Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, September 4, 1995                   TAG: 9509060116
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: A-8   EDITION: HOLIDAY 
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN OUTDOOR EDITOR
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Long

HUNTING

Hunters seldom talk about record deer kills nowadays. Instead, the conversation centers on how many contest winners and Boone and Crockett bucks are roaming the woods and fields.

This season, make room on the den wall. There appears to be a better-than-average supply of bragging-size bucks, thanks to back-to-back seasons when mast was abundant coupled with a reasonably mild winter and good herbaceous growth during the summer months. The result should be bucks with big bodies and big racks.

Hunters who scout early already are reporting sightings of impressive bucks moving into the fields at the edge of evening. Many observers have been impressed with the high ratio of bucks to does.

As for numbers, there is a chance the total kill will exceed last season's record 209,373, but not by much. And it will take decent hunting weather to do it. Several years of liberal hunting regulations have curbed the growth of the deer herd, just as game officials had hoped. That should be another factor in favor of higher-quality deer.

There are several regulation changes that will affect hunting success. Scopes will be legal on muzzleloading rifles and seven counties, including Roanoke and Grayson, will go to either-sex hunting the entire firearms' season on all but national forest land. Hunting antlerless deer on national forest property will be more tightly restrictive this season.

An early look at the mast crop indicates another decent food year. Red oak acorns are abundant in some areas, but white oak production isn't as promising. The mast crop is heavier in the eastern section of the state than in the west.

``Good acorn production means hunters will probably do well to favor the woods and scout ahead of time to locate where white-tails are feeding and traveling,'' said Betsy Stinson, a state game biologist with the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

As for the place to catch up with a big buck, biologists suggest hunters locate areas where deer receive less hunting pressure and where older bucks may reside. Biologist Al Bourgeois said that could be farmland in the Shenandoah Valley. He highlights Rockbridge County as a starting point, because deer weights in that area have been higher than average.

Biologist Jay Jeffreys suggested public areas of limited access, such as the Thunder Ridge and James River Face Wilderness Areas in the George Washington and Jefferson national forests ``or any other large roadless land areas typically will harbor older-age classes of deer.''

SEASONS: Bow, Oct. 7-Nov. 18 and Dec. 4-Jan. 6; muzzleloading , Nov. 6-18 and Dec. 18-Jan. 6; gun, Nov. 20-Dec. 2 west of Blue Ridge, Nov. 20-Jan. 6 east.

Turkeys up, but no record

The wet weather in June had Gary Norman concerned that turkey production would be down this year.

``Normally, extended cold, wet periods can cause high losses in turkey broods,'' said Norman, the forest game bird project leader for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Now it appears the weather wasn't that much of a problem.

``Based on preliminary observations of brood success, reproduction appears good to excellent in different regions of the state,'' he said. ``Hunters can expect good numbers of turkeys this fall.''

Young turkeys appear most abundant in the eastern part of the state. Brood counts in the west are average at best, Norman said.

Hunters enjoyed a record spring kill of 11,649 birds, an indication there was a good winter carry-over of adult turkeys. But don't look for a record fall kill. The season length has been reduced from nine to six weeks. In addition, the good mast year will mean turkeys won't have to move as much in their search for food, which can make them tougher for hunters to locate. Some flocks are being spotted feeding on grasshoppers along the edges of fields.

As for hunting areas, outdoorsmen in the Roanoke Valley don't have to travel far to be in excellent turkey territory. Last fall, Bedford and Botetourt counties ranked fist and second, respectively, in the state, with kills of 565 and 552. Giles County was third, Grayson County was fourth and Franklin County was fifth.

SEASONS: Oct. 30-Nov. 11 and Dec. 11-Jan. 6.

Bears turn bullish

Last year's bear kill plunged nearly 35 percent, from a record of 789 in 1993 to 519.

``It has been common to observe dramatic decreases and increases in the harvest, usually every two to four years,'' said Dennis Martin, the bear project manager for the game department. ``This most recent decrease in the harvest has been expected, following a record harvest in 1993 of nearly 800 bears.''

Does this mean hunters can expect a rebound during the coming season?

Preseason predictions are risky, said Martin. Factors such as the mast crop, the number of nuisance bear complaints and even the impact of the gypsy moth must be considered, he said.

``It would appear the 1995 harvest should closely approach the 1994 harvest or perhaps exceed it slightly,'' he said.

Biologist Al Bourgeois, whose district includes Augusta County, the top bear-kill county last year, is optimistic that hunting success will be higher this season.

``It's likely that bears entered hibernation last winter in good-to-excellent condition,'' he said. Overwinter survival and cub production appear to have been good. And the early spring should have provided abundant herbaceous plant foods for bears emerging from their winter dens.

``Abundant soft mast production [blackberries, cherries, blueberries] this summer and a good hard mast crop [acorns, beechnuts] this fall should provide nutritious high-quality food supplies for bears to fatten up on,'' he said.

