Well, there is. It’s made by Swamp Fox Products out of Andrews, SC, and the two patterns that they offer are Black River camo for deer, turkey and dove hunting and Cord Grass camo for all waterfowl hunting. These two great patterns are available in different length rolls (54 inches by 12 feet to 54 inches by 100 feet) for use on all kinds of hunting blinds. And best of all their camo cloth is strong, odor free and will not fray when cut.

Swamp Fox Products also puts their two camo patterns on many types of hunting apparel and supplies including ponchos, gun socks and game bags as well as on some great specialty items such as place mats, coasters, table cloths, tri-fold beds, curtains and even carpet tiles!

I encourage everyone to check out their website (www.swampfoxproducts.com) for more information on their camo patterns and the products they make with them.

In “Deer Harvest Trends”, Adams highlights the amazing improvements in buck age structures across the country as well the ratio of does to bucks in the harvest from 1999 to 2005. For instance,

• the percentage of yearlings in the buck harvest declined from an average of 51% in 1999 to 45% in 2005

• the percentage of 2.5-year-olds increased from 28 to 32% and 3.5-year-olds or older increased from 19 to 23%

• In 2005, about 2/3 (65%) of the states shot as many or more antlerless deer than bucks

• the percentage of yearlings in the buck harvest declined from an average of 51% in 1999 to 45% in 2005

Please click below to read the entire article! You will be amazed at how QDM has positively impacted our hunting. And please note that I have included the entire article instead of linking to it since it has not been released on the QDMA website yet.

Interest in Quality Deer Management (QDM) has increased dramatically during the past decade and many states have implemented regulations to improve the health and quality of their deer herd(s) and habitat(s). Such regulations include buck harvest restrictions to reduce the harvest rate of yearlings and allow more bucks to reach older age classes, and increased antlerless opportunities designed to balance deer herds with the habitat.

In 2001 the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA) produced a map showing the estimated deer density by county for the lower 48 states. The map also included deer herd and harvest information, the estimated number of deer-vehicle collisions and QDM trend information. The map contained data provided by state wildlife agencies from 1994 to 1999. The map has been extremely popular as it is a valuable reference to compare relative deer densities, harvest data and other herd statistics among states. Recently, QDMA updated the map with information obtained from state wildlife agencies. The new map contains information from 2001 to 2005 and noticeable changes have occurred since the initial map was produced. The data set is not complete as a few states didnt provide data and some didnt provide all of the requested information, but the submitted information provides for meaningful comparisons among states and between the 2001 map and the present.

With respect to antlerless harvest, 1999 was a landmark year since it marked the first time hunters in the U.S. harvested more antlerless deer than bucks. In 1999 hunters harvested approximately 6.2 million whitetails, with bucks accounting for slightly less than half. In 2005 hunters harvested approximately the same number of deer but bucks accounted for only 44% of the total. From 1999 to 2005 buck harvest as a percentage of total harvest declined while the antlerless harvest increased by about 10%.

More importantly, the percentage of yearlings in the buck harvest declined from an average of 51% in 1999 to 45% in 2005. During this same period the percentage of 2.5-year-olds increased from 28 to 32% and 3.5-year-olds or older increased from 19 to 23%. Some states made tremendous advances such as Pennsylvania dropping from 80 to 52% yearling bucks. Wisconsin dropped from 68 to 51% and Mississippi dropped from 50% to a nationwide low of 12% yearlings! Kudos to the Magnolia state! Arkansas followed a close second with 20% yearlings. Pennsylvania used to lead this undesirable category but is now around the national average with at least six other states harvesting a higher percentage of yearlings, including neighbors Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Ohio (data not provided by Delaware or West Virginia). Michigan, New Jersey and New York now tie for the national lead with 63% of their buck harvests being 1.5 years old.

Two states regressed in this statistic with South Carolina and New Hampshire both harvesting a higher percentage of yearlings in 2005 than in 1999. South Carolina increased from 48 to 55% and New Hampshire from 46 to 51% yearlings. In fairness to South Carolina, it was ahead of the curve in 1999 and is still doing well today especially considering that more than half of the state has a four-and-a-half-month season with no buck limit. Also, New Hampshire has already established a procedure to reduce their yearling harvest rate. In 2005 the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department published their 2006-2015 Big Game Management Plan and Objective 2-1 of that plan states, Manage regional deer populations to ensure that yearling males dont exceed 50% of the adult male population. From 2004 to 2006 the percentage of yearling bucks had exceeded 50% of the buck harvest in one of the states wildlife management units (WMU). Therefore, the Department organized an ad-hoc deer advisory committee to determine the preferred strategies for reducing the yearling harvest rate in that WMU, and they implemented the chosen strategy in 2007. This component of their deer management plan is arguably one of the most progressive QDM procedures implemented by any state agency, and since its implementation the percentage of yearlings in the buck harvest has dropped to 24% in that WMU and 45% statewide.

