As reported on previously, there is no need in NY to be hunting Black Bears and Coyotes with Whitetail Deer numbers likely between 1.2 and 2.5 million................Only 10 to 20% of New York State Deer are killed by humans each year in the Empire State, not nearly enough to keep the woods biologically diverse(GREEN and REGENERATING)....................Will Wolves and Pumas, the real "Deer eaters" ever come home to the Adirondack and Catskill Mountains to help accomplish this objective?

Harvest breakdown: 2013 deer, bear numbers in

NEW YORK DEER AND BEARS DOING WELL

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has released the deer and bear harvest statistics for last autumn’s big-game hunting seasons.

Beginning with deer, New York’s 2013 whitetail harvest pretty much mirrored that of 2012 and remains above average compared to the previous five years.

PUMA

The total take was 243,567 deer, which is just a 0.3 percent increase over the 2012 take of 242,957. The overall buck take of 114,716, however, was actually down 3.6 percent, but the antlerless take was up almost 4 percent.

THE IMPACT OF 15 OR MORE DEER PER SQ. MILE

Muzzleloading hunters took 14,970 deer (58.8 percent were antlerless) in 2013, which was a 7 percent decrease from the 2012 figure of 16,104. The bow take was 36,676, which represents a 1.3 percent increase from 2012. Thirty-two percent of the bow take were antlerless deer, which like the same number for muzzleloading, is about average.

Here in the Northern Zone, hunters took only 101 more bucks (19,538) than the 2012 harvest of 19,437. The overall 2013 Northern Zone whitetail harvest of 32,369 is up from that of 2012, which was 30,843.

Getting back to the buck harvest, the regular big-game season resulted in 14,268 bucks, down more than 500 from 2012. The bow (1,255) and muzzleloader (3,733) harvests, however, were both up slightly for Northern Zone bucks.

BLACK BEAR

Locally, Clinton County hunters took 801 deer, of which 590 were bucks, compared to 844 deer and 587 bucks in 2012. Ellenburg wins the “most deer” award in the county with 121 deer and 91 bucks.

In Essex County, the harvest was 1,609 deer, including 1,116 bucks. Both numbers are higher than the 2012 totals of 1,467 deer and 1,061 bucks. 

The harvests for nearby counties include the following buck/total numbers: Franklin, 1,108/1,634; Hamilton, 1,000/1,179; and Warren, 608/860. The Adirondack region in general saw a greater buck harvest than the previous year.

BLACK BEAR HARVEST

The DEC’s black bear harvest report once again reflects a record take in the Southern Zone, where bear numbers are high and hunting opportunities continue to expand.

In fact, expansion of bear hunting to all of upstate New York is under proposal and, if implemented, will surely result in a continuing rise in the black bear harvest by hunters.

EASTERN COYOTE(COYWOLF)

New York bear hunters took 1,358 bears in 2013. That’s down by 21 from 1,377 in 2012 and slightly more than the five-year average of 1,288. While the southeastern range take of 636 made up the bulk of the harvest, a decrease in the Adirondack range hindered what could’ve been a potentially record year.

Black bear populations are solid in the Adirondack region, but a widespread beechnut crop had the bears spread out and difficult to find, especially during the early bear season that currently is exclusive to the Northern Zone. The Adirondack black bear harvest of 380 was down significantly from the 2012 figure of 606. The five-year average is 560 and the historical average is 515.

Only 84 bears were taken during the early bear season that gets underway in mid-September, compared to 386 in 2012. Fifteen were taken by archery hunters and 35 by muzzleloaders. Both figures are below that of 2012 and the five-year average. The regular (rifle) season take of 246 was higher than the 2012 take of 132 as well as the five-year average of 217.

EASTERN WOLF

In the Adirondack range, 28 bears were taken in Clinton County, with Ellenburg again accounting for the most at six. In Essex County, 22 bears were taken including five in Newcomb, which lead that county. Other nearby county harvests include Franklin, 28; Hamilton, 60; and Warren, 30.

There’s a lot to consider in the forthcoming seasons, including changes on the horizon related to the hunting calendar year and of course, the crossbow. The set-back zone for harvesting big game with a bow has also been changed from 500 to 150 feet.

Dan Ladd is the author of “Deer Hunting in the Adirondacks,” outdoors editor for the Glens Falls Chronicle, columnist for Outdoors Magazine and contributor to New York Outdoor News. Contact him at www.adkhunter.com.