Lack of intrest

I don't like to gripe but this ticks me OFF>>>A lil bit of Morelands Excuse to lack of hunters!!!!

“The biggest problem is that there’s just no connection between this generation and the land,” he said. “We grew up in rural Louisiana, and we hunted wherever we wanted. Now everything’s leased, and if you want to hunt somewhere, you’ve got to get permission.”

Moreland said, also, kids today have so many other diversions competing for their attention — everything from year-round sports to video games. Good hunters have to be able to overcome occasional bouts of boredom, and today’s youth just aren’t willing to invest that time. They’d rather shoot invading cyber Marsians inside their heated living rooms than sit and wait for a possible shot at a rutting deer.

>>>There is more to this lack of hunters than video and rural areas. It wasn't 10 yrs ago in Shurb and 3 rivers WMAs that I could drive the roads and see 10 to 15 deer in 15 minutes..I've got two boys, 1, 24 and the other is 15, the 15 yr old would love to hunt and tells his brother that he wished WE had the deer his older brother saw 10 yrs ago..IT"S CALLED LACK OF GAME ANIMALS ON PUBLIC AREAS!!!!!!! Get intouch and a CLUE Moreland!!! This is the real problem in WMAs..

You have exceptional 15 year old by much of today's standards. From the pictures I see posted here,most WMA's have plenty of deer. I'm sure you will get more feedback,however. Have a good one.

Thats correct most wma's lack deer to keep kids attention--I for one have been in favor of our wmas supporting the most deer the land can support--Moreland and ldwf are on a track of less deer is best--3rivers/red river is a good example here you have 65000 acres with maybe a herd of 1500 deer--that would be appx. 14 deer per sq. mile--not exactly running over each other--even if you double these figures you do not have enough deer to hold a kids attention--Its quit funny how moreland puts out info. without some answers to the problem--i guess you would have to include yourself as the problem--politics in la. go hand in hand--just b.s.-----Another problem which could be fixed for the youth hunt is food plots --but thats a joke also-- someone with the ldwf would have to do a little work to have food plots--It got so bad with no deer on red/three rivers around the early 90's i remember taking a ride with blackhawk owner grady weeks who owned the place before he erected the fence around midnight following the edge of his property bordering the wma and saw a total of 6 deer in about 1 hr. of riding--now this is a place that had 2000 acres of beans touching the wma--Just down the road right before deerpark is a 600 acre patch of woods surrounded by bean fields and there would be around 50 deer on the edge most mornings at daylite--Another idea since ldwf always claim no moneys for the youth hunts would be to choose three main wmas --one north la., central la. and south la. and have extensive food plots with box stands--only box stands to be used for the youth hunt--Now moreland whats your take on this--Moreland needs to find out how many of the fewer deer hunters are hunting out of state like in Miss,Alabama,Texas and Arkansa before he makes a stupid statement without all the facts--I guess thats why the wma's are like they are-- being run without facts--I work with five other guys that all hunt Miss. leases and its not because its cheaper to hunt in Miss.Its because they see deer,alot of deer--

Dearmeat--what happens with a small deer herd is with alot of presure on the wma's the maj. of the herd goes noctural because of the large amount of food source available with the few deer on it --With a large herd of deer the food source would be less and competition for it would make some deer move around even with all the yahoos out there-- If you were around 1993 hunting red/three rivers the ones like myself that hunted it then can tell you it was like a paradise with deer because we had got the senate to pass a resolution to stop the two day doe day to one day which was done for three yrs.This allowed one of the biggest herd of deer on the area since the ldwf had took over--Of course it was to good to last-- the a--holes from ldwf went back to the two day slaughter and you know the rest of the story--I am not a biologist but hunted the area for 20 yrs and know the area probably as good or better than anyone that has hunted it--

I agree 3 rivers & red river do not have the deer herd they had 10-15 years ago. maybe if the department would have the people which are stationed he do some WORK, maybe things would change. hell they don't even cut the grass in the camp grounds much less do anything else.
also if they keep clear cutting everything we will have nothing. I think select cutting would be better, leave the feed trees.

