first off to each his own, but props to fldxt. saying a coastal area can't grow deer with a decent sized rack is pure BS. they just need to live long enough to grow those racks. I grew up in a coastal area, Long Island , and the biggest racks ( not body size ) in the state were by the beach around montauk and neighboring towns. seems there is a higher concentration of minerals to support the antler growth around the coast. a healthy herd is a herd in balance with the proper balance of does to bucks. and if all you're interested in is meat I'd rather eat a doe anyday and let the small bucks grow to decent a size. so the meat hunters and the trophy hunters can each get what they want. as long as hunters and poachers here in FL keep killing whatever steps in front of them seeing a mature deer will be rare, BUT IT IS POSSIBLE with a little restraint, and qdm is not a dirty word. it's been around a while now and proven to work in every state in the US. if any of you remember the 70's coyotes and turkeys were practically non existent in the north east, now we are lousy with them, all in my lifetime. shooting a forkhorn does not impress me ,letting one walk shows me allot more maturity and concern of the overall well being of supporting and improving the status of the animals for future generations. I'll get off my soap box now.
first off to each his own, but props to fldxt. saying a coastal area can't grow deer with a decent sized rack is pure BS. they just need to live long enough to grow those racks. I grew up in a coastal area, Long Island , and the biggest racks ( not body size ) in the state were by the beach around montauk and neighboring towns. seems there is a higher concentration of minerals to support the antler growth around the coast. a healthy herd is a herd in balance with the proper balance of does to bucks. and if all you're interested in is meat I'd rather eat a doe anyday and let the small bucks grow to decent a size. so the meat hunters and the trophy hunters can each get what they want. as long as hunters and poachers here in FL keep killing whatever steps in front of them seeing a mature deer will be rare, BUT IT IS POSSIBLE with a little restraint, and qdm is not a dirty word. it's been around a while now and proven to work in every state in the US. if any of you remember the 70's coyotes and turkeys were practically non existent in the north east, now we are lousy with them, all in my lifetime. shooting a forkhorn does not impress me ,letting one walk shows me allot more maturity and concern of the overall well being of supporting and improving the status of the animals for future generations. I'll get off my soap box now.
As long as we are in charge of the leases (which is kept very tightly regulated in the Taylor County lifetime resident system) it will stay the same and that's the bottomline. As Skunk Ape noted, nothing will change and that's fine with us. Look, if y'all want me out of this contest I will drop out if that's what this is over? I think we all know what team is going to win by now :pinch
no man, your good, stay in. there is nothing wrong with the deer you have killed, all done legally and therefore is allowed for points here. Just cant please everyone i tell you what :pinch
HAving hunted in the area Dh hunts in my whole life, and also having hunted in QDM leases, I completely understand all sides and can see each others points of view. Neither way is correct, and neither are wrong. Deer doggin is a different way of life, and deer dog leases are completely different than qdm leases. They both have their pros and cons. I ran dogs from the time I was in diapers till about 5 years ago. I just got tired of it. I would rather sit my lardazz in a tree than run dogs. Lets just move on and not bash each other for doing things the way we prefer
I posted a pic of a mature deer the other day,he didn't have much rack. In Fl the larger bucks are generally killed in river bottom areas. That's why when you see all the big'uns in woods-water a lot of them are killed around the Suwannee,Withlacoochie,Green Swamp area,and around Lake O.I've never seen many monsters killed around the coast. All the mature 8's and 10's were nice but none would score 100 points.I've been hunting the big bend area for over 30 years now and the big ones I see are from around the Suwannee.Like Allen said they both have their place it's all good. Dh you can't leave because my Brooksville spot is fixing to open and I'm hoping to give everyone a spanking,including you Mr.
