Shotgun Deer Season Preview

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Another December, another deer season. And nearly 200,000 of us are finalizing plans to pursue Iowa's biggest big game.

Tens of thousands of hunters have been hunting whitetails already. Bow season has been underway for eight weeks. Early muzzleloader season, the youth season, the three-day November 'doe' season have come and gone. For most hunters, though, deer season begins on a December Saturday, as parties of shotgun hunters head to the woods. First season shotgunners, about 120,000 of them, head out December 2-6. About 75,000 second season hunters have December 9-17 to bring home the venison.

"Shotgun hunters are going to have a good year," forecasts Willy Suchy, deer biologist for the Department of Natural Resources. "There will be good deer numbers; maybe down in some areas a little bit. We have put a lot of emphasis on taking antlerless deer and hunters need to continue working on it." He anticipates about 100,000 whitetails being taken during the two shotgun seasons.

Responding to calls to reduce the deer herd over the last few years, Iowa hunters have snapped up county-specific antlerless tags; putting more pressure on counties with more deer. Winter surveys showed those goals were being met in some areas. As a result, the antlerless permits were not offered across 21 north central and northwest Iowa counties. Most counties with antlerless tags have sold out. "There are tags left in northeast Iowa and southern Iowa," says Suchy. "That's where the populations are strongest. We can use extra antlerless harvest in those areas."

Riding with officers over the years, I've noticed maybe in the last two or three years that a group of hunters will have their regular tags, and a couple antlerless tags, as well. That allows them to take a doe, but still hold that 'any sex' (meaning buck) tag, in case a big one comes by. I'm using a county antlerless tag in second shotgun season, to keep an any sex late muzzleloader tag available.

Hunters have been urged to pass on that small-racked buck and take a doe in the past few years. In some places, they are starting to see results. "We've been taking more antlerless deer; letting some of the younger bucks grow up", notes Suchy. "We should have tremendous quality out there; just maybe a few less deer total."

And shotgun season means deer drives, for most December gun hunters. If your drives have been working well, great. If not, consider fine-tuning things. "Use the wind (deer prefer to escape into or across the wind). Use the cover," advises Suchy. "Deer get used to people walking through the big timber. They're off on the sides; the wooded draw, the fence row. Hunters should remember those areas." Suchy says grassy CRP slopes are great places to surprise a hiding deer. Or two.

More than anything, those deer drives should be carefully orchestrated, too. Standers should know exactly where they should post themselves. Drivers should know exactly where they will emerge. Cover those bases and it should be another great hunting year.

Safety First, Includes Blinds

Pop up blinds; advantage or accident waiting to happen? It's a question more and more hunters ask, with the emergence of the small tent-type blinds dotting fence lines and hillsides during deer season.

The camouflage blind, with dark mesh ports, masks any movement from the hunter inside; allowing him a 360-degree view of the terrain around him. They get high marks from some bowhunters or spring turkey hunters. With those blaze-orange shotgun season vests also hidden, though, it prevents other hunters from seeing them. "We are getting more and more people using them during the shotgun season. The concern, obviously, is whether a shot would come from another hunter, not knowing there was a person concealed in the area," explains DNR recreation safety officer Ken Kenyon.

Iowa law specifies a gun-season deer hunter must wear blaze orange; a vest, coveralls or jacket, so the blind itself is not illegal. Still, safety officials urge hunters to provide some signal that the blind is there and that some one is inside. "Some sort of a blaze orange flag; maybe another vest across the top; even strips of orange flagging tape to mark when you are in there," suggests Kenyon. "It's not mandatory, but it's very good idea." That's also a great safety tip for other concealed locations; such as 'towers' or elevated stands that sometimes resemble small cabins.

Kenyon also points to more traditional safety concerns before shotgun season hunters step into the deer woods. "Swinging on game and not making sure of your backstop on a shot are the two leading factors in hunting incidents," says Kenyon, in light of Iowa's party hunting system, with drivers and blockers/standers. "We urge your party to set up a plan for each drive...and then stick to that plan. You should always know where the others in your party are."

And as you meet the blaze orange requirements, why not add more? "The first thing another hunter sees as you come over a rise is your head," notes Kenyon. "Why not add a blaze orange cap?"

HUSH = Deer for Needy

Hunters with an extra deer can drop it off for processing through the HUSH ( Help Us Stop Hunger) program again this season. Any legally taken deer can be taken to one of 80 lockers, where it will be processed into two-pound bags of ground venison and then distributed to needy families in the area. Each deer tag carries a $1 surcharge to fund HUSH. A locker receives $60 to process the deer. The Food Bank of Iowa and its affiliates coordinates the distribution; receiving $5 for each deer, to cover costs. Hunters donated nearly 6,000 deer to HUSH last year.

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Source: Iowa Department of Natural Resources