With respect to 2.5-year-olds, Maryland doubled their percentage in the harvest from 23% in 1999 to 46% in 2005. Nebraska increased from 29 to 56% and Indiana increased from 25 to 35%. Pennsylvania only separates their buck harvest into yearlings and 2.5 years and older, and the Keystone state improved from 20 to 48% bucks that were at least 2.5 years old. In actual numbers, these percentages represent an increase from nearly 39,000 to 58,000 bucks.

With respect to bucks 3.5 years old and older, Mississippi leads the nation with 60% of their buck harvest reaching this age category. This percentage has tripled in Mississippi since 1999. Texas is second with 49% and Arkansas is third with 38%. Other notables include Rhode Island with 37%, North Carolina with 28%, and Wisconsin jumped to 20% 3.5 years old or older (double their percentage in 1999).

Overall, Texas leads the nation in buck harvest by harvesting nearly 250,000 bucks and fortunately only 28% of them are yearlings. Michigan is second with nearly 220,000 bucks but unfortunately 63% of them are yearlings. Alabama and Wisconsin are next with approximately 183,000 bucks. Only 51% of bucks harvested in Wisconsins are yearlings and age-class data wasnt provided by Alabama. Given Alabamas unlimited buck harvest regulations and season length in 2005, it is likely the percentage of yearlings was quite high. However, in 2007 the state took action and restricted the buck bag limit to three (one of which must have at least four points on one antler) per year in an effort to reduce their yearling harvest rate.

Antlerless deer harvests are more difficult to compare across states and years as some states are aggressively reducing populations while others are seeking to stabilize herds. From 1999 to 2005, one of the most notable statistics was the increase in antlerless harvest in the Midwest. Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Ohio and Missouri increased their antlerless harvests by an average of 78% from nearly 400,000 to over 710,000. Illinois and Iowa lead this list with 153 and 114% antlerless harvest increases, respectively. Overall Wisconsin leads the nation in this category by harvesting approximately 274,000 antlerless deer. Alabama is second with about 256,000 and Pennsylvania is third with 234,000. Pennsylvanias antlerless harvest is 27% higher than in 1999 but 38% lower than in 2003 when the state was aggressively reducing the deer herd.

One final comparison is to view each states total deer harvest. In 2005, about 2/3 (65%) of the states shot as many or more antlerless deer than bucks, while 1/3 (35%) shot more bucks. Delaware topped the list with antlerless deer comprising 70% of their harvest. Georgia, Iowa, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Tennessee ranged from 66 to 69%, and Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin ranged from 60 to 65% antlerless deer. States such as Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont shoot fewer than 50% antlerless deer. This is not surprising in northern New England where lower deer densities combined with severe winter weather allow for successful deer management programs with reduced antlerless harvests. However, states with productive deer herds like Michigan, Nebraska and North Carolina should likely have harvests comprising more than 50% antlerless deer rather than the 40 to 47% they averaged in 2005.

A decade ago QDM was still in its infancy but its positive impacts on deer herds and habitats were becoming evident.  Today, the QDM philosophy is not only growing in acceptance among hunters, but also shaping the future of deer hunting and management throughout North America. State wildlife agencies are urging sportsmen to play their role in balancing deer populations by harvesting female deer and hunters are increasingly answering the call.  Many states also are responding to the increasing support by hunters for more restrictive buck harvest guidelines.  Still more hunters are voluntarily restricting buck harvests on their properties beyond what is required by law. In our ever-changing world at least one thing is clear; todays hunters are far more knowledgeable about whitetails, their role in management, and their preference for QDM.  Aldo Leopold would be very proud.

The map and data referenced in this article will be available later this summer by contacting the QDMA at 800-209-3337 or www.QDMA.com

Click Here for more information on QWTV on The Outdoor Channel!

Kips Korner is written by Kip Adams, a certified wildlife biologist and Director of Education and Outreach for the Northern Region for the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA). The QDMA is a non-profit wildlife conservation organization dedicated to promoting sustainable, high-quality, white-tailed deer populations, wildlife habitats and ethical hunting experiences through education, research, and management in partnership with hunters, landowners, natural resource professionals, and the public. The QDMA can be reached at 1-800-209-DEER or www.QDMA.com.

