do away with permits for ,,,, baiting , killing hogs and coyotes at night .

Not going to happen.

How about 1 buck and 3 does per person. For the folks in the density places, sounds like a great time to take some kids and family members. If limited to one buck, Alabama would have a plethora of upper age class deer. It won’t happen because then people wouldn’t pay the price.

Sure, maybe you can think of other things you don't like and maybe work on making them illegal too...You just said we can only kill 3 bucks, what does it matter how you kill them if you only wind up with 3 dead ones anyway? A deer isn't any deader if you shoot him over a pile of corn 5 minutes after getting a pic of him than he would be if you shot him out of a shooting house over your greenfield...


Aside from that, not all of us hang a tactacam over a corn pile and stare at our phone until its time to hunt.....I already own several cell cams, make them illegal and I've just thrown several hundred dollars up a hogs arse..that is the case for lots of people who have already purchased cell cameras. Maybe you can think of other things to outlaw that would render equipment we have already spent good money on useless.

When you tell me that you want to make something I use illegal, all I hear is you saying "Piss on that hard earned money you spent on that trail camera, I am going to throw my weight around to make sure you wasted the time it took you to make that money you used to buy that camera."

You're right, not everyone can. Smaller acreage hunters would be at a disadvantage with that.

My concern is for the resource. It’s what I’ve devoted my life to. If it makes you upset that I care more about my children having hunting opportunities than how happy you are then so be it. Choosing to make people’s lives more convenient and happy over sound management of a resource we all share is not wise decision making. I don’t care how you spend your money. I do care about people continuing to have the same opportunities we all have had.

Matt, you ALREADY have a 3 buck rule, you have a check in place. You have solved that problem. This 3 buck rule should safeguard you resource....Trail cams don't equal more dead bucks than we have already allocated for since everyone gets 3 anyway....that should eliminate you having to run around calling for trail cams to be illegal

Throwing around the emotional rhetoric about "your children having access to the resource" is BS has nothing to do with what we are talking about.

Well we just disagree then. Game and fish laws and regulations used to be so that hunting was a challenge. They were intended to be written and enforced that way. Now it seems the “immediate gratification” has bled into every aspect of life, including hunting, and people have an expectation that hunting should be as easy and convenient as possible, allowing everything imaginable to aid or assist in the hunt. At some point in time, you’ll realize I’m right, and that the combination of lengthy gun seasons, bait, cameras, fragmented landscapes and more hunters is not sustainable. You do realize I work over vast landscapes in this state, and it’s becoming more and more common to meet with large landowners who can’t grow a deer to 3 years of age due to the liberal seasons we have. That’s going to become increasingly more common as the years go by. I’m not advocating for trophy management by the state at all. I’m simply stating that mature deer in the population are vitally important to herd health and hunter satisfaction. If something don’t change in certain areas people are losing interest fast.

No idea why you would say "3 buck limit" when you really dont want people killing 3 bucks after all. That doesnt make any sense.

While you're at it, maybe you can try to get the state to outlaw side by sides, 4wd trucks and bolt action rifles. Those things make deer hunting easier too. Wouldn't want someone to make their way down a muddy road in a Z71 to get closer to where a deer might live

You better not have owned a single trail camera in the last 10 years if you are gonna stick to your guns saying they should be illegal.

And dont feed me that line of BS that they are a good management tool but "shouldnt be used to actually take deer."....I have never in my life been sitting on the couch, got a pic of a deer and then thought to (or even been able to) run out there and kill it. But what I have been able to do is get a pic of one texted to me so I don't have to drive to the property every weekend to check a camera.

You cant legislate people into hunting deer ethically, all you're doing is making it harder on the good guys.

You don’t have to worry about anything I have to say anyway. They have no intention of listening to me, or anyone else for that matter. All it is is internet grumbling.

In a lot of states they differentiate between rifle bucks and archery bucks. Maybe that would make sense here.

1 rifle buck
1-2 archery/ML bucks

The real anomaly in AL is the incredibly long rifle season combined with unlimited does. Haven't seen either of those anywhere else I've hunted.

This.....sad to say BIG guvrnmint making their money anyway possible no concern for the betterment of the state's game or fish.

This is right up there with a pro gun group arguing what’s the best way for the Government to limit their gun rights.
Y’all don’t realize how big of a step the three buck limit was to start with AND outlawing deer dogs. Enforcement is what’s lacking, not the laws.
If anything is needed it’s baby steps, maybe make two of the bucks have at least 4 on one side not one. That protects another few bucks every year.
Go ahead and put a generous limit on does (5). It really won’t have any impact but I suppose psychology it’ll help someone’s feeling and could make a small impact I suppose. Going any lower on buck limits ( 1 or 2 ) is an overreach. Go up on antler restrictions FIRST ( if anything).

Sure go for it, I dont care. At least it wouldnt make equipment we already bought obsolete

Agree...if the rule pushers out there are just dying to make more rules, raise the standards...that would make more sense....better equipment should=better quality bucks anyway.

LOL more talking points for your podcast at the very least- "all deer hunters on the internet are stupid, hunting is too easy"

For the record, I have an immense amount of respect for your work, you are obviously well versed in your field and roundly regarded as one of the most knowledgeable biologists anywhere around. No one can doubt that. Anything you say about deer behavior, management, biology can be taken as the Gospel, and everyone knows that.

My problems start when you start propositioning things that cost me money.

I really feel like you have my intentions wrong. I only chimed in because I see what’s happening across AL and I like having satisfied clients. Things keep going like they’re going then AL is going to look a lot like TX, with high fences going up on all the larger tracts and smaller landowners are going to get screwed.

Night watchman, I’ll add it’s hard for us around less populated areas to understand, but bucks are being way over harvested in a lot of the state.

I mean I don't necessarily disagree about that, you just can't ever ban something that doesn't wind up having an adverse effect on someone who doesn't abuse it- i.e. trail cameras. I've heard you make mention before that they should not be legal. Enforce the 3 buck rule that is already in place I guess is the only alternative I can suggest. Might be more difficult to do that than just banning something but I believe Enforcement owes it to the hunters to enforce laws rather than hit the easy button.

For some people 3 bucks is good , myself I'm not going to shoot 3. Imo I could live with a 2 buck limit.
Maybe implement a 2 buck limit for 2-3 years and see what it does for age/antler
development. As far as does I believe someone suggested 5 per season. Just say your in a club with
12 members and you shoot 60 does. That's alot of does plus possibly 36 bucks you have just depleted
your herd and will be wondering what happened the next season. Cut the doe limit to 3 per person.