in the Southeast and fortunately it appears that Southern deer have acquired some immunity to the disease, said Ruth. Northern deer, on the other hand, are not exposed to the disease as frequently since the insect vector is not as common in cooler climates. For this reason, significant outbreaks and mortality from hemorrhagic disease are more likely in northern deer populations.

Guyse from Alabama makes reference to the same theory.

“Typically in North Alabama and above the fall line, they’re not exposed to it as often. So over a period of time you have a population that doesn’t have much resistance. When you have (outbreaks) up there, it tends to be more noticeable.”

This helps us understand why some states may have more severe outbreaks, killing larger numbers of deer, than others but why this year are outbreaks so widespread across the landscape of the country? Some have related it to the summer heat and drought. That may be true, I don’t know. It would be logical to assume that being that the virus is carried and spread by tiny midges or gnats, a larger than normal population of that insect would be directly proportional to the spread of the disease. Of course science isn’t that simplistic and we know that there are probably many more factors to consider or it could be just merely a coincidence.

However, Guyse from Alabama eludes to the theory of increased numbers of midges, somewhat.

“Auburn (researchers) had traps out to catch the flies and they might catch a few every once in a while, and then all of a sudden they catch hundreds,” Guyse said. “Much of that still is a mystery.”

Obviously, they don’t have a good handle on it either.

Hunters and others should be aware of the symptoms they may find on deer suffering from the disease.

Symptoms of hemorrhagic disease include poor physical condition, sloughing hooves, abrasions or sores on the brisket and legs, and ulcerations on the mouth, tongue, and rumen (stomach).

As I said earlier, verification of the disease has to be done in the lab.

If you see sick or dead deer in your travels, please report it to the appropriate authorities. It is highly recommended that nobody eats any of the meat from deer sickened by EHD.

Tom Remington

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Mississippi Man High Bidder In Vermont Moose Auction

Joe Hill of Brandon, Mississippi bid $8,001 for the first of five moose permits auctioned off by the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife. A total of about $29,000 was raised through the auction that will go to the department. The moose hunt season is a split season with one occurring in October and the second in November.

Get more information and a list of auction winners and the prices they paid here.

Tom Remington

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Mississippi Deer Baiting Debate Continues

The state of Mississippi has been debating the issue of baiting deer and shooting deer over bait piles for some time. In early February, the House passed a deer baiting bill. In late March a baiting bill ended up on the governor’s desk. Last month the governor opted to sign a bill that would study the issue of deer baiting first.

Baiting gets into two issues, ethics and a useful tool for deer management. Generally the tool for management gets overlooked in order to debate the issue of ethics. I have jumped on that bandwagon myself on several occasions. As a matter of fact I discussed at length this issue pertaining to Mississippi in a previous blog post.

The other day I found another letter to the editor from a 60-year old gentleman from Mississippi sharing his take on deer baiting. He points out that he hunts strictly on his own land and does not hunt over bait. How he views the practice and those who do, you might find interesting.

Concerning bait, let people hunt however they want to in order to attain as much enjoyment as possible from the hunting experience. Whether they hunt with a shotgun or a slingshot is irrelevant to me, and I think the baiting issue should be just as much a matter of personal choice.

Hunting is expensive, and people don’t have the time that they used to to put into it. For these two reasons, and others, hunting is on the decline; we should be encouraging the sport, and not discouraging it.

I think to tell someone it is unethical and unsportsmanlike to bait for deer is about as ridiculous as telling a fisherman that he or she must fish with artificial bait instead of live bait because the live bait just makes it a little too unfair for the fish.

The writer’s attitude is to be commended in that he does not sit in judgment of those who choose to use tactics to hunt that are different than his own. He doesn’t even say whether he approves or disapproves of any of it. All he says is that for himself he opts not to bait. The good part about this is that he finds no need to become the god of the hunting ethics world and demand that others conform to his style of hunting.

I also liked his analogy of hunting and bait to suggesting that restrictions placed on live bait versus artificial bait for fishing would be likened. He is exactly right but I wonder if in his analogy he really understands that this same kind of sportsman exists today. He almost sounds like he doesn’t think anyone real fisherman would suggest such a thing. Well, I got news for the man from Mississippi. They are out there.

There are sportsmen that have become so self serving in their own choices of sport that they can only see their own methods as viable and ethical. How ridiculous.

Tom Remington

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Mississippi Governor Signs Bill To Allow Study Of Deer Baiting

Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour has signed a bill that will allow the Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks to study the notion of allowing hunters to hunt deer over a pile of grain. Presently it is illegal to hunt over the grain but not illegal to feed the deer up until hunting season begins.

