Did Colorado Bucks Survive the 5-year Plan?

[robby denning]

Had Brandon Diamond, Colorado biologist, back on the Rokcast…

Did Colorado Bucks Survive the 5-year Plan? - Rokslide

Did Colorado bucks survive the 5-year Plan that started in 2020? Robby hosts Biologist Brandon Daimond of the CPW to answer that question and more.

www.rokslide.com

 

[MarkOrtiz]

I love all of the podcasts with people in the industry. It is so interesting to always hear from the different states on how things are going with conservation and management.

 

[robby denning]

I love all of the podcasts with people in the industry. It is so interesting to always hear from the different states on how things are going with conservation and management.

Thanks Mark for the listen.

I get these guys on because most hunters have never spoken to a biologist, outside of asking for a unit to hunt. I don't mean that as a slam, either, but when I talk to a bio about this stuff, I'm often surprised how little I really understand big game management.

 

[bobco]

great Podcast Robby, Brandon Diamond is a straight shooter. As an avid shed hunter in the Gunnison Basin, I can tell you that the days of mature bucks are gone, forkys are the norm now days. Elk herd seems to be thriving though.

 

[robby denning]

great Podcast Robby, Brandon Diamond is a straight shooter. As an avid shed hunter in the Gunnison Basin, I can tell you that the days of mature bucks are gone, forkys are the norm now days. Elk herd seems to be thriving though.

Thanks for the listen. Sad indeed.

 

[BRTreedogs]

So I guess they survived?

Not really sure I caught that.

So CO doesn’t have any option for submitting your own samples?

Mandatory in person 8-5 in all the locations I saw.

 

[robby denning]

So I guess they survived?

Not really sure I caught that.

So CO doesn’t have any option for submitting your own samples?

Mandatory in person 8-5 in all the locations I saw.

Hey man, thanks for the listen, yeah they survived and while buck to doe ratios are pretty good and fawn recruitment is good, everyone including the guest agrees age class has really taken a hit

Yeah, mandatory in person is the only option.

 

[BRTreedogs]

Yeah, mandatory in person is the only option.

That’s to bad. MT fish and game has a good video on how to take your sample.
I shipped mine in a small flat rate with an ice pack last year and got my results no problem.

 

[robby denning]

That’s to bad. MT fish and game has a good video on how to take your sample.
I shipped mine in a small flat rate with an ice pack last year and got my results no problem.

oh, I didn't know there was an option to mail it in. If Colorado wants high compliance, they need to offer that. Very few hunters will inconvience themselves much to submit a sample...

 

[MeatInTheFreezer]

Had Brandon Diamond, Colorado biologist, back on the Rokcast…

Did Colorado Bucks Survive the 5-year Plan? - Rokslide

Did Colorado bucks survive the 5-year Plan that started in 2020? Robby hosts Biologist Brandon Daimond of the CPW to answer that question and more.

www.rokslide.com

Excellent episode Robby. I listend to the whole thing. As a CO resident who has hunted the Gunnison Basin with a doe tag (successfully) this is some of the most amazing country to hunt. I always appreciate hearing from professionals like Brandon because he really sees the entire scope of what's happening from the hunting side to the conservation side. I do not envy the work he does and am thankful for men like him. It's great to heat our deer herds are thriving, despite the rumors. Let's talk about the data!!!!!!! I get that guys want to hunt big bucks but I would argue there are even more guys who just want to hunt any deer on a consistent basis. As an adult onset hunter my first big game in Colorado was my mule deer doe. I had the time of my life hunting along side my dad and brothers. I do also appreciate his points on the technological advances in hunting and how that has changed things. I think he describes it in a way that should make everyone want to listen to the episode for themselves.

 

[EJFS]

I enjoyed this episode. Two big takeaways for me.

1. I think the average hunter (me included) would indeed prefer opportunity over trophy.

2. As a community we need to seriously consider the impact of technology. Cell cams, online scouting services, 1,000 yd shooting, teams of people tracking animals all year long ... I'd love to see regulations against game cams on public lands and move one season to straight wall cartridges and open sights

 

[S.Clancy]

I'm glad someone in the "industry" and in science is finally saying maybe we need to address the technological advantages hunters now have. Roll back that tech baby!!!

