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http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20130713/COLUMNISTS01/307130009/Antler-rule-points-buck-survival-issueGood read about about APR.
Im all for the 4pt or better rule! Wish they would start doing this to some of the blacktail units!
Quote from: dscubame on July 30, 2013, 11:27:04 AMSimple. Way less hunters hitting the unit with the 4 point restriction. Way less hunters equal way less harvest.This is about deer population not hunter success. Sitka_Blacktail is acting as though the harvest numbers are directly tied to the population. Less deer were killed because dumb little spikes and forks can't be killed and escaped, it doesn't mean there were less deer in the unit. Less people hunted the units. Where's the SPIN emoticon?How could anyone argue that the APR decreases the deer numbers, especially after two years?
Simple. Way less hunters hitting the unit with the 4 point restriction. Way less hunters equal way less harvest.This is about deer population not hunter success.
Quote from: Bigshooter on July 30, 2013, 11:39:54 PMhttp://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20130713/COLUMNISTS01/307130009/Antler-rule-points-buck-survival-issueGood read about about APR.Less older bucks and smaller antlers on the ones that do manage to survive. That pretty much sums it up.I see they try pretty hard not to blame it on genetic filtering, but consider this. Evolution is not so much about sudden changes for no apparent reason. It's about passing on traits that help your survival chances such as coloring and size. Adaptability! It's why we end up with sub-species like Coues Whitetails. Smaller body size is better in the desert heat than large body mass. So when we make rules for harvesting game based on antler size, we are making antler size an important factor on whether an animal lives to pass on it's genes. If small antlers means an animal has a better chance to pass on it's genes, I guarantee you, more animals will have smaller antlers.
Comparing a two point rule and 4 pt rule is like comparing apples and oranges for the reasons which have been mentioned. Hasn't science proven that it takes many generations to change genetics? After having only small bucks in their herd for decades PA adopted a 4pt rule and is actually producing better quality bucks than they have in decades.