Barbour says he’ll let science dictate the issue although he personally views hunting over bait unethical.

Barbour said commissioners will talk to biologists and other scientists to determine whether baiting will have negative effects.

“The commission should develop and make public an appropriate deliberative process that allows the science to decide the outcome,” Barbour said. “I have great confidence the commission will do so, and I appreciate the Legislature’s decision to turn the issue over to the professionals, rather than deciding it on a political basis.”

Tom Remington

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Hunting Over A Baited Field Is For Sissies

The state of Mississippi recently approved a law that will allow hunters to shoot deer over a baited field. Of course this comes with some controversy as it delves into the ethics of the sport. This morning in the Clarion Ledger online, a reader submits an opinion piece in that regard.

Who’s to blame for the baited-field deer “hunting?”

“Hunting” deer over a baited field is for sissies, of course.

So the greatest share of the blame goes to the true sportsmen of the state who let it happen.

No pride.

Then the idiots we have elected to the Legislature have their share of blame. No courage.

Since no “real” man would participate in a “hunt” over a baited field, we now have a quandary. If you see a trophy deer head hanging in someone’s den, how do you know if he is a true sportsman or a sissy?

It becomes, therefore, appropriate to ask any “hunters” with a trophy deer head whether they wear pink, lavender or chartreuse panties underneath all that camo disguise.

The true sportsmen in Mississippi need to fix this.

I can certainly understand the frustration expressed by the writer of this piece but let’s take a closer look at the issue. The baiting bill in Mississippi, allows the fish and game commission to regulate baiting. At first a bill was proposed that would allow pretty much any type of baiting for deer. This bill is said to be a compromise from the original.

From this perspective, I can see that having the authority to regulate deer baiting, would give the commission another tool to effectively manage the deer population. If the commission decided there were too many deer and that if baiting could be used effectively to reduce that population, then I guess you could say it was useful.

But there are downsides to the baiting issue aside from an ethics point of view which I’ll look at in a moment. It is surmised that when deer or other ungulates congregate in masses, the chances for the spread of diseases such as chronic wasting disease, increases. Allowing for baiting of deer, no matter how the baiting is done, could promote the spread of that disease and others like Lyme.

Hunting ethics is quite a different story. For those of you who read my blog regularly, you know that I believe that hunting ethics should not be legislated. That isn’t to say that ethics shouldn’t be taught and within the law. Ethics is a personal thing usually passed down from father to son during our growing up years.

Here’s an example of what I mean. Growing up, deer venison was a necessary thing for my family. As a kid, I recall eating venison at least 3 nights out of the week and sometimes for breakfast as well. I grew up poor and between my father and my three older brothers, having more than one deer in the freezer was a God send.

Living this way forced us, with instructions from my Dad, to “meat hunt”. This meant that we took whatever was available to us at the time. Also understand that growing up and hunting in Maine, you didn’t go out and see several deer each day. Most of the time you were lucky to see several deer in an entire season. When you had a shot at a deer, you took it.

I can also say that my father or any of us boys, never took a deer illegally but I can assure you that if it had been a matter of need, there would have been venison in the freezer.

There are many hunters today, who still hunt this way. They are meat hunters and the need is there. I have heard many an argument over the years that there is no reason why anyone would hunt these days when there is plenty of food in the grocery stores. Those who make those statements, do so out of ignorance. They need to get out into the real world where people in many rural locations rely on game and gardens for survival.

On the other side of the coin, there are also many hunters who believe that hunting for meat is not in the true sense of the sport of hunting. Some have even gone so far as to call it unethical. Some hunters refuse to shoot female deer because those deer produce the offspring that will continue to provide a population of deer.

So you see much of what we discuss in conversations dealing with ethics is all part of background. There are obvious issues that result in laws to protect the management of the game. Poaching is one of those. Without seasons and limits to the hunts, it would be nearly impossible to manage game animals effectively. History has shown us what can result from unchecked killing of game. Such laws are necessary for that purpose.

Some states ban the use of baiting, not so much because they view it as an ethics issue but because it makes for the taking of deer easier. In states with a balanced or a sparse population, baiting would be detrimental to the herd.

Ethics and hunting is really in the eye of the beholder. When I speak of these ethics, I am referring to all methods employed that are within the law. To legislate ethics for the mere reason to prevent someone from doing something you don’t approve of is not right. To make a law that will effectively protect the game animals we hunt, is necessary and prudent.