 

[ckleeves]

I guess I don’t see how “opportunity” plays into the GB when for non-res it’s going to take 15 points minimum for a 3rd season tag anywhere up there and creeping at a crazy rate every year.

That’s not a knock on CPW or anyone else, demand has so far out ran supply that there is no easy answer. I just find it funny when it’s mentioned. I think they should change the wording in the survey to “would you rather hunt small bucks twice in your life or big bucks once?”

 

[idelkslayer]

Good episode and gives mule deer hunters a window into the management decisions and concerns that set seasons and regulations. A lot to think about.

I'm not very familiar with Colorado but it came up in the podcast and recently on the forum about the decline in age class since the previous 5-yr plan moved the season later in the year. It brought up a lot of discussion on trade-offs. What do hunters want and what are they willing to give up. Based on the response to CPW most hunters were willing to give up some age class in exchange for late season hunting opportunity. It is an interesting trade-off and it will be interesting to see if it still holds majority support in another 5 years.

Brandon and Robby touched on a couple interesting points regarding doe harvest. When the population can handle it doe harvest can be a good thing for buck hunters, every doe hunter is someone who is not killing bucks. Makes me think about how in the good ol' days of mule deer hunting in Idaho the seasons were long and tags were either sex, with some years allowing two tags per hunter. A lot of does were killed back then, and a lot of big bucks. The two are not mutually exclusive under the right circumstances.

I appreciated the intellectual honesty of Robby and Brandon to discuss the small subset of hunters that are focused on big bucks and that those type sometimes use "herd health" as a synonym of "big buck numbers" and it's not the same thing but they are related.

Overall a well balanced discussion that acknowledged and addressed the pros and cons of each topic. Well done and thanks for continuing to put out this type of content.

 

[robby denning]

Good episode and gives mule deer hunters a window into the management decisions and concerns that set seasons and regulations. A lot to think about.

I'm not very familiar with Colorado but it came up in the podcast and recently on the forum about the decline in age class since the previous 5-yr plan moved the season later in the year. It brought up a lot of discussion on trade-offs. What do hunters want and what are they willing to give up. Based on the response to CPW most hunters were willing to give up some age class in exchange for late season hunting opportunity. It is an interesting trade-off and it will be interesting to see if it still holds majority support in another 5 years.

Brandon and Robby touched on a couple interesting points regarding doe harvest. When the population can handle it doe harvest can be a good thing for buck hunters, every doe hunter is someone who is not killing bucks. Makes me think about how in the good ol' days of mule deer hunting in Idaho the seasons were long and tags were either sex, with some years allowing two tags per hunter. A lot of does were killed back then, and a lot of big bucks. The two are not mutually exclusive under the right circumstances.

I appreciated the intellectual honesty of Robby and Brandon to discuss the small subset of hunters that are focused on big bucks and that those type sometimes use "herd health" as a synonym of "big buck numbers" and it's not the same thing but they are related.

Overall a well balanced discussion that acknowledged and addressed the pros and cons of each topic. Well done and thanks for continuing to put out this type of content.

hey! All that means a lot coming from you. Thanks for listening in and chiming in.

And I ain't afraid of doe harvest when we can do it, and as long as it is the same tag for bucks. Many people really do want the meat and will let a buck walk given the chance to harvest a doe.

 

[ckleeves]

I have always been curious what some weapons restrictions would look like in the GB. It would be really interesting to do a 5-10 year experiment in one of the units.

Straight wall rifle season (no optics) in early Oct, traditional muzzleloader season in place of 2nd season and then an archery season in place of 3rd and 4th. They could even have a traditional archery season the first 2 weeks of Dec.

As many tags numbers I feel like they could issue quite a few, the numbers would depend more on crowding issues then harvest issues I would think.

Tags like a Dec trad season are what I picture when I think of “opportunity”. Tags could even be either sex until a antlerless quota is met.

 

[Bob b]

Great episode Robby! Thank you for bringing on these biologists. We can’t keep complaining about not having big bucks~and then not bat an eye at shooting them at triple the ranges we did 30 years ago!! Long range guns and bows are something we can and should start restricting.