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November 14, 2008

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Fri Nov 14, 2008, 08:13 PM CST

By Roger McKinney

rmckinney@joplinglobe.com

Mike Cloud, owner of Cloud’s Meats in Carthage, on Monday opened the freezer at his business where bow hunters had placed their weekend haul of deer.

“The cooler was full,” Cloud said. “We had 60 deer in there. Normally for a weekend, we have 20 deer.”

Cloud said that and other factors cause him to predict a good deer-hunting season when firearms hunting starts today in Missouri. The firearms season closes Tuesday, Nov. 25. The deer firearms season in Kansas is Dec. 3-14. In Oklahoma, it’s Nov. 22-Dec. 7.

Cloud said Friday’s rain and cool weather expected today also could contribute to a good deer harvest.

“They’re going to be up and about looking for food,” Cloud said. “There should be a lot of deer moving around.”

There’s also another factor.

“I would say the deer are in rut,” Cloud said, referring to mating season.

“They’re big deer, nice deer,” he added.

David Bradford, owner of Seneca Locker, said he agreed with Cloud.

“I think the harvest is going to be up,” Bradford said. “The weather seems to be agreeable for us. The bucks that I’m getting in right now are in rut. It’s the peak of the season. It really looks like it’s going to be a very good season. The deer look exceptionally healthy.”

He said he was receiving deer from Missouri bow hunters and Oklahoma hunters.

Kevin Badgley, a community outreach specialist for the Missouri Department of Conservation, said he is not as optimistic as the meat processors.

“We’re anticipating a lower-than-average deer harvest here in Southwest Missouri,” Badgley said. “We have fewer deer numbers.”

Badgley said a staple of deer diet also is missing.

“The acorn crop is just terrible — the worst on record,” Badgley said.

Longtime hunter Don Scott, 73, said Friday he planned to be hunting deer today. Scott is at Scott’s Taxidermy in Joplin.

“We don’t get to hunt very much,” he said. “This is our busy time.”

Scott said the deer seem to be abundant, but this is the first year he can remember when there aren’t any acorns in the 40 acres of timber on his farm.

Cloud disagreed with the importance of acorns to the deer, saying there are soybeans and grain for the deer to eat.

“I don’t think in this part of the country, acorns are quite as critical,” Cloud said.

The statewide firearms deer harvest last year was 214,494, with 1,191 deer harvested in Jasper County, 1,344 in Newton County and 1,298 in McDonald County.

In 2006, the statewide firearms deer harvest totaled 235,054; with 1,688 harvested in Jasper County, 1,575 in Newton County and 1,471 in McDonald County. Figures are from the Missouri Department of Conservation.

The youth-firearms deer season was Nov. 1-2. The conservation department reported the statewide harvest was 10,400, which was a 15 percent decrease from last year, but slightly above the seven-year average.

Deer hunting is one activity the economy is not likely to affect in a major way, said Badgley and the meat processors. Badgley said many hunters rely on their harvest for food. He said a hunting license can cost as little at $7 for deer with no antlers. He said hunting equipment can be costly for beginning hunters.

Cloud and Bradford said they might see fewer people asking for their meat to be processed into jerky, summer sausage snack sticks or deer bacon.

“Jerky gets pretty expensive,” Cloud said.

“I don’t think it’s going to have a great impact,” Bradford said. “We’re still hungry. Most of these hunters live on this.”

If trends continue, deer hunting may someday be a thing of the past. Badgley said there are fewer deer hunters with each generation nationwide.

“We’re kind of bucking the trend here in Missouri,” he said. “Missouri leads the nation in recruitment” of new hunters.

Don Shilling, 74, of Joplin, took his great-grandson, Michael Shilling, then 9, on his first youth hunt last year, when Michael bagged his first deer. Shilling said it is important to teach hunting to the next generation so the youngsters learn an appreciation of nature and how to take care of the abundance of wildlife in Missouri. Hunting and fishing are good conservation practices, he said.

“Hunters have fell off some,” he said. “We’re finding there are more urbanized, more one-parent families. It’s getting harder to recruit them.”

Globe metro editor Andy Ostmeyer contributed to this report.

Tag question

State Rep. Marilyn Ruestman, R-Joplin, said in a news release that she was troubled by a change proposed by the Missouri Conservation Commission that could eliminate a provision that allows residents who own five or more acres to obtain free hunting tags. The proposed change could take effect on July 1. A 30-day public comment period begins Nov. 17. Details are available at www.mdc.mo.gov.