By Glen Wunderlich Outdoor Columnist Member Professional Outdoor Media Association
The long-anticipated firearms deer season opener had finally arrived. Our hunting clan had done its best preparing blinds, food plots, and firearms for another season of controlled chaos. After several years of practicing Quality Deer Management (QDM) strategies, we expected greater rewards than past seasons had provided. Even though our piece of Shiawassee County heaven is relatively small, we’ve stuck by QDM principles nonetheless. We have trusted that our efforts would pay off toward a deer herd more in balance with the supporting habitat and more in line with a natural buck to doe ratio with healthy animals.
While much is made of bigger bucks in QDM strategies, there’s much more to it. No doubt, producing more and bigger bucks is a natural byproduct of staying the course. Much like the final score in a football game or any other sporting contest is based upon preparation, so too is QDM. By planting nourishing food sources and weeding out imbalance by harvesting adult does and passing small bucks, more and larger bucks happen; healthy deer happen, too, as a result. As hoped, opening day proved to be an encouraging barometer of results to date.
My opening-day position had me overlooking a familiar swamp with a view of deteriorating ash mixed with stately walnut trees. All was quiet in our neighborhood until Joe alerted me on the two-way: “There’s a 6-point buck coming your way.” Even though our private rules prohibit the taking of yearlings (6-points usually are yearlings in our area), I was excited at the prospect of spotting the first deer of opening day. However, I was also concerned that bordering folks, who operate under an opposing agenda, would shoot it. The adolescent buck, however, shuffled through the dry leaves and vanished without attracting a shot.
Still early morning, I noticed telltale movement in the swamp. Close inspection with my Leupold binoculars revealed another yearling 6-point buck bedded down. His focus was away from me and for good reason: plenty more deer, including another young buck with moderate headgear. I watched them for a half hour or so until the closer buck finally stood up. It was then that I noticed what appeared to be some type of wound to its neck. In addition, the hair around the blemish seemed puffed out a bit indicating a possible infection but I couldn’t be sure from 70 yards. When I saw an opposing hole in the hair on the opposite side of the neck, I surmised that the damage was caused by an undisciplined William Tell wannabe.
I decided to take the poor creature for a host of reasons, none of which involved bragging rights. I dropped him on the spot with a blast from my trusty muzzleloading Knight rifle and remained on stand.
When we retrieved the buck, we discovered that an archer indeed had wounded it with an ill-advised shot to the neck. The arrow had passed clean through and the wound actually appeared to have healed. Whether the deer would have lived a healthy, full life will never be known but I stand by a policy that mandates finishing the job someone else started. In so doing, one of the precepts of QDM – striving for healthy deer – is upheld.
During the evening session, the local deer population descended on the 4-acre brassica food plot until our departing hunting party spoiled their feeding and breeding frenzy. Before it was over, several whitetails sporting headgear worthy of restricted tags joined the chaos but I held fire during the waning light.
The strategy paid off for Joe, who downed a fine 10-point buck the following morning from the same stand. It was his best buck to date and our best since trusting in QDM a few short seasons ago. Dividends from QDM are beginning and there will be no turning back in years to come.