What happens when you are taking care of life’s business and not hunting enough? Birds invade your hunting gear and claim it as their own!

I have written about many of the changes I am currently making in my life, and unfortunately implementing them takes a lot of time and energy. I also still have a wife and two boys, and they are a priority. So actually hunting has taken a backseat to writing about hunting.

However a pair of Carolina Wrens has decided that if I wasn’t using my gear, they would. I have posted about how I leave all of my hunting stuff on our screened in porch so that it always stays scent free. Well, after accessing a hole in the screen, the birds decided that they hated to see all of my good stuff not be used, so they took it over as a nest.

I caught them a few times about a month ago putting twigs in my backpack, so I made sure and took it out before they got finished. I thought that would do it. Well, it didn’t. It seems that while I wasn’t paying attention, they managed to sneak back in and completely build a nest, then lay eggs in their new home. And since I didn’t want to break up the happy family, I decided I would just leave them alone until they were finished raising their new family. And sure enough, when we came back from Florida this past weekend, there were the baby wrens waiting on supper to be served.

In the pictures, you can see my Scent Lok backpack hanging on a hook on the porch, then you can see the eggs laying in it, then mama bird sitting on the eggs and finally the baby birds sleeping…Hope they enjoy my Olympus binoculars in there!

As for our trip, we had a very nice time in Florida doing absolutely nothing for a few days. We took dive gear with us, but we basically ended up just hanging out, going out to eat a few times and letting the grandparents enjoy the boys. And while it is always nice to get away, it is even better to be home. I am ready to get back to work on all of my plans… Thanks to everyone for their support, and for reading this site!

Jeff

]]> http://lowcountryhunting.com/2008/07/15/carolina-wrens-take-over-my-hunting-gear/feed/ http://lowcountryhunting.com/2008/07/10/lowcountryhunting-goes-on-vacation/ http://lowcountryhunting.com/2008/07/10/lowcountryhunting-goes-on-vacation/#comments Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:56:22 +0000 lowcountryhunting http://lowcountryhunting.com/?p=534 I guess I should have mentioned that we’re in Florida this week… My regularly scheduled posts will return on Monday.

Thanks, Jeff

I will also not be managing Jericho either. Times are tough and filling memberships on highly managed deer hunting clubs has been even tougher. Don’t get me wrong, I would have filled up what I needed to, it just was taking longer than expected. And there was another group that was committed to treating the place right (and had the funds ready), so they have taken it over. And while I was a little disappointed in this, this development has also worked in my favor as far as my goals and time management go.

Please note that I didn’t immediately stop advertising my lowcountry hunting services since I considered leasing a smaller piece of property for just a few of the right clients. However again, this was going to take up too much time for not enough return. So a couple of us are headed over to hunt with Marion at Gohagan’s Guide Service. He is doing everything that I would have done and just as good, so I am going to enjoy the benefits of hunting a great place without expending all of the time.

Don’t misunderstand. I love managing prime hunting properties. However the amount of time required to properly do so is enormous. And so is the money. Just to give you an idea of what it takes to fully fund one here in the lowcountry, take a look at these numbers… A prime lease will run around 25$ an acre; that makes a 1000 acres worth around $25,000 a year! Then add in 500 to 1000 bushels of corn at the current $8, and that will tack on an additional $4000 to $8000. And of course everyone likes to have a nice place to stay at night along with sitting over some nice green fields that require planting with $5 a gallon diesel, good seed and fertilizer. Add that all up and you are at around $35,000 to $40,000! Do the math, and 12 members (about right for that acreage) and each one will have to pay $3500 a season. That is a lot of money for most folks right now… And that is all just to cover the costs.

I also have a family that I must take care of, so that has made me look at my life goals as well as at our finances. In addition, I have something else that I would like to do more of that requires time - writing about managing for big bucks and hunting in the lowcountry. So, since there are only so many hours in a day, I have decided to use my time for other projects including several new websites and a magazine. I will be posting much more about these undertakings very soon. However that may not be on this blog (or this blog in its current form).  I may have to switch this site over to a self-published one in the very near future, so please bare with me as I make any of these changes.

As you can see I have lots of big stuff going on, but believe it or not, there is more. Since I still want to continue to work in the hunting field, manage for big bucks and gain valuable experience, I have another exciting development to tell you about very soon…Stay tuned, and thanks for reading!