So, what is baiting anyway? Good question. When most people think of baiting deer, they envision salt licks, piles of grain or apples. They picture a hunter sitting in a tree stand looking down on this pile of fine dining and waiting for a deer to come and eat so he can shoot it.

While I have to agree that that is baiting, we have to ask about other forms of baiting and where to draw the line with such. There’s an organization in this country called Quality Deer Management. This group advocates for the growing of food plots for deer. They encourage hunters to take an active role in managing the deer on their own land or the land they lease for hunting.

These food plots contain certain kinds of plants that are healthy for the deer and provide the right nutrients to grow bigger deer with larger antlers. In some states, this tactic is illegal but in most it’s not. In all fairness to the discussion of hunting ethics, we have to ask ourselves, isn’t this deer baiting? With these food plots, often times it is not illegal to sit in a blind or a stand and shoot the deer you’ve been growing all year long or for several years, when they come to the plot to eat.

What else is baiting? Many hunters will scout out game trails before the season. They learn the deer’s habits, particularly those of the bucks. They find scrapes and pawings and get their tree stands our ground blinds built in time before the start of the season so any deer become accustomed to any changes in the landscape.

On that given day when the hunter arrives at the stand, they often bring with them scents and lures that they hope will attract a rutting buck. Sometimes they dump this on the ground and spray it all around the area. They might hang scent tubes and boxes from trees nearby. They then retreat to their place and wait for the buck to arrive. Isn’t that baiting?

Along with the scents, the hunter while waiting, uses tactics such as rattling deer antlers. This is employed to imitate two sparring bucks which is a natural event that occurs when two male deer are fighting over the rights to mate with an estrous doe. It has been learned that when other bucks hear that sound, their curiosity draws them to it. Isn’t that baiting?

If not rattling horns, hunters may be using instruments that will mimic the sounds made by other deer. They practice the sounds made by both the doe and the buck while mating or in the process that leads up to mating. They also mimic sounds of a fawn that might draw in other does, which might in turn lure bucks. Isn’t this baiting?

Baiting can be defined as any method used to lure a deer into a prescribed area. That area is where you the hunter sit and wait in ambush. Any tactic used to achieve those desired results has to be defined as baiting. So where do we draw the line? Or do we? Who decides?

We can carry the ethics debate that much farther and ask a lot of other questions. Take a look at the technology that now exists in the sport of hunting. There’s such things as clothing that covers up the scent of man underneath. The odor that man emits that can easily be detected by deer, has been likened to deer in the same fashion as man detects the odor of a skunk – pungent and easily recognized.

The weapons we use have been questioned and the features we can add to them. Some hunters have even questioned whether the use of GPS is ethical or scopes for a rifle. I know hunters who believe using a rifle for deer hunting is not right.

Are tree stands ethical? They have them now that are easy to carry and simple and fast to get up into a tree. Does this give hunters an unfair advantage? Does this “dumb down” the sport as some have called it?

I can add to this list forever but what items on that list you employ, is really up to you. Your hunting methods are what you are comfortable with. Again being that all are within the law.

I am not completely attune as to why Mississippi has decided to make baiting, in the sense of luring to piles of grain, etc., a part of their legal methods of taking deer. I do know that state has a burgeoning deer population.

So, before you go calling hunters who use bait sissies and not true sportsmen, take a minute to look at all the things you do, first. Take the time to educate yourself about the reasons some hunters do what they do and from what areas of the country they grew up in and under what circumstances. If you find certain methods of hunting offensive then talk to a friend and explain to them the reasons you feel that way, while being receptive to their explanations as well.

Tom Remington

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Deer Baiting Bill In Mississippi Goes To The Govenor

Another controversial deer baiting bill made its way through the Mississippi Congress and now sits in the hands of Gov. Haley Barbour. Nobody seems to know Barbour’s position on the bill. The bill would give the 5-member wildlife commission the authority to regulate deer baiting. This is being called a compromise effort from a bill that would outright permit deer baiting.

It appears as though the most important issue in this debate is the ethics of deer baiting or as one senator put it it would “dumb down” the sport of hunting.

On the other hand, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is asking for a statewide ban on deer baiting because of concerns for the spreading of chronic wasting disease.

Tom Remington

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Mississippi House Passes Deer Baiting Bill

The Mississippi House passed an amended bill, HB423, that will permit hunting over bait in 34 of the states counties. Most of these counties are in the southern half of the state. The bill will meet its next challenge in the Senate that hasn’t looked upon any previous bills of this nature with kindness.

Tom Remington

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License Sales Fall Drastically in Mississippi

Big game hunting license sales are lagging far behind last years sales in Mississippi, yet revenue is slightly higher than last year. How can that be?

