We kill very few does around my place. I may go to killing everything at this time. It sucks being able to let deer grow to having nothing in 3 years.

Something else that has happened in the past 5-10 years that is just compounding this issue is the fact that the price hunters are willing to pay for an individual hunting club membership has kinda topped out for a lot of clubs……Once you reach somewhere around $2500-$3500 for a membership the number of people willing to pay that or more drops off substantially……and that’s where we are at with many of them……So now today when the price of the lease goes up it has a direct impact on hunter density as clubs add “one more” hunter……

I think this is likely occurring across a lot of southeast Alabama where lease prices are the highest driven by out of state pockets……When the deeper pockets come in willing to pay $20+ an acre and a $5000 membership and it raises the per acre price for everyone…… the $1500- $2500 crowd doesn’t fold their lease and quit…..they add more members.

In the past 5 years, the number of deer and the quality of bucks has greatly improved at our place. I got a good one and we are still seeing other good ones on cams

Maybe some of y’all just suck at seeing and killing bucks.

Or maybe the bucks we want to kill are no longer in the population. 🤷🏼‍♂️😝

I could probably kill my limit of racked bucks in a few days of hunting, got plenty of them. My problem is killing the one I want to kill which is 4+ years with a good enough rack to put on the wall.

I want to kill the largest and oldest bucks I have access to. I’m not content killing baskets racks. The problem is those old and large bucks are getting harder and harder to find. Just look at the “big buck contests”. Very few high caliber deer anymore.

Because they ain't there.

Apparently there’s a bunch of really nice older bucks somewhere. Facebook is loaded with posts of big bucks killed from all over the state of Alabama. Somebody is good at killing them.

All from the mountains of Pelham. From the Big pen…of course.

If this out of state hunter is gonna pay that much for a place to hunt, it sure won’t be in Alabama. For that kind of money I’m traveling west.

Maybe some of us dont shoot basket 2 yr olds

We do just so the neighbors don’t get the chance to!! That’s how is out of state hunters roll. Just ask CNC.
Seriously, there are slim years that we don’t see as many older bucks. Then the next we will see several really good older class bucks and get lucky enough to kill 1 or 2. We are fortunate to have good neighbors that all work together on letting the young ones walk. Sometimes mistakes are made and that’s no big deal. If a spike bucks makes you happy I’ll celebrate we you just like it’s a 5yr old 10pt. Maybe y’all need to get with y’all neighbors and try to work together on letting the little ones grow. And get away from the corn feeders and hunt bucks where bucks live.

^^
Thats the way mine has been. First year i had 2 beautiful 10 pt mounters and a few other shooter's. Then a few years of very dry or lean with only 1-2 shooters. Then i had like 6 old bucks one year. Last year was way down except for one stud and another showed up late. This year is a banner year for old. Guessing next year will be down ! Just a guess

Fewest bucks we have ever had in our Perey Co tract. Let a bunch of nice 3 or 4 yr old walk last year, did not kill a buck on 1200 acres cause there wasn't one old enough. Only one of them made it through summer I guess cause the others are gone. Luckily the one that made it was the biggest we have ever taken off that place.

It depends on what part of the state you live in. 30 years ago I lived in a deer desert in NE Al. and you had to drive 2 hours to hunt. Now it's great. More big bucks being killed than I can remember.

I’m trying to figure out it’s all on the out of staters
I agree it happened in other destination states but not here.
I’d bet on locals doing the killing of younger bucks.
May as well or so-n-so will kill em. Been hearing that for over 30 years

Are y’all going by sightings or camera pictures? I’m bout the same. I haven’t mounted a deer head in 14 years. I try not to shoot young bucks but they have a lot of meat on em.

And there are a lot of really nice bucks killed that don't get put on social media. I have several friends that kill really good deer consistently on private land, not in neighborhoods, that never see a social media page.

We are seeing similar numbers...

This kind of post reminds me of climate change thinking and over-reaction drama. Folks see fewer deer for a couple of months and immediately sound the alarm, when there are way too many variables in play to try to pin the 'perceived' reduction on something tangible and real. Could be something happening, or it could be just bad luck or something naturally cyclic that is random.

I try to avoid the sky is falling mentality.