Jeff

This was a shot I took about 12 years ago during the 4th of July fireworks in Sanford, FL.

Enjoy your holiday and please be safe!

Look what showed up in our backyard this morning at 9am to check for fallen pears… With a month still left for his rack to grow, he should turn out pretty good. And he had better hope that I don’t sleep in and hunt the backyard opening morning!

I also wanted to wish everyone, including our great country and all of the members of our armed forces defending it, a happy 4th of July. Please be safe and enjoy some family time outdoors. With our youngest son’s birthday this weekend and my mom up for it, I know that is our plan. Next post will be Monday.

Jeff

Jeff

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that stopped by last week to wish my mom/hunting mentor a happy retirement. I am also glad that so many people enjoyed reading one of our classic family stories!

And thanks to all of her coworkers, the party was a huge success as well. I truly enjoyed getting to meet everyone that she works with and talks about, and I can’t thank them for giving my mom such a wonderful sendoff.

It was held at Whitey’s fish camp in Orange Park, so there was a ton of great seafood. It was fried, but my mom was roasted. She has worked with her company/state-funded agency for 18 years, so her friends and coworkers really know her. And boy did they let her have it about everything from being tight with the budget (her job) to accidentally showing up on a Saturday (Friday to her) and being upset that no one else had come to work!

They also sent her off with some very nice gifts in appreciation for all of her years of hard work. The gifts included a HUGE basket of books and books on tape (she loves to listen while on the road), a rocking chair to sit with her grandboys and a giant flat-screen TV (so the boys can watch big buck videos in style when she babysits).

Of course, since my mom loves to tell stories about me, they were also not surprised that I was late for the party. However for once it wasn’t my fault. We had to sit on I95 for over an hour watching firefighters use the jaws of life to cut some accident victims out of their truck and then load them in to the lifeflight helicopter. But while that did put us behind, all of the action did keep the kid’s from getting restless during our wait and give them something to talk about. (fortunately the news said that everyone survived)

And Matt did hit the nail on the head when he commented that he hoped that my mom didn’t read my blog since it said that we were going down to surprise her. She, just like my wife, hardly ever reads it since she has to hear about all of my adventures anyway, so I didn’t think anything about putting that info up. However she “accidentally” clicked on my blog that morning, so she did know we were coming… but she says that it didn’t take anything away from us making the trip down.

As for us, we made it back home and are all now recovering from getting sick. The kids picked up something last week from daycare, and it has made its way through everyone including me. I did nothing all weekend but rest, and unfortunately I am still trying to shake it. I believe I will survive, but I hate being sick.

Please check back again tomorrow for some more important updates on us that I have.

Jeff

One of the people most responsible for my love of the outdoors is retiring this week, and that would be my mom! Amy, the boys and I are heading to Florida this morning to attend a surprise retirement party for her, so I will have to write this post quickly. However I did want to relate a short story that, while just one example, perfectly illustrates how hard she tried to make sure I had ample opportunities in the woods as a young man. And being a single mother, that was definitely not always easy!

Normally she would arrange for me to hunt with family friends, but we were just stopping to visit here for a day on our way home from a Christmas trip up north. I was about 13, and I only had one afternoon that I could hunt before we continued on back to Florida. I really wanted to hunt so I begged her to take me. And my Uncle J.O. (sr) said that I could sit in the oak tree stand in the back of Jenkins field on Cubbedge Hill if she would.

Well, our small hatchback car was loaded down with clothes and Christmas gifts, but she said as long as I didn’t kill anything, she would drop me off. I said no problem since I figured that it was 50/50 that I would even see anything that late in the season to shoot. So she put me out, and I sat watching over the field until near dark when a couple of does (couldn’t shoot them then) came out followed by a spike. I watched them all the while trying to remember my mom’s command not to shoot anything. But, I just couldn’t take it.

I put the cross hairs on his shoulder and dropped him. I then went and dragged him over to the edge of the field by the road to proudly wait on my mom to pick me up. I don’t even want to repeat what she said when she arrived, but to say that she was not counting on me having a deer would be an understatement. However like she always does, she made the best of the situation by rearranging the entire car’s worth of luggage and presents so that the back was empty enough for my deer to fit. However the only thing we had to keep the blood out of the car was her hanging clothes bag! So down it went, in went the deer, and off we went to the deer processors.

My mom still tells this story to this day as an example of the many problems I have caused her over the years. And I wouldn’t trade the memory for anything. Thanks mom!