Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 5, 1993 TAG: 9301050005
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
DEER SEASON YIELDS BIG BUCKS BUT NOT BIG NUMBERS
Deer season is over, following a marathon journey that began in October and stretched into the first couple days of the New Year.So with 12 weeks of hunting opportunities and more deer kill tags available than freezer space, how did everyone do?
Officials of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries say it will be late in January before they have a final tally, and don't expect any kind of preliminary count prior to that.
Until then, here are a few observations:
It is unlikely that wildlife officials got the kill of 200,000 they'd hoped to obtain for herd control. Look for a kill very similar to last season's 180,000, which was a record.
Whatever the kill, it appeared to have minimal impact on Virginia's deer herd, which is approaching the one-million mark. A drive through major deer counties like Bath and Highland on the Sunday following the intensive two-week firearm's season revealed large herds placidly feeding in farmland fields.
There was a definite shift of hunting success from the mountains of the national forest to the bottomland farm fields, because that's where the deer concentrations often were. The deer were there because mast was scarce in the hardwoods.
With the lack of food in mind, a mild winter may be necessary to send deer into the fawning and antler building period of spring without undue stress.
While the deer kill may not have set a record number-wise, very likely the record book for trophies will be rewritten. Look for some outstanding bucks to be entered in big game contests this year, thanks to the good conditioning brought by the heavy mast crop of 1991 and the mild winter that followed.
Leading the way will be the 31-point buck (it earlier was reported to be 35 points) killed during the muzzle-loading season by Jim Smith of Front Royal. It has been given a Boone and Crockett "green" score of 258 7/8 (the rack must dry for a final score).
The top non-typical buck from Virginia in Boone and Crockett is a 38-pointer taken by James Shumaker of New Canton during the 1986 season. It scored 232 4/8.
Hunters are poised to get an early start on the '93 deer season. Two whitetail seminars have been scheduled this month by the Virginia State Rifle and Revolver Association. One begins 2 p.m. Saturday at the Front Royal 4-H Center; the other is Jan. 23, 2 p.m. at the Willow Street Armory in Harrisonburg.
Both will feature W.T. Hensley, a Virginia hunter credited with several Pope and Young record-book kills. They also will include a showing of Jim Smith's 31-point buck. Additional information and reserve seats are available by calling 1-800-526-1397.
It was a season when many hunters complained that the rut began late and did not peak with the intensity displayed the season before. The scarcity of food could have been a factor.
Also noted was the early shedding of antlers. Some late-season hunters shot what they thought were does only to find they had killed bucks with shed antlers.
One hunter in Botetourt County killed a spike, tied a rope around its antlers and was dragging it from the woods with the assistance of his son. Suddenly the son fell headlong, rolling into the leaves. He thought the rope had broken. Instead, one of the antlers had pulled off.