Here we are just finished up Winter. Spring is now officially upon us and today it really feels as that is an accurate statement. The sun is shining brightly, my thermometer reads 54 degrees, and there is more bare ground than snow covered currently around the house. As we reflect back to this past winter season it started off very slow. Then we had some snow and real cold temperatures. Of course each of these temps and the amount of snow can vary greatly depending on where you live.
With parts of Maine appearing over run with deer, it is hard to believe that there are also parts that the herd is diminishing. This is the case in the millions of acres in the north woods part of Maine. Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife since the early 90′s have worked on getting landowners to hold pieces of land known as “deer yards” to help protect the whitetail in that part of State due to the inclement weather and snow depths. Of course these landowners would be losing money by choosing not to harvest trees (money) standing on the land.
So a good question is, where do our deer yards stand? What will happen to the deer, forest, and hunting in these parts?
Hopefully landowners will work with the State as Plum Creek did in “saving” certain parts to keep these deer yards open. I am in hopes that there will be more constructive discussions between the State and landowners dealing with this issue.
The State’s wildlife officials may turn to zoning laws in order to protect these whitetails.