First, I thought that the lack of personnel was only on Dewey Wills. I guess we don't have enough money to "pay" people to do all the work on our WMA's...hahaha. Second , I think Moreland is somewhat right about this generation. But he just should have extended the blame to the parents. THEY let their kids sit on a couch all day playing stupid video games. I remember when I got my first Nintendo back in the 80's. The first day I had it, I sat there and played it all day. The next day it was gone!!! My Dad threw it out. Looking back I am happy I had a Dad that wouldn't put up with me being lazy. Moreland also hit the nail on the head by saying you can't just go out in the woods and hunt anymore. BUT not only because of the leased land, but because of HIM!!!! THE LDWF has over regulated hunting. I am all about having a healthy deer heard, but the general public is not about "TROPHY" hunting and all the rules and regs that go along with it. You have to know your stuff before you just "walk" out there. Last but not least...was summed up in Nutcrackers post. BLACKHAWK. Why go work for a deer on a WMA, when your daddy can drop $5000 at blackhawk and you can pick which one you want. Today's generation wants instant satisfaction. Look at all the pictures of these kids with huge bucks killed on these private ranches. I thinks it great that they are getting introduced to hunting...but its they way they are introduced. The only thing a lot of kids today are learning about hunting is how to write a check..its sad. And now someone wants to build box stands for kids to hunt out of on youth hunts???? WHAT???..no wonder this generation is so SOFT!!! Our grandfathers are rolling over in their graves sticking up a big middle finger to all of us. What have we become???

The reason WMAs have so few deer is overharvesting. The LaDWF has managed for years to maximize harvest, to maximize hunter numbers, and thus push up license sales. Sadly, it has caught up with them w/low numbers. As it gets harder to harvest on public land, less people go, and they sell fewer licenses. Years of shooting everything that walks hasn't worked, so you really need more regs, or more individual restraint, whether you believe in QDM or not.

The ole throw it against the wall and see if it sticks attitude seems to be the easy way out for our LOVELY state.
Question; Why do you think it is that "most" other sucessful states with healthy deer herds and deer hunting industries, have a 3 or less annual deer limit? does less deer per year = to more work for WLF employees? Gotta say hmmmmmmmmmm????? I think we might try 1 deer per 500 acres huh??? OH yeah that'll make them big then..and then all the Xbox and gameboy kids will really want to come out and play!!!

What a waste of state money with the tag system. Who in sams hell needs to kill 6 deer per season? I'm sending two of my tags to the governer to protest the liberal kill we have here. Yes, a few people kill 6 and some kill 9 but the majority of hunters kill much less and again I say, who in sams hell NEEDS to kill 6!
Just my opinion

The LDWF keeps making rules that allow us to kill more deer more often. That is fine for now, but what about the future. We are going to kill more deer now, but we will have less deer to kill in the future. Sure the LDWF will get more money now, but they will pay for it in the future. The number of deer hunters will decrease in the next 5 years as the number of deer will decrease and the success rate will decrease and some hunters will loose interest. They keep making rules for the occasional hunter, but they don't keep in mind what the hardcore hunters will do to the heard. Shore the occassional hunter will have a better chance of harvesting a deer if everyday is doe day, but after a few years of the hardcore hunters hammering the does the occassional hunter will be back in the same boat. There will be fewer deer and therefore fewer scuccessful hunts.

Its not a question of need. You don't NEED to kill anything. You do so because you want to and its legal. The 'experts' set the limits knowing full well that the majority of us don't kill anywhere near the max. If you have a problem with the limits you are wasting your breath (fingers) complaining to this forum. I would suggest you address the commission and/or the legislature.

Do you think we have "experts" setting the harvest quota? They don't have a clue as to how many deer are taken from anywhere in the state. You don't have to be a wildlife biologist to know the deer herd is dwindling on all the public land I've hunted on. Why is it you see less and less each season, is it because we have too many deer???

I don't see fewer deer. But then again I don't hunt WMAs. Seems like the 'problem' is in the public areas.

30 years ago we were severely limited on the number of doe days and the buck/doe population was way out of whack with what the 'experts' deemed most desirable. Now there are so many doe days with black powder and all that the does don't stand a chance.

Your problem is not the number of does a person may harvest in a year its the number of days allowed to do so. 30 years ago I could legally shoot 6 does, but depending on weather, etc the 3 to 7 days I had to do in may or may not have been productive.

Bottom line is if you want to see more does don't shoot so many.

I would be willing to bet that Dave Moreland has plenty deer on his property!!!!!!!!

By the way, don't lay all the blame at Dave Moreland's feet. The trick sack he finds himself in is unescapable.

