Historic Season Dates

[Tuffy]

We could probably put this together pretty quickly for S.C., but ....

Does anyone happen to have any OLD collections of Outdoor Life that would show the Turkey Forecast for each state as they have done every year forever? They always show the season dates for each state and I'd like to see what they looked like back in the 90s or so. Any similar sources of that info? I have the one document that appears to have that for 2004, but I'd like to see it before everyone started declining a year or two before that.

[GobblerHntr]

you are on a mission!

[Tuffy]

LOL. I don't seem to hunt worth a damn any more and sure don't get the impression that I am winning any converts to my views of wild turkey management, but neither is from lack-of-concern. They're not going to write books about me, but, if anyone ever misses me, they're gonna miss me when they hear a turkey gobble....IF there is one around to gobble.

Someone open that box of old Outdoor Life magazines......

[Luvin' Labs]

Here you go Tuffy. For 3.30/month you can access every Outdoor Life magazine since their beginning.

http://covertocover.outdoorlife.com/join/

[Tuffy]

I need to get me some guvmint grant money.

[YoungBuckTX]

Tuffy, remind me, was there a conditional clause to review the April 20th opener after so many years?

[DMP]

[QUOTE=YoungBuckTX;2318213]Tuffy, remind me, was there a conditional clause to review the April 20th opener after so many years?[/Q

I believe it was 3 years.

[Tuffy]

The legislature is supposed to receive a report on the results of the changes and concurrent research by November 2018. That will be the Fall after the 3rd season of the new regulations.

I'm having a lot of trouble believing that the resource management voice will be any stronger or more convincing at that point. I hope DNR and NWTF prove me wrong, but ......

[YoungBuckTX]

from whom? are you helping?

[Tuffy]

No, DNR owes them that report. I hope to help light a fire under their butts to do it with some meaningful points and with a little more focus on the science and the resource than the politics-of-the-moment.

[YoungBuckTX]

Good luck. and Thanks for keeping us informed. Quick question while I'm here.. is it your opinion that the limit reduction from 5 to 3 birds hasn't been enough to offset the effects of an earlier, and longer season?

[Tuffy]

Exactly. The limit reduction would have caused something like a 8-9% reduction in Harvest if nothing else changed. The Season change would have had something approaching a 30% increase in Harvest in that unchanging world. What happened was that we did get that increase in the form of hunting effort, but it resulted in an increase of only about 12% over the 2015 Harvest and a decrease over the 2013-2015 average Harvest in the part of SC that had the April 1 opening. It was worse in most places and offset by more responsive Harvest in a couple of specific areas.