See I knew you’d come around to our way of thinking!!🤣🤣

Tdog, I know of a 120 acre, timber company lease, just outside of Thomasville, between there and Dixon's Mills and there have been 4 or 5 deer killed off of it, right at, or just over 130, in the past 8 or 9 years, with the best being a 143. In fact there was one right at 130 killed off of it 3 weeks ago. It's very lightly pressured and the property to the south is a very heavily pressured club. A really good one is seen on it every single year and most years, it gives up at least one. Right property, right spot, right neighbors, right situation. Main thing is almost zero pressure. Once again, genetics are not the issue, even just outside of town.

I know most everybody that hunts around me and there's no one hunting within a mile of my place. before this year I could count on one hand the afternoons I had hunted and not seen a deer in the last 5 years.This year it's hit or miss on seeing a deer. We don't shoot does and we kill 1-3 bucks a year. A normal sit here was seeing 10-15 deer an afternoon. I'm guessing EHD and I'll add I've heard very very few gunshots this year.

This is the problem right here and itll only get worse. I hope some of the new hunters get sick of it and nobody in their family hunts a deer for ten generations. Heck, i hope most of yall quit hunting. Yall need to try out golf, i hear its much more gradifying than deer hunting.

These late summer/early falls around here have been pretty hot and dry lately. EHD could have alot to do with it. But around here i really think its just too many humans

Very similar experience T. Sim in Monroe county.

^^
I got more old deer than i ever had and keep pressure way down. On a stand today the first time i hunted it all year 🤣🤣. Got one stand been there for 5 years in the hardwoods - just started hunting it this year. Had 2 six year olds daylighting - but they aint 130 🤣🤣. Most people just dont hold stands for years waiting to hunt and its on fringe of hardwood sanctuary

All i am saying is 130 rare. The Town had a 130s 14 point last year but it rare here - he was not on me but close and they were hunting crap out of him - my pressure stays down. I can go most all of jan and never hunt my buck field most seasons. Studs hit it - 6 year olds hit it - but no 130

I hav one that may reach 130 this year. Lot of my property is a sanctuary. In 6 years i hav had prob 4 120s and this maybe 130. I think it can produce a 140 - had a mega stud few years ago that disappear at 4. Just very hard to see here. Think i maxing out potential. Got 9 deer over 5 on a 256. Thats hard to do on a 1000

Feel lucky - watch some of same deer every year - lucky to hav this place

Here’s another aspect of this to consider…..

Last time I heard they estimated game check compliance to be something like 65% I think it was…..In essence we are sampling the 65% of hunters that choose to comply with GC to get our data from…….Something that we can most likely assume and be correct in assuming it is that if those 65% of law abiding hunters are reporting that they are killing more deer then you can just about bet your ass that the 35% who arent reporting to game check are killing that much plus some…..Sooooo…….what that means is that any increase in harvest that we show in game check is probably a little worse in reality……If game check is showing a 20% increase then the real increase is probably 25-30% or maybe more…..Again, that’s just an assumption but probably a pretty accurate one

Smart mature Bucks have fled south into Northern Florida. They are tired of the whining and pissing on Aldeer.
I'm looking for a club or land out in the panhandle right now.

Possible.

Some on here won't be Sassyfied until we're only allowed one buck and one doe and 2 week season i guess. Glad don't have to listen to this pissin and moaning around the Campfire anymore 🤣

^ this is most of the problem right here!!!!! Almost every wooded acre is being hunted nowadays!!!

Prime example:
5 years ago there were 3 total people (me and 2 others) that I knew of that deer hunted within a mile of my Cullman County property. Now, I can call 15 other people by name that hunt within that same one mile diameter…I’m about the only one that bow hunts, but it’s TOUGH hunting that time of year due to standing crops!!! I had 3 bucks on camera that I’d shoot coming into this season and I encountered two of them at dark two different times in bow season (too dark to see my sights)…By dark on opening afternoon of gun season: 2 of those 3 bucks were dead. I haven’t had a picture of the lone survivor since November 29th, so I feel sure he’s dead as well…I haven’t hunted said property since Thanksgiving week and I won’t waste my time until a shooter buck shows up on camera.

The increase is 100% all out of staters coming in to finish off what is remaining of the Alabama deer herd. Inflation and loss of buying power hasnt hurt anyone in other states financially and these out of staters are just jumping at the chance to drive a couple hundred or more miles, pay $400 for an out of state license, $50 for their out of state corn permit and get to blasting some big ole Alabama 1-2 yr old basket racked bucks and a hundred or so nannies apiece.

