Shorter Archery Season Next Year ?????

[Grizzly95]

I archery hunt, I chose archery because I like shooting a bow and not for the season. 3 years ago I took my daughter rifle (her first year) and liked the fact that youth had some time to themselves, or shared with the disabled anyway. Maybe it wasn't their own but since I never look at modern seasons it seemed that way. I have no problem with the season for archery getting shortened, as long as what is lost for archery is used for muzzle or modern. The one thing that is b.s is seasons getting shortened and no gain in another area. We all just need to stick together and be able to hunt.

[jdb]

well put

[bigbeamhunter]

hunt harder not longer

[Ray]

Perhaps archers and muzzleloaders should be the same season. As long as they continue to keep both weapon restrictions as is. Meaning what is considered archery or muzzleloader.

[seansfire]

Archery and Muzzleloaders in the same season makes no sense. Why put guns with archery. If two guys are hunting an area , one with a bow , one with a muzzy , and the guy with the gun takes a shot the guy with the bow is screwed cause every animal for miles are gone. Nothing personal ray but that is just dumb. If you combine anything i would hope you put the guns together and leave us archers alone. We have a hard enough time getting our animals.

[Ray]

It's not dumb. I hunt with a bow hard as anyone else. I know what it takes. Animals scatter and regather all the time when confronted by predators. A gun blast doesn't necessary scare them for miles. But it might make them hole up more or die if they get hit

[SpokaneSlayer]

I ahve to agree with Ray on this one.  Where I hunted is a popular place to go plink or sight in.  Towards the end of the season, I was hearing gunfire all the time.  I had deer in sight many times and they didn't seem to care.  On another occasion, a buddy and I were coyote hunting when we spotted a doe watching us.  We were so entertained about her reaction to my e-caller that I almosted didn't notice the coyote coming in at a dead run.  My buddy took a shot at it but missed.  We each lobbed a couple rounds at the dog in full afterburner.  That doe never flinched.  I'm a firm believer that they know when they are being shot at. 

[Ray]

Well you don't have to agree but stupid would be someone making a suggestion when they actually have no experience archery hunting and gun hunting. I don't know how many deer I have startled in the woods on accident. Then just sit in the same place where they were bedded and about an hour later they come walking right back in...

[Machias]

This is exactly the result of CYW, been saying it for years.  Divide and conquer.  Almost every state in the union is expanding archery seasons, but this fine state, because they have managed to pit each user group against the other.  They put us into fewer and fewer GMUs, so there is over crowding and the have us all fighting with ourselves.  Sad.  Honestly, if the WDFW's agenda was to destroy hunting and drive people out of the woods, they could not have devised a better plan. 

Also hunting deer with a bow while folks are muzzleloading or rifle hunting has zero effect on your success.  The deer do not react negatively to shots being fired, unless it's being fired at them.  Killed plenty of deer with my bow during rifle seasons.

[Special T]

I bow hunt because its easy to get private access... I haven't meet anyone yet that is concerned for their house animals kids etc with me bowhunting, or crossing their land to access public with a bow... I love gun hunting, but its so much easier to get to a bow spot with in 10 min of the house vs a gun spot 20 min++ that isn't as productive... deer are around houses I use the weapon that allows me to shoot closer to them.

[3dvapor]

give me the last 15 days of sept for elk and odfw can have the whole late season

[bobcat]

Huh   The Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife?  (ODFW)

Not sure what Oregon has to do with this discussion.   

[jdb]

if you think gun noise spooks animals take a trip to the shooting range on lt murry any time between now and april, there is normally about 150 head of elk on the hill above the range and they pay no attention to the shooting

[muleyguy]

archery seasons are only going to get shorter moving into the future;  the reason, is that WA state has an ongoing, mass migration, of modern firearm hunters to archery seasons.  The reason is simple;  the vast reductions in modern season's in season length and timing, coupled with the fact of ongoing poor deer herds and poor buck quantity and quality,  is moving hunters to archery seasons. 

