Wounded deer

**LabLuvR** · 09-22-2005, 03:05 PM

You a hell of a good fella, regardless of what SewerRat, I mean Swamprat, says.

tradorion · 09-22-2005, 03:15 PM

Sewer Mouse "borrowed" one of my rigs about 4 years ago... haven't seen the rig, haven't seen any meat... not sure what that says about the great white hunter.

but i did save a bundle on my car insurance by switching to geico after staying one nite at a Holiday Inn Express...

and he took me duck hunting a couple times- but my "bad mojo" beat even his talent as a procurer of ducks.

T

**LabLuvR** · 09-22-2005, 03:24 PM

Sounds like a friend to me! [img]graemlins/rofl.gif[/img] I bet it is in a closet with inches of dust all over.

**KRT** · 09-22-2005, 03:53 PM

Hook me up, I'm poor. After I stick/wound one I'll be hooked

tradorion · 09-22-2005, 04:20 PM

with our proper guidance and training you'll be such an old hand you won't make all the rookie mistakes we did along the way-

you'll be "just perfect" like the KRT we know and love already (thinks he) is...

**KRT** · 09-22-2005, 04:30 PM

hook a brother up!

Now you have been put on the spot

tradorion · 09-22-2005, 05:13 PM

Not a problem- already looking at the bow hanging on the wall- are you left or right eye dominant?? i got one for each.

Older Bear bow, arrows will be aluminum as i don't have a ready stock of spare carbons- i haven't figured yet on 2216's or 2413's (prob 2413's to get a little more speed)- and the heads will be Muzzy 125's. Cobra release. Sight is a spare Cobra fiber optic- as noted before not the most expensive high speed set-up but i'd say if i can get there in early October then you should be more than ready to score your first bow kill by mid-November.

This rig has started more than one buddy and killed deer and hogs for me and others.

You in??

tradorion · 09-22-2005, 05:22 PM

Looking for something on guns here's info on that study i mentioned::

An exhaustive study shows a much lower loss rate for bowhunters than previously guessed.

CAMP RIPLEY, Minn. "Aspects of Wounding of White-tailed Deer by Bowhunters," may not sound like a page-turner to most readers. But the conclusion that participants in an annual hunt recover 87 percent of the deer they shoot could hardly be more interesting to those who hunt deer with bow and arrow. It's also encouraging to those who have hopes for bowhunting as a safe, effective tool for controlling deer populations around urban areas.

The study, conducted in 1992 and 1993, found that 87 percent of deer hit by bowhunters were recovered. This recovery rate is significantly higher than previous estimates, many of which were made without the benefit of data gathered by rigorous scientific methods.

Wendy J. Krueger, the author of the report, is a wildlife biologist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The study consisted of three parts.

The first part consisted of interviews with more than 6,000 hunters who took part in two-day archery deer hunts in 1992 and 1993 at the 53,000-acre Camp Ripley Military Reservation along the Mississippi River near Brainerd, Minn. Those hunts lent themselves to the project, since participating hunters were required to check in at the start and end of each day.

Hunters were interviewed as they left Camp Ripley after each day's hunt, so memories were still fresh in their minds. They were asked where they had hunted, whether they had shot deer, if they had hit but not recovered deer, how many wounded deer they had seen and other questions.

The second part of the study involved using a helicopter equipped with an infrared-sensitive video camera to locate any downed deer immediately after the hunts. In the third and final part of the study, crews conducted ground searches immediately after each hunt and the following year to locate unrecovered deer and determine how they died.

Krueger found that 72.3 percent of hunters who reported shooting deer retrieved their kills and brought them to check stations. The remaining 27.7 percent of deer reported shot fell into the following categories:

--Substantiated deer hits, in which the hunter found direct evidence of a hit, such as blood or hair on the arrow or ground or saw a wound or arrow in the deer. These accounted for 19.3 percent of total deer hits.

--Claimed deer hits, in which the hunter reported shooting a deer that was retrieved by another hunter. These accounted for 7.5 percent of total deer hits. Interestingly, examination of deer brought to check stations showed a number of deer equal to 8.5 percent of the total number of deer reported hit were "prior hits," meaning they actually had been shot by more than one hunter. Post-hunt follow-up confirmed that 45 to 50 percent of deer reported shot but not retrieved were soon retrieved by other hunters.

--Presumed deer hits, in which the hunter could cite no physical or visual evidence to support the belief that the deer was hit 1 percent.

Researchers checked on as many wounded deer as possible. When they were finished, only 13 percent of the deer reported shot remained unaccounted for. Some of those deer probably died from severe arrow wounds, while others undoubtedly recovered from superficial wounds. Other deer included in the 13-percent loss rate may represent deer that were missed cleanly or reported shot by more than one hunter.

This figure contrasts sharply with anti-hunting groups' claims of much higher bowhunting losses. Some of these groups have calculated "wounding" figures by assuming that every arrow fired by an archer wounds a deer. Krueger said that even if she had used this assumption in her study, the loss rate would have been only 30 to 40 percent. She said she finds it difficult to understand the basis for claims of 50- to 80-percent "wounding" rates claimed by some anti-hunting groups. She said she hopes the careful definition of terms and detailed data in her study will provide a rational basis for discussion of the subject.

However, she is quick to note that every hunting situation is different, and bowhunting loss rates could differ significantly under different circumstances. Studies conducted in areas with different deer populations, hunting pressure and hunting regulations over a longer period will continue to shed light on bowhunters' effectiveness compared to firearms hunters and the usefulness of bowhunting as a tool for managing deer populations in areas where firearms hunting is impractical.

Krueger conducted the study as part of her work toward a master of science degree from West Virginia University at Morgantown, W.V. Funding for the study came from the Archery Manufacturers Organization and other pro-bowhunting groups and individuals. Krueger sought funding for her peer-reviewed study from anti-hunting groups to ensure balance and credibility, but found those groups declined to participate.