The biggest problem with deer management in LA is not Dave Moreland or any other LDWF biologist. It's not too few deer on WMA's or private lands. No, the biggest problem is that so many people think they are experts and that their opinion is all that matters. What I have gathered from the many hunters that I talk too is that the vast majority of hunters are for the most part satisfied with the LDWF's policies and deer hunting in LA. The LDWF commission and the politicians seldom hear from this majority because they're satisfied. What they do hear is the handful of gripers that are going to always complain because they are never satisfied. Maybe some kids don't get into hunting like they used too because all they ever hear about hunting is the whining and crying about how good it used to be and how bad it is now. Or how the LDWF is screwing everything up. If the people who complain that much put half that effort into scouting and hunting they should have no problem harvesting deer on a WMA or anywhere else. They won't do that though because it's easier to complain. Also, if the complainers would do a little research they would realize how silly they sound when they make uninformed statements about WMA deer herd numbers and the reasons why the LDWF does things the way it does. Maybe before you climb upon your throne of expertise and make such decrees about Dave Moreland and the LDWF biologists you could call your Region LDWF office and talk to them, or call Dave himself. Find out what the deer harvests are on the WMAs. Find out what the hunter efforts are. You might be surprised to know that hunter success is much higher now on most WMAs than it was back in the good old days. You might also learn that some of the healthier deer herds are on some of the areas with higher harvest rates. You might learn that Dave and these biologists that you love to bash aren't doing such a bad job, especially considering that they are faced with trying to manage for healthy wildlife populations while at the same time trying to regulate things to allow for the most public use and enjoyment as possible. Open your mind before opening your mouth. Call these guys up and talk with them not gripe at them. I would also encourage everyone who reads these posts to do their own research. Don't take it for the gosphel truth just because someone took the time to type it up and post it. Check it out for yourself and see if there are any facts behind the claims that are being made. I would encourage you to call about this post and see if what I'm saying is true. I'll probably get blasted on here, but that's OK. I won't take it personally. I just hope that it makes some of the readers do their own research so they can see for themselves how unfounded many of the statements that are posted really are. Thank you to those of you who will do this, and blast away to all the whiners that won't.

Democrats, open a season on them. Look Dog pile, everyone has their own opinion, but most don't try to shove them down others' throats. You don't want 6 deer, don't shoot 6 deer. Heck, don't shoot any at all if you think there is a problem with them! BUT STOP TRYING TO DO THE BIOLOGISTS JOB FOR THEM, THERE KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING!!!!!!

"Resource management is relatively easy....it is human managament that is difficult".

LDWF does both.

Well sayed, Long Spur.

I currently hunt in Ms. primarily because I wanted to kill bigger deer than I was seeing in La. For the last two years, I have been successful in taking quality bucks. I have hunted in several clubs in La. over the years. These clubs had a lot of deer. I have seen as many as 70 deer in one afternoon of hunting. I have never hunted public land, therefore I can't testify what the problem is. Perhaps, its too many hunters. I don't know what the problem is. Many states have a very limited season, therefore, not a lot of pressure from hunters. La. has a very long season and that could be part of the problem.

Its obvious you are not hunting on public land. Why don't the LDWF post the harvest results each year on the LDWF website, aren't the employees of this state suppose to be "public servants"

Is there a deer hunter anywhere who would not want to know thoses numbers? They don't because they have never had anyway of knowing what the actual numbers are. You don't have to be a biologist to know the deer numbers are down, go spend every weekend from Sep thru Feb walking the woods "on public lands" and you'll know.

Long Spur you do assume a lot. I'm not going to take your Babbling personal either. We'll just let The word ASS_U_ME speak for its self!!!!!

How does Walton and Johnson put it " the pussification of america!" lol. it is sad but true. the young kids coming up today aren't going stick their buts out in the elements to kill deer. hell, guys my age (25) that i know that have bought big game licences for years have quit because they are tired of putting in the work. they all want to sit in a big box stand with a heater and stare at a food plot, and if they can't afford to do that they won't go.

another big factor is the hunting video industry. how many outdoor programming channels do we have, 4 i believe. all of them with nothing but antler porn on all day. you know it affects a kids when they see that and they go hunting and don't see anything. hell, it affects me. i had to give it up because i started getting depressed.

lastly its money, which creates the "privatization of hunting". like someone said earlier, daddy can't always afford to spend big bucks to take a kid to a preserve to kill something, or he can't afford to join $1000 plus dollar lease. what gets me is that the amazing number of people willing to pay that keep the "privatization of hunting" going. it is only going to get worse and as it does, public land pressure will get worse, and we will become like europe.

there never was a herd problem on the wma's untill the modern muzzelloader season started. they might as well call it the 30-06 or 45/70 season with todays muzzelloaders. more deer are killed during those 9 days on rr/tr than on thanksgiving and there is no check-in, and no game wardens.