In 1997, there were 14,018 Archery Hunters in this state and 113,703 rifle hunters

In 2008, there were 21,000 archery Hunters in this state and 107,259 rifle hunters

statistically, this represents an increase in archery hunters of 50%;  and a drop in rifle hunters of 9%.

why do you suppose this is? 

modern firearms hunters have had almost all mule deer seasons shortened to a 9 day general season starting in mid-october, and even the white tail modern firearm seasons have been significantly curtailed from what they had been from 10 yrs ago.

by contrast, archery hunters, enjoy seasons that range from 18 days of general season (early and late) to 34 days of general season;  with at least 8 days of general season occurring in mid November.

Archery seasons have not been reduced anywhere near modern firearm seasons have over the last 10 yrs;  and your (archery) numbers are increasing DRAMATICALLY;

what is happening is that as modern firearm seasons have been reduced dramatically, you are getting a "shift" in the hunter populations from rifle hunters to archery hunters, that is a fact. Notice how total hunter numbers from 1997 to 2008 are almost unchanged.  The reason you are getting this is because almost all archery seasons have significant hunting opportunities during the rut.  Whereas, general rifle hunts in mid-october result in lower numbers of deer being seen, fewer bucks, and very few mature bucks being seen.

Now, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that in a very short time frame, you have had significant numbers of  new archery hunters entering the sport;  are they doing it because they love the sport and are dedicated to it?  or, are they doing it because the deer hunting opportunities are so poor with the low numbers of deer and dramatically shortened  seasons in modern firearms???   I think reasonable people can figure that one out........

what is actually happening is that the WDFW is trying to "fix" the deer herds with the the modern firearm hunters, and that makes sense because modern firearm hunters represent the bulk of the hunters;  BUT, without corresponding restrictions in archery seasons, especially the late ones, all it is doing is SHIFTING modern firearm hunters to archery.  This has the perverse effect of actually increasing the stress on these animals during the rut.  And, since there are fewer units open in late archery then modern firearm, these "new" archers get concentrated in the open archery units.

so, what you have is a fast increasing archery hunter population;  rut hunts that have been essentially left alone in length for the most part;  and, many more, less qualified, archery hunters in the field.

and, archery hunters, contrary to popular belief, enjoy a success rate very simalar to rifle hunters  (22.4 %  vs 22.8%)

But, the difference is that rifle hunters shoot very few does, relative to their hunter numbers, and smaller bucks on average then archery hunters.

Here is the 2008 data for several units that have general season archery hunts during the rut and general season 9 day rifle hunts in mid october; on the right is the percentage of bucks harvested that are 4 and 5 points during archery seasons;  on the left is the percentage of bucks harvested that are 4 and 5 pts during rifle seasons;  I am excluding the permit seasons because my point is simply that department policy is causing a shift in hunter populations away from general modern firearm hunters to general archery hunters, since this is the bulk of all hunters. 

59%   Unit 209    75%
45%   Unit 215    69%
43%   Unit 233    63%
52%   Unit 243    100%
49%   Unit 250    63%
41%   Unit 352    66%
43%   Unit 388    47%

Right side = percentage of harvest of 4 and 5 pts killed by archers during their season
Left side = percentage of harvest of 4 and 5 pts killed by modern rifle during their season

So, department policy is shifting the population of hunters  from one group (rifle hunters) who, statistically, shoot very few does,  and mostly 2.5 yr old three points, and into a group that statistically shoots more does and older bucks.

At some point, a massive restructuring of season lengths, season timings, and doe tag availabiltiy, is going to have to occur in the archery seasons in this state.

this trend will continue unabated in this state until either one of two things happen:

1.  Deer herds recover strongly, allowing more liberal rifle seasons;  this will draw archery hunters back to rifle hunting because these new "converts" are really not archery hunters at heart.

2.  The WDFW dramatically limits the late archery seasons.

Number 1 is not going to happen;  Number 2 will, eventually........because in another 10 yrs you are looking at another 10,000 archery hunters entering the equation.....better enjoy it while you can........

[Lowedog]

With that trend happening I don't feel us archery hunters should have a general late season hunt for mule deer anymore.  I say make it permit only and open more units to those permits.