SEASON: Nov. 27-Jan. 6.

Grouse looking positive

Hunters of this elusive, woodland bird are in dire need of some good news. Last year, according to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries annual grouse survey, it took slightly more than an hour of hunting for every bird flushed. The flushing rate of 0.97 birds per hour was below the long-term rate of 1.13 birds per hour.

``The good news is that grouse reproduction this year appears very good,'' said Gary Norman. ``We have had encouraging reports from our western mountain ranges, where many broods and good numbers of grouse poults have been observed.''

An abundant mast crop may keep the birds scattered, but on the positive side, wild grape production appears to be more abundant than last year. Grapes will be a good starting point to find birds in concentrations.

The state's maturing woods do not favor grouse, a species that thrives in a regenerating habitat. This means hunters will do well to check areas that recently

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have been logged or clear-cut. In addition, woods that have been defoliated by the gypsy month also could be the key to successful grouse hunts.

SEASON: Oct. 30-Feb. 10.

Coveys on the rise

The best thing about last year's quail season is that it is over. For many hunters, it was the worst in memory.

On average, hunters spent a little more than four hours afield for every covey flushed, said Mike Fies, small game research biologist for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Even so, Fies is upbeat about what the coming season.

``Overall, the prospects for the 1995-96 season are encouraging,'' he said. ``Quail hunters throughout most of Virginia should have the opportunity to shoot into more covey rises than they've seen pointed during the past several years.''

By no means should hunters expect a return to the ``good old days.'' But Fies said the welcome call of the bobwhite has been heard with frequency during the spring and summer. That probably points back to the relatively mild winter, which resulted in a good carry-over of birds from the previous year.

Abundant rainfall in the spring and early summer produced lush nesting conditions and plenty of insects for the young chicks, Fies said.

``Given these types of conditions, bobwhites have the inherent ability to rebound quickly from population lows,'' he said.

The quail season has been shortened by a week, and will begin a week later than in the past. Look for the best hunting in the Tidewater and eastern Piedmont regions of the state. There won't be much improvement in the central mountain and Southwest sections, where populations have been so low there really isn't much foundation for a resurgence.

But all hope is not lost. ``This summer we have had some encouraging reports of quail being found in areas which have been unpopulated in recent years,'' said Jay Jeffreys, who works out of the game department's office in Forest.

SEASON: Nov. 27-Jan. 31.

A nutty squirrel season

The squirrel population has been rebuilding since the disastrous mast failure of 1992. The good mast crops of the past two autumns have boosted squirrel numbers, and there are enough nuts this year to provide above-average action early in the season.

``Abundant food resources enable squirrels to get through the winter months in excellent condition,'' said Fies. ``Adult squirrels that enter the breeding season in prime shape typically produce larger litters of young squirrels during the spring and often produce a second litter during the summer.''

That second litter should make its presence known as the season progresses. About the time hunters trade in their squirrel guns to go deer hunting, bushytails should be climbing around all over the place.

When the season opened Saturday in the western end of the state, hunters did well to locate groves of mature hickories, a favorite feeding spot for squirrels. Later, squirrels will pay more attention to white oak mast, and even grapes and dogwood berries.

Hunters in the Southwest mountain and western Piedmont sections of the state will have to look harder for squirrels, because last year's mast crop wasn't as abundant there as it was to the east.

``Regionally, the highest numbers of squirrels should be available in the northern and eastern portions of the state,'' said Fies. ``Excellent populations will also be found in the central mountains where populations increased 80 percent in 1994.''

SEASONS: Sept. 2-Jan. 31 in southern counties; Oct. 14-Jan. 31 in northern counties.

Buy ammo for rabbits

Wildlife biologists, in general, are conservative to the point of being dull when they make preseason hunting predictions. So take notice when you hear Fies saying, ``Buy an extra box of shells. If your dogs are in shape, you could run out of ammunition on opening day.''

Fies sees a 1995-96 rabbit hunting season filled with chases that will echo across the hillsides.

Even with farmland giving way to houses and highways, rabbits have been increasing steadily since about 1988, he said. It is the exact opposite of what is happening to the quail population, even though the two species inhabit similar territory. Rabbit numbers are at their highest in the southwestern section of the state, where quail populations are smallest.

The weather has been making a difference for bunnies, Fies believes.

The mild winter and its below-average snowfall gave rabbits plenty of escape cover and food during the cold-weather months. Then came an early spring and plenty of early-summer rainfall, and that created lush nesting cover.

``The reproductive capabilities of cottontails are legendary, and it doesn't take long for rabbit numbers to increase when conditions are favorable,'' said Fies.

No matter how great the population, the key to a successful hunt is being in thick cover and pushing through brier patches rather than skirting around them. All the better if you have hounds willing to do the sticky work for you.

SEASON: Nov. 6-Jan. 31.