New Organization: North American Pronghorn Foundation

[Maddog58]

 

[Maddog58]

Was a pleasure to meet board member David Gough during the translocation with NDOW. Straight shooter with a passion for the pronghorn. Picture above is with him and member Riley McDonell doing their stuff

 

[Maddog58]

 

[Gila]

The “big game industry” in New Mexico does not include residents…Our big-game hunting is totally commercialized now. Very few tags are put into public “random” draws. Less tags for residents every year as outside investors buy up ranch land for hunt clubs and outfitters. Land owner tags are sold over the counter to non-residents who book with outfitters and hunt clubs, no limits. I have been a resident of New Mexico for 10 years and have never been drawn for Pronghorn.

The highest population density in NM was in about 16 counties to the NorthEast. No surprise that the Dept of (don’t really know what they are or what they do) have been forced to put a quota on over the counter landowner tags in those counties, does only of course. They took 20% of the buck tags from the public draws for those counties as well as curtailing doe public draw hunts. We need a Pronghorn advocacy group but I would like to see the priority given to hunting opportunity and public hunting access to private lands, The way to accomplish those objectives of course is to pay the land owner per acre for public hunting access and habitat improvement. South Dakota I can say without a doubt has the most successful programs for recruiting private lands for public hunting.

If you look at Harding and Perkins counties in South Dakota (which have the highest population densities) most of the private lands in those areas are open to public hunting. I believe Randy’s family ranch is in Harding County. North Dakota has always had population density issues because of habitat quality. I know that over the years ND has had to close pronghorn seasons entirely because of low fawn recruitment. I think Randy has the right idea about the fences. Pronghorn can’t jump fences so they always look for loose lower strands to get through. However the border range fences the feds put up on BLM are high and tight. I have seen bucks running back and forth for miles trying to get through the border fences. We should be lobbying for Pronghorn friendly fences IMO.

I would like to see a local chapter in New Mexico…Thanks to OP for starting this thread…I am a member now and am fully supporting them!