Mike Raykovicz

According to information provided by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation, last year hunters in New York harvested 209,781 deer. It was estimated that 112,224 antlered bucks, and 97,557 antlerless deer were taken and compared to the previous season. That’s a 3.6% decrease in antlered buck harvest statewide, and a steep 15.6% decrease in antlerless deer. 
It’s interesting to note that nearly 70% of the bucks harvested last season were older deer, at least 2.5 years old, but despite the decrease in the total number of deer taken by hunters that’s nearly five times as many mature bucks than were harvested in 1969 when the agency first began monitoring the age structure of New York’s deer herd.

As many deer hunters already know, chronic wasting disease (CWD) has been on the radar of wildlife biologists for years. CWD is an always fatal neurological disease affecting deer, elk, caribou, and moose and was first detected in 1967 at a Colorado Mule deer research facility. 
CWD can spread directly through animal-to-animal contact or indirectly through a prion-contaminated environment. Prions causing this disease are also spread through the saliva, urine, and, feces of infected animals. 

September is here and archery season will begin soon in New York.
Most bowhunters I know are already in the woods scouting for deer and for good places to put up their portable stands. It’s gratifying to know that hunters are becoming increasingly aware of the necessity of using a climbing harness when climbing trees, but safety goes beyond that. Tragic treestand accidents happen every season but their number is decreasing. Last year in New York there were only eight reported serious injuries involving treestands. Thankfully, none were fatal.