That’s simple to answer, more fees were levied. Hunters were charged a new fee to hunt on public lands and non-residents were hit pretty hard with new permit fees for deer, turkey and using public lands.

These added fees increased the revenue even though sales of hunting licenses have dropped. Officials speculate it was the result of hurricane Katrina but won’t really know until next season.

More on this story here.

Tom Remington

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Mississippi Governor Signs Hunting Bills

Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour signed three hunting bills that will directly affect hunting. The three bills were supported strongly by the Mississippi Sportsman’s Caucus.

One bill, in which I consider to be instrumental and one to keep an eye on, is an apprentice hunting license – a one-time license for juniors age 12-16. This license will allow them to go hunting with a licensed adult hunter prior to taking a hunter safety course. The arguement has been heard in states all over the U.S. that young hunters are detered from trying the sport because they don’t want to take a hunter safety course first in order to find out if they think they will like it.

Another bill signed by the Governor provides for a no-net-loss of public lands. Essentially what that means is any land that is taken away from hunters must be replaced with the same amount and similar habitat.

A third bill bans Internet hunting.

Tom Remington

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Deer Baiting Bill Dies in Mississippi

One more time, the lawmakers in Mississippi could not reach a consensus and come up with a bill to legalize or define baiting. Lawmakers have debated, hashed, re-hashed, debated some more and still can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel in deciding on this baiting issue.

With that said, it will continue to remain against the law to hunt deer over bait.

The state wildlife officials continue to say they have not asked for this legislation. They have said that baiting deer for the purpose of hunting them will not help in the management of the deer. They provide statistic that show that it actually is detrimental to other wildlife, deer and their habitat.

On average each year, hunters harvest between 300,000 and 350,000 deer. Some regions of the state there are too many deer and others the numbers are low.

Tom Remington

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Drinkin’ and Huntin’ and Druggin’

Imagine some drone leaving camp around 2:00 in the afternoon headed for his late-day treestand and bringing along a six-pack of Bud Light! After a couple or six, he sees what he thinks is a deer coming into his area. He picks up his rifle or bow, you choose the weapon, and takes aim…………..

Disgusting thought isn’t it. But did you know some states have no laws against drinking and hunting or being under the infuence of drugs and hunting? Mississippi is trying to get a bill through Congress that would allow wildlife officials to test hunters for drugs and alcohol following a hunting incident.

Are you kidding me? What is wrong with a law that prohibits this action, period? Under the Mississippi bill, if a hunter is found to have a blood alcohol level of .08, the state’s legal limit, or higher it could be used against him in a court of law.

I guess if there is anything good in this law is the fact that at least they are attempting to do something. Essentially what this bill does is nothing, really. It depends on the circumstances. It would seem that if a hunter went out and drank a six-pack and shot someone, the fact that he was drunk might be used against him. If what?

The bill was passed in the House and passed in the Senate but with changes put in about public disclosure of hunting accidents. It now has to return to the House for approval of the changes but it appears it might get held up in discussion as some members want the bill to be stricter.

For God’s sake! It’s a no-brainer. It should be illegal to drink and shoot!

Tom Remington

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Another Bill To Allow Hunting Over Bait in Mississippi

The House passed a bill 63 – 46, that would permit hunters to shoot deer over grain. It now goes to the Senate for approval. Similar bills in the past have never made it out of the Senate because of a lack of reaching agreements and compromises.

The bill that came out of the House Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Committee, would have allowed the baiting in 24 Mississippi counties until 2010. But the house added more counties to the bill.

Proponents of the bill say it is another way to harverst the necessary number of deer and wouldn’t change much of anything that is taking place now. It is legal to feed deer with food plots and grain. It’s just that you can’t shoot a deer while it’s eating the grain.

Opponents say there is no sport in shooting deer over bait. During a House debate, Rep. John Hines, (D) from Greenville said, “Where’s the sport in shooting Bambi where she’s eating grain over a tub?”

Not that I am taking sides on this issue but Mr. Hines forgets that Bambi was a he not a she. I would suppose killing a girl is more tragic than shoot a boy and injecting a SHE inflames the debate.

If this bill passes the Senate, there will be 30 counties that would allow the practice. Those counties are:

Amite, Choctaw, Clarke, Copiah, Forrest, George, Greene, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Kemper, Lamar, Lawrence, Lauderdale, Lincoln, Marion, Neshoba, Newton, Pearl River, Perry, Pike, Smith, Stone, Walthall, Wayne, Webster and Wilkinson.

Tom Remington

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