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For more than 100 years, hunters who killed a buck in Pennsylvania were done chasing antlers until the following season.
One buck a year is and long has been the limit.
A Pennsylvania Game Commissioner wonders if it’s time for that to change.
The reason is money.
Commissioner Michael Mitrick of York County recently asked agency staff to explore the idea of allowing a limited number of hunters to shoot a second buck, provided it was taken in the statewide firearms deer season.
“I brought this up is because it’s pretty obvious we’re not going to get a license fee increase this year from the legislature. So as an additional way of trying to generate some funds, I thought by having a second buck permit in some fashion would be a way to possibly raise some amount of money,” Mitrick said.
His initial thought, he said, is to award 10,000 or so tags via a lottery or straight sale. They might cost $100 or $150 each.
That would generate $1 million or $1.5 million for an agency that hasn’t seen license fees increase since 1999.
He suggested hunters would be required to buy them early, much like how, in spring, hunters can get a tag for a second gobbler, but only if they get it before the season starts.
“The number of deer harvested would be relatively small. But the potential gain to the commission would be incredible,” Mitrick said.
Chris Rosenberry, chief of the commission’s deer and elk section, agreed the impact on the deer population would be small.
“I think biologically, under that scenario of 10,000, if they’re used at the same rate as every other tag, you’re talking about 2,000 bucks (killed) across the whole state,” he said. “Antler restrictions are already in place to sort of put a top on how many bucks can be harvested anyhow, so I don’t think it would necessarily be that big of an issue.”
What’s less clear is whether hunters want a second buck tag.
Commission executive director Bryan Burhans said the agency surveyed deer hunters this year. They were asked, among other things, what they thought of a second buck tag. They were also asked whether they’d prefer a lottery system versus being able to buy one over the counter.
No one knows yet how they answered, though.
That information is still being tabulated, Rosenberry said. A full report will be available by the commission’s April board meeting, but not before.
Mitrick asked if it might be possible to propose a second buck tag in January – before survey results are available – and adjust later if needed.
Commissioners could go that route if they chose, Palmer said.
Others warned they may not want to, though, based on social considerations.
Commission president Brian Hoover of Chester County, for example, voiced two concerns.
“Most rifle hunters are already complaining the archery hunters get too much. That would be one,” he said.
The idea of allowing them to take one buck, then come back and get another, might prove unpopular, he said.
Archers aren’t killing as many bucks as some think, Burhans said.
“According to (Rosenberry’s) data, 85 to 90 percent of the bucks are still out there roaming the woods when rifle deer season gets here,” Burhans said. “So although it’s true that 40 percent of the bucks harvested are taken during archery season, it’s not 40 percent of the bucks out there.”
But he agreed that perception persists. The feeling among some, he said, is archers are taking a disproportionate percentage of the biggest bucks available, with rifle hunters left to make do with what remains.
Hoover’s second concern is that a second buck tag would be viewed as a “money grab.”
“Well, it is a money grab,” Mitrick said.
But perhaps if it were “spun in a certain way” it would prove palatable, he added.
There’s another complicating factor.
The commission could create second buck tags on its own, provided they’re classified as “permits” and awarded via lottery, Burhans said. It has that authority and has used it previously to create permits for elk, bobcats, fishers and most recently stocked pheasants.
Creation of second buck “licenses,” though, would require legislation, said deputy director of field operations Rich Palmer.
Where things go from here remains to be seen.
Burhans said there’s a saying that goes “slow is fast.” Commissioners should perhaps wait to see what the deer hunter survey says. Then, he added, they can chart a course.
“In other words, a lot of the pushback is going to come from misconceptions about what’s going on. So I think one word of caution would be is, if we move slower, maybe it takes us two years to get there,” Burhans said.
“But if we spend the time educating our hunters and getting that buy-in from the hunting public, that slow is fast means we’ll get to the finish quicker.”
Hoover agreed.
“It’s a perception issue,” he said. “We’ve got to be careful what the perception is.”
Other questions about deer seasons Game Commissioners are exploring some other ideas in regards to the statewide firearms deer season.
Currently, antlerless deer hunting in most wildlife management units is allowed on seven of 12 days. It begins on the first Saturday and continues throughout the second week.
Commissioner Tim Layton of Somerset County asked agency staff about a possible change. Namely, he wondered about shifting antlerless deer hunting to the first week rather than the second.
Commissioner Brian Hoover of Chester County had an idea, too. He asked about allowing just junior hunters to shoot a doe that first week.
“We’re getting a few complaints about not being able to take your child out on opening day and shoot a doe,” Hoover said.
He’s not sure those comments are reason enough to change the rules. Families can take their children out the first Saturday of the season to hunt, he noted.
But he wondered if that “second opening day” is productive.
Deer biologist Chris Rosenberry said that, in the 2016 rifle season, 27 percent of the deer harvest occurred on the first Monday. Twenty-three percent came on the first Saturday and 15 percent on the second Saturday.
“It’s a lot more even than it used to be,” Rosenberry said.
The commission is also meeting its harvest goals with existing season structures, he added.
“So it’s working for us? Hoover asked.
“At this point it seems to be,” Rosenberry said.
Bob Frye is the everybodyadventures.com editor. Reach him at 412-838-5148 or [email protected]. See other stories, blogs, videos and more at everybodyadventures.com.
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And don't forget...................................................the LEGISLATURE is holding the PGC hostage by NOT passing a license increase! Forcing the PGC to "think outside the box"! I commend them for trying to do SOMETHING to raise the needed capital!
Are the powers to be, to "weak kneed" to do what is called for ?
It appears the powers to be are currently more concerned about the politics than doing what is called for,..... COMMON SENSE !
Why not just increase license fee's ?
No increase since 1999 ?
Nearly 20 years !
Do the math $$$, # of Hunters including NR's x fee increase vs a lottery or an additional charge for those who may participate for a chance to harvest a second buck ?
Should the 2nd buck permit become law then the 2nd demise of the PA herd begins.
Why ?
The PGC, will then know it can do whatever it wants to or with the hunting public without any voice of concern from the Pa hunter.
One only needs to look at the state's with 2 buck limits or kill a doe to earn a buck tag to see their herd / harvest results.
To be willing to sacrifice even a small portion of the herd for current or future generations to satisfy a maybe , a 2nd buck ? is at best mystifying .
The problem is that “a” buck tag isn’t worth $150 to the majority of resident hunters. The opportunity to shoot a second one, however, is likely worth more than that to most horn pimp patrons. They would likely do it like the elk draw and have a non refundible application fee for some extra revenue. Maybe even have a preference point system to make sure they keep putting in after not drawing for a few years.
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