Great post PredatorOne. We need more hunters thinking about these kinds of questions. If we don't think about these questions, then we're going to lose our huting priveleges. Personally, I also find it interesting to hear the response to this question from the non-hunting communittee.
If you asked the same question to the non-hunting communittee, then I know many of them would believe that hunting (not poaching) is the number one reason that deer numbers are down. However, there are countless studies from all over the world that indcate that loss of habitat is the number one critical factor that sustains populations of any animal (including fish and bugs). Deer are no exception to this rule. When I'm talking about "habitat", I'm refering to an area that has the proper landscape, cover, and food supply to support deer. Typically the first thing that causes animal populations to decrease is the loss of habitat, which is the first big drop in a population. It's not until the population drops that you start to really notice all the other smaller factors that also play a role in supporting the population (things like: climate, predators, and poaching).
Climate naturally changes all the time. Because we live on the northern boundary of the whitetail range we can expect that we are going to have many years that will rough on the deer, but overall the deer population will be able to survive, and even thrive. So, climate dictates whether or not deer will be present in an area, but it doesn't really dicatate the amount of deer that the area can support.
When the deer population is strong, you never really ever notice predator influence. It's not until the population drops that you start to notice the influence of predators. Predators don't really take a lot of deer (some will disagree), but it starts to feel like a lot after the population has already dropped off because of habitat loss and hard winters. You never hear anyone complaining about coyotes when the deer population is strong. There is a balance there that nature takes care of.
It's tough to know if poaching plays a big role in the deer population because you never know how much of it is going on. Obviously it has some influence, but it's tough to know how much...the obvious answer is "too much". I just hope that poaching isn't too popular in New Brunswick (or anywhere), but if it is, then we can expect our deer numbers to continue to drop. If poaching is truly causing a drop in the deer population, then we can expect it to become even harder to hunt with freedom in the future.
I just want to mention loss of habitat one more time because it's not easy to understand. Loss of habitat is easy to understand when you see something like a huge stand of old growth forest getting leveled to the ground...where there once was habitat there is no longer (some will also disagree with this). However, cutting down habitat isn't the only way to lose habitat. Deer like their privacy, and the more we enter an area, or drive through an area, or inhabit an area, the more the deer are likely to avoid that area, which means that the habitat is then lost.
Vehicles are a huge cause of deer loss as well. The 2009 DNR Big Game Report says that there were 5060 registered deer shot by hunters, and 2700 reported deer killed by vehicles. That means that ere were at least 2700 deer killed by accident and wasted. I also suspect that only about a third of deer killed by vehicles are actually reported. In all honesty, I have known many people who have hit deer with their cars, and none of them reported it to DNR.
I have had these conversations with people who think that I'm "cruel" because I hunt. I have presented these arguments, and I've successfully convinced several of them that hunters are not the cause of animal declines. I'm not talking about poachers...I'm talking about hunters.
Happy hunting.