Stump,

I don't like to gripe either but and there is that word but. There is a lack of interest in the youth but it has more to do with no land available other than public land which on any given weekend is like mosquitos in the swamp in August with the amount of people on them and the game animals are like wins from the Saints before Peyton, non existant or extremely inconsistent. I know that the WMA's around my home have no trees left and it has nothing to do with Katrina, the harvesting of timber causes game to move to other areas. This is a topic that we can debate for days if not months with no resolution. If everyone would take the time to take a child hunting and shooting it would help, plus if all leased land would have less strict rules when children are involved we could get more youths to participate. The harsh FACT is that most of your high dollar clubs don't want youths, other members or women at them, the few I have been a guest at I will never join nor go back and hunt there again due to all they are, are social clubs where guys go get women (not their wives) to bring back to the camp and party all night with drinking and carrying on while others who really want to hunt are stuck figthing with the thousands of people who are on pubic WMA's. This to me is a waste of land, time and money. My lease is not like that and not all leases are like that so before all of you start trashing me for saying what I have witnessed understand if your lease is not like that then i am not referring to you. But if we want to pass on our legacies we need to focus on the youth and focus on re-building our game population. I don't want to hear that our deer population is at the highest it has ever been, and those are only on leases who have trees. So Moreland and all of the others in public office, please stop worrying about banning guns from good citizens and worry about giving us more game for our families and children to harvest. As stated before just my opinion.

That a good point Mr Coon!!!!!!! No check in!! No true count of Harvest!!!!

To hunt on wma's you are to check in/out with the self clearing daily permit aren't you. It seems like wildlife employees could get off their butt and collect all the date they need from these permits,and post for each wma but than again someone would have to WORK.
If the state doesn't use these permits it is just a waste of hunter time and a waste of money for the state to print them.

I'm not assuming anything, but you can believe that if it makes you feel better. All I'm trying to say is you can find out the information if you just call and ask. You can get biologists' e-mail adresses on the LDWF website so you could e-mail a request for the info. They do keep track of self clearing permit data and you could find out without too much trouble, if you would just ask. This information is available if you really want to know, but I don't think LDWF employees any mind readers, so they can't just give the public every piece of information they want to know if the public doesn't request it. Just ask, and then if they tell you hell no it's top secret get on here and gripe because then at least you will have done your part by asking.

Mr Coon has a good point. Its just insanity to have a week long either sex muzzloader hunt right in the middle of the rut. Thats one reason the harvest in some WMAs is up for the last few years but its gonna take a big toll soon.

All this gloom and doom makes me feel like I work in a chemical plant again. It would be nice to have a break down of game harvests by parish like they do in Arkansas for the counties. And that may come when the tagging system is fully implemented. Nevertheless, these attacks on Dave Moreland are ridiculous. Moreland has access to the raw data collected across the state and probably has a little better understanding of the big picture than individuals who offer limited, anecdotal evidence to suggest the root of the perceived problem. One cannot, in most cases, use his or her observations to make generalizations about problems that are more complex than they might seem on the surface. I would have to agree with Long Spur and advise you to contact LWDF and ask questions. If you don't think we have enough deer, let some go.

hahahahaha-wma self clearing permits are only good for toilet paper--Most data is not correct--like seen an elephant but did not kill him--etc.etc.--it was so bad on 3 rivers they had people pulling the boxes out with wenches and littering the roads with the permits--so if yu think that the data on them is correct you are living in a dream world like the ldwf--again moreland statement is not addressing the real reason for lack of hunters,alot of them are hunting miss. alabama etc--and if miss. would drop there hunting fees like ten yrs. ago there would be even less hunters in la.--looking back it probably was a conspiracy by la. ldwf to get miss. to raise their fees so the migration of la. hunters to miss. would be slowed down--

Long spurs short on brains --how many yrs. on red/3rivers have you hunted--i can say i have hunted appx. 1200 days in 20 yrs. and know all the data and specs. about the area--were you involved with going to the senate in 1992 to stop the 2 day doe days for three yrs. which gave the public one of the best hunting spots on wmas in the state for those three yrs.--it made the ldwf look so bad of course they went back to there shoot anything management--i was part of that--

