Workshops Help Landowners

HAWLEY – Two workshops were held to help area landowners understand how the Pennsylvania Game Commission's (PGC) Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) works and how to manage deer populations on forestland. Landowners also got a brief overview of the Hunters Sharing the Harvest (HSH) program designed for hunters to donate deer meat to food banks.

The program was sponsored by the Pike County Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA), Penn State Cooperative Extension, and Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources (DCNR).

One workshop was held at Grey Towers National Landmark in Milford on May 18. The second was held at the PPL Environmental Learning Center at Lake Wallenpaupack.

Below is some information provided by speakers at the workshops.

DMAP

DMAP was designed to give landowners more control to reduce deer numbers on their land by making antlerless permits available.

DCNR service forester Tim Carr pointed out deer seasons prior to 1990 permitted a two-week buck only season and three-day doe season.

Back then, hunters were harvesting bucks as small as three-inch spikes and one doe, said Carr.

Now there is a two-week concurrent fall firearm season and no limit of does. The difference is a real antler program and DMAP permits for does, said Carr.

Carr said all DMAP permits cost $6 in the 2003 season but in 2004 would cost $6 for residents and $26 for non-residents.

In 2003, 31,786 DMAP coupons were issued statewide to landowners of 176 properties that totaled 695,396 acres.

In 2004, all lands where no fee is charged to hunt are eligible for the DMAP program.

Landowners could get one DMAP coupon for each five agricultural acres or one coupon for 50 forested acres.

Landowners who have a deer management plan could get any number of DMAP coupons.

Carr said the deadline to apply for DMAP coupons is July 1.

The way the program works is the landowner applies for DMAP coupons through the PGC. After the landowner receives coupons, the landowner can issue them to hunters to hunt on that property.

Hunters complete the coupon information and forward it along with a check to the PGC.

The PGC then issues a DMAP permit to the hunter who can use the permit to harvest a doe in any deer season, such as archery, muzzleloader, or rifle.

The hunter must return a harvest card whether or not a doe is harvested or a fine will be imposed by the PGC.

Forestry

Peter Pinchot, director of the Milford Experimental Forest (MEF) and president of Pike County Branch of QDMA, gave an overview of the history of forestry.

Pinchot began with the period from 1850 to 1910 known as the first forest crisis when a million and a half acres burned in Pennsylvania during one year.

By 1895, between 500 and 600 deer were left in the state and the PGC established the first seasons and bag limits.

Today, deer stand on two feet to browse on trees due to a lack of habitat.

Pinchot said an aerial survey estimated 50 deer per square mile on MEF land.

The PGC state goal is 21 deer per square mile, said Pinchot, but hunters are not keeping up with the reproduction rate of the deer herd.

Pinchot suggested Pennsylvania's rifle season could be longer than two weeks and gave examples of other east coast seasons: New York, 2.5 months; Virginia and New Jersey, 1.5 months; and North Carolina, 2 months.

Pinchot said factors that would help landowners and hunters reduce deer herd populations include the need for more hunters, more time hunting, better skills and tactics, increased deer vulnerability, more tags for alpha hunters, and participating in the Hunters Sharing the Harvest (HSH) program to donate meat to food banks.

Pinchot urged landowners to get involved and contact legislators to propose new PGC regulations because more forest is lost each year.

HSH

Pike County HSH coordinator John Crerand gave an overview of the program that allows hunters to donate their second or third deer to help feed the hungry.

Hunters take a deer to one of three processors in Pike County and pay $15 toward processing costs.

The meat is ground, frozen in two and three-pound packages, and distributed by Crerand to three food banks.

During its first year, area hunters donated 900 pounds, and last year 1,147 pounds were donated.

For more information about QDMA, MEF and HSH, visit the website www.qdmapikecountypa.com.

Photo by Teresa Crerand

Pictured from left are Peter Pinchot, director of the Milford Experimental Forest and president of Pike County Branch of QDMA; DCNR service forester Tim Carr; and Hunters Sharing the Harvest Pike County coordinator John Crerand