Wait a minute, hold the presses. Let's toss out a few facts into the conversation. Google says:

Here are some other hunting statistics for Alabama:
2021-2022 deer season: Nearly 238,000 hunters hunted deer for 5.4 million days, harvesting over 301,000 deer
2022-2023 deer season: Over 233,000 hunters hunted deer for more than 5.4 million days, harvesting nearly 309,000 deer
2023-2024 deer season: More than 235,000 hunters hunted deer for more than 5.4 million days, harvesting over 314,000 deer

Looks like CNC is right on target again. The massive increase in deer hunters over the last 3 years appears to be a net loss of 3,000 deer hunters. Yep that's a -3,000 deer hunters.

From the Alabama Department of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries 2011-2012 Hunter Survey (oldest I could find)
"The 2011 National Survey of Fishing Hunting & Wildlife Associated Recreation indicates that approximately 535,000 residents (licensed and unlicensed) and non-residents hunted in Alabama during the 2011-2012 season. Of the 535,00 individuals that hunted during the 2011-2012 season, 249,686 were licensed. Comparing these figures indicates that resident hunters who do not or are not required to buy licenses contribute significantly to the overall hunting effort and harvest of game animals in the state."

Point to Note: In 2011-2012 season there were more unlicensed hunters in the state of Alabama than there were licensed hunters. There is no reason to believe that this is not still the case.

License sales for 2011 were 249,686. Tex is correct in saying that today it is holding at around 290-300K. So license sales have increased by somewhere between 40,000 and 50,000 in the 14 years between 2011 and today. Why could that be? Alabama's population has increased by about 345,000 people or about 7.5% during this same period. Land fragmentation and development has occurred too. CNC says everything is getting busted up and bought up which is 100%correct. So now people that were hunting family land no longer have access to hunt that 100-500 acres the family used to own. So now, if they want to hunt, they lease land or hunt a neighbors and guess what? Now those same people are required to buy licenses. How many residents are there that were just hunting friend's property without a license (illegally) in Alabama, before Chuckie Check was instituted and especially before it became mandatory and you had to have that pesky little harvest ID to drop a deer at the processor, that have now started buying a license as a result. That number is probably a really large number and a big part of the increase. The chances of getting caught hunting without a license in any given county in AL, especially for deer is very small. Everyone already knew this, same as hunting over corn before it was legalized. Most people did it because there was not much of a chance of getting caught. I contend that a bunch of people simply were not taking the time or hassle to get that annual $35 license. Point is, just looking at the total numbers does not always show what you think it does. Dont become fixated and enamored with the "shiny object". Look behind the numbers at all the details and other factors influencing, driving and affecting them.

All this said, I agree completely with CNC. I too am 100% sure that Marsh and his cajun buddies and all their Florida friends are pilfering all of Alabama's wildlife resources, killing all the little bucks and responsible for 99% of the annual doe harvest, and will be the sole cause for the eminent crash and complete extinction of Alabama's deer herd. Thus ruining the hunting for all the residents and landowners. Dang you Marsh, you and your cajun reebok wearing buddies better stay over in LA!!!!! By the way, I'm driving over to LA this weekend to fish and pilfer some or your LA redfish and speckled trout. Where do you think would be better? Delacroix or Point Lahache this weekend? Are the siphons open at Lahache, I'd like to grab a couple limits of bass too?

I would LOVE to see the statewide regulations go to one antlered buck with archery tackle and one antlered buck with a gun

Guess we need to stop taking kids hunting and all since there's too many folks in the woods for the crybabies. Of course said crybabies don't mind ifn it's their kids or grandkids killing the deers 😅

My 7 year old son is educated enough on the matter to the point where he has allowed about 8 bucks to walk over the last two seasons that people in this thread would’ve shot…

I’m not saying: DO NOT PROMOTE THE OUTDOORS!!! I’m simply proving a point that it doesn’t take very long to decimate the future buck potential when folks are hunting every tract of property in an area and choose to shoot every 1.5 and 2.5 year old buck that they see.

My old AL lease story : Deer are scared to death. Carcasses in the ditches. Looked like fire huntin' to me. Never went back.

There was an old fella that was telling me the story of his big buck several years ago. It was a 3 point. Everytime that fella told me the story, which was 4-5 times a week for 6 months, he would get the biggest smile on his face. I mean this old guy would light up. So now when I go, from that moment on I tell folks to shoot what makes them happy, cause in the end that's what matters...

Marshmudd hit it CNC... the numbers you say support your theory are not reliable.. at least not yet. Yet you are choosing to die on the hill pretending there is some validity there because it conveniently links to your argument about what you think is happening. Just like climate change folks are looking at half-baked numbers and ruining commerce because *they just know* the data they like is real.

James, you ever thought about taking up golf? Youd look good in a pair of those nickers with your two inch long leghairs sticking through the long plaid sox. Maybe one of them flat golf hats with a ball on top of it. Say "fore" real loud one time. I bet you like it.