Oklahoma 2022

[Crghss]

It wouldnt surprise me if states that are in dire shape  suspend NR hunting in the near future

And where are they going to make up the lost monies? $142 for a NR license, that's a lot to make up.

[deadbuck]

Yes, but a temporary loss of revenue is better than a permanent loss

[sasquatch1]

I think funding would go a long ways and for too long I feel we all pay too little! People bark at minuscule license increases and such but spend a fortune on all other things in life!!

Phones, over the top family vacations, new vehicles every other year, houses way over what's needed, furniture, their wives wants etc etc!


When you think about the joy hunting brings and the long seasons, plus the millions of acres of public land, we have been getting by far too cheap!!!


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[Dtrkyman]

Quality habitat trumps all!  Turkey can rebound from poor hatches, predators and weather if they have a quality place to live.

Talking to a biologist in western OK. it seems there is a major problem with a lack of cottonwoods, not sure if they are dying off, being cut down or what exactly is the problem but they are the only place for a turkey to roost.

A property I hunted in Nebraska for years basically has one single cottonwood that birds roost in, it is dead and falling apart, once it is gone I doubt birds will use the property at all.

Central Illinois has seen a major decrease in turkey population in recent years, in my opinion bush honeysuckle is a major issue, some properties are completely taken over by it and some have little to none, the properties with it have few if any birds, properties void of it still hold good numbers of birds! 

[Paulmyr]

So, what do you guys think Oklahoma fish and Wildlife should do right now instead of lowering bag limit?

I'm an Okie, and probably have as much vested interest in Oklahoma turkey hunting as anyone.  I'm in favor of the two bird limit instead of the three until we turn it around.  Unfortunately I don't think the wildlife department is going to turn it around.  It is going to be hunters who do. 

First I believe that the state should have been broken into six zones NE, SE North, South, SW, and NW.  One tom per zone.  Then the Tom turkey definition should be changed to exclude bearded hens and Jake's.  I don't think the later season is a bad idea and non residents going to a single tag is fine with me. 

Now for the big deal.  Oklahoma is a two buck state and with that in mind start a predator bounty.  I propose a point system.  Coyotes 4 points, bobcats 4 points skunks, 2 points possum's 2 points, hogs 6 points and coons5 points.  Once a person gets 30 points they have met the requirements.  Unless you check in online, via submitting a photo you can not buy your second buck or turkey tag.  Simple reduction of predators. 

The biggest reason people don't control the predators is they are two preoccupied with other things.

Interesting post. You recommend that people kill animals in order to get points to allow them to kill more animals. What would be done with these points animals? Toss them in the ditch?

[GobbleNut]

Now for the big deal.  Oklahoma is a two buck state and with that in mind start a predator bounty.  I propose a point system.  Coyotes 4 points, bobcats 4 points skunks, 2 points possum's 2 points, hogs 6 points and coons5 points.  Once a person gets 30 points they have met the requirements.  Unless you check in online, via submitting a photo you can not buy your second buck or turkey tag.  Simple reduction of predators. 

The biggest reason people don't control the predators is they are two preoccupied with other things.

Interesting post. You recommend that people kill animals in order to get points to allow them to kill more animals. What would be done with these points animals? Toss them in the ditch?

Indeed, this is the dilemma we face in wildlife management as it relates to predators, as well as some other species such as feral hogs.  The problem is multi-faceted.  We recognize that a balance is needed between predator (including humans) and prey, but we have also reached a point in our society that people, including many of us hunters, are uncomfortable with the concept of killing animals for no other reason than to increase numbers of game species. 

It seems pretty obvious that the solution to recovery of declining species is a reduction in the number of other species that prey on them, as well as other factors such as providing more and better habitat,...as has been pointed out.  However, the general public's attitudes about these matters are increasingly fickle.

Non-hunters are perfectly fine with killing rats, mice, and other species that are considered vermin,...but start controlling predators for the sake of providing targets for hunters and things get cloudy real fast.  The bottom line is that we hunters now walk a very fine line in terms of justifying some of the stuff we do.  Much care is needed in how we walk that line nowadays.   

[Zobo]

GobbleNut you are so right. We cannot take any of this stuff we do for granted it. It can be taken away, anything can if it becomes unpopular enough. Limits dwindle,  land access becomes increasingly more difficult, hunting and fishing become more and more a privlage of only the very wealthy. This all can happen, and is happening.

[eggshell]

I agree with you both. I am growing older (66) and less mobile all the time and my hunting days are less and not more, but I feel bad for the young people just getting started. I fear opportunities are going away all the time. Many will never know what we call "the good ole days".

[makestomstremble]

I truly believe the biggest cause of our bird decline is predators/nest robbers. We have so many raccoons, coyotes, etc. that from what I have observed a rather small percentage of hens are even raising any poults. I did see a few birds of the year this morning coming to work, but I have only seen one other hen with poults this spring. I live in a rural area in western OK and used to see birds nearly daily driving back and forth in our area. I sometimes hear the problem is hogs, and maybe it is in some places. Most of the area I am around does not have hogs. I would guess that raccoons are a major culprit, and years ago lots of guys ran hounds and hunted them. Not so much these days.

I do not totally trust my suspicions. I believe research should be done to positively identify the reasons. Then when we have the cause(s) established, put together a game plan to address it.

I talked to a retired game warden yesterday that I bumped in to, and he told be about some of the large flocks he remembers around different parts of our county. One thing he mentioned that he remembered were there was usually a landowner or lease holder in that area that really loved turkeys and catered to the birds in different ways, like controlling predators, supplementing forage, etc. We may have to research some recipes for coons. LOL

[Paulmyr]

I've had smoked coon before. It tastes like ham.