We, the public that hunts public land, are a diverse bunch wondering why others can't hunt as we hunt. The gun, muzzle and bowhunters all want more deer in the woods and less hunters in the woods. Those trained to manage the public's resource are public employees trying to satisfy all the public's interest.
Flip from state lands to federal lands. What federal area open to hunting has surplus deer? With few exceptions La public lands are not overly populated with deer.
We argue over how they should be hunted and by who but when it comes to why we can't find them, it's the fault of management!
It's Hunt, not shoot. To a large degree we have become deer farmers rather than deer hunters. If they don't come to the feed, we don't hunt.
Some areas of our state have increased herds-others have less. Little habitat gained and a lot of habitat lost.
Since a large part of WL&F budget is tied to license sales, the decline in hunter numbers will lead to trying times in the future. The dept lease sales help, but under the current funding base there will be a shortfall.
I want to hunt. I want more deer to hunt and I want them by bow season. If it doesn't happen then it's the fault of the United States, state of Louisiana and Santa Claus...

Its Global Warming no it's George Bush's fault. I wish the LDWF would try going to a 4 tag system in stead of 6. We need to take less deer, you can do it by cutting days or cutting your take. I enjoy being in the woods and don't mind passing up a few deer to help the cause.

Lack of intrest......I have 7 sons. I know that is a lot by today'standards but anyway let me break there intrests down. I would have to say they are all good average Louisiana young men. My oldest two are twins they are 18. One is in the Louisiana Army National Guard and has always loved to hunt. He can't get enough and I bring him every chance we get. His twin could give a rat's less. I don't push him. One day maybe he will decide he wants to try it out. My next son is will be 15 this summer. He has been drawn the last two years for a youth hunt at Achafalaya Delta. He has killed deer both years. My next son is 13 about to be 14. He likes sports. That's his thing. He also could care less about hunting. He enjoy's going to the camp but getting him up early is no his idea of a good time. Again I don't push him. My next son is 11. He likes to hunt but has physical disabilities that makes it hard to bring him. I do every chance I get mostly for small game. That way he gets to see something and usually gets to kill something. My next son is 9 he is the hunting fanatic. This boy eats sleeps and breaths hunting. He would rather Duck hunt than eat I think. And lastly is the baby. He is 7 and also enjoy's hunting. Not as much as his next older brother but it looks like he will be into it. The point of all of this rambling is to show that today's kids come with all types of intrest. I don't live in the country I live in a subdivision. Everytime we go hunting is an adventure. I make a big deal out of it for them and try to keep their intrest up. We don't go every weekend but we do go as often as we can. The thing that bothers me is the few freinds that they have who get to hunt. Not many of their parents like to hunt and the number of single Mom's is crazy to me. I try to bring at least one of their freinds every time we go to the camp. Usually a kid who only has one parent. It is a joy to me to see those kids outside learning to hunt. My brother in law dosen't hunt but I have gotten his son into hunting. He killed a deer at the Delta the year before last. Now he is hooked for life. Every time we talk he asks me when am I going to bring him again. His younger brother is also asking when does he get to go. What I really think I'm trying to get at is if your not happy about the situation of new young hunters do something about it. Bring a kid hunting or fishing. Pass on the tradition. Get off you butt and do something for somebody else besides B***h about it. But then I guess that would just be more people in the woods "your" deer. There are plenty of deer in Louisiana way more now than there was when I was young. I know that for a fact. Let's share it with the next generation.

About the limits. How many people actually kill 6 deer? I have not killed a deer in 2 years. My kids keep plenty of meat in the freezer. It's not about for me. Sure I like to kill a deer but I've got some awesome bucks on the wall and don't care to kill anything unless it's bigger that what I've already shot right now. That's my choice. Not saying that that is the way I will always feel. Next year if I have a deer under my stand I might decide to shoot it. Again that's my choice. And I'm glad that I live in a place where I'm free to have that choice.

I my opinion the Biologist in Louisiana are doing an Excellent job. Could it be better? Probably. But everything could use some improvement. The Delta used to have box blinds up for the kids to hunt out of. This last year they didn't put them up. At first I was not happy about that but after hunting with my son in a blind that we put up in a place that we selected together and taking a nice buck I realized that I like the freedom to choose our spot together better than sitting in a box that they put up for us.

Not everyone will be satisfied but I certainly feel that things are going well and I like what LDWF has done for us.

i totally agree with what you said oil making dude. i do not have any children of my own(but trying), but if the opportunity arises for me to bring a young one in the outdoors, i am definitely up to it. i have killed some decent bucks in my time, but if can give that opportunity to a young one, it would be a great accomplishment.