Spring Drought

[jlw0142]

In January, I hunted a unit for mule deer that I really liked. We struggled to find deer, but after figuring out the unit and doing more research, I feel really good about it for this coming December. Desert mule deer, mind you. Well, I just checked the drought report and my unit is in “extreme drought”… is it worth going or should I pick a new unit for this go round? How will this affect the hunting/buck quality in December?


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[RockAndSage]

A couple of things come to mind. First, is that it's the feed conditions provided by winter and spring precipitation that lead to big antler growth. Second, is to be suspicious of agencies declaring anything regarding climate change, drought, etc - they have very real policy and budget incentives to be alarmist and short-sighted. What they call "extreme drought" may very well not apply to the winter survival rate or antler growth of the herds in your area at this moment. That declaration may have more to do with current water reservoir levels that cities depend on, than it does with even just this year's precipitation.

So, if you had decent precipitation this winter, and if this spring is decent, I'd suggest staying with an area you've hunted and gotten familiar with. At least try to scout it hard for a few days before you apply for tags, and see how the deer look.

 

[jlw0142]

A couple of things come to mind. First, is that it's the feed conditions provided by winter and spring precipitation that lead to big antler growth. Second, is to be suspicious of agencies declaring anything regarding climate change, drought, etc - they have very real policy and budget incentives to be alarmist and short-sighted. What they call "extreme drought" may very well not apply to the winter survival rate or antler growth of the herds in your area at this moment. That declaration may have more to do with current water reservoir levels that cities depend on, than it does with even just this year's precipitation.

So, if you had decent precipitation this winter, and if this spring is decent, I'd suggest staying with an area you've hunted and gotten familiar with. At least try to scout it hard for a few days before you apply for tags, and see how the deer look.

That’s good info. I live far away, but it may be worth a short scouting trip to see what I can turn up. I appreciate it, I’ll look deeper into the precipitation levels and see what I can find out


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[RockAndSage]

What you just shared about living far away only emphasizes the value of your existing experience in that particular area. Everything across the west seems to have had at least decent precipitation the last six months, so you may be set up great for a good season in December. Especially if there's nothing drastically dry over the summer or fall.

 

[jlw0142]

What you just shared about living far away only emphasizes the value of your existing experience in that particular area. Everything across the west seems to have had at least decent precipitation the last six months, so you may be set up great for a good season in December. Especially if there's nothing drastically dry over the summer or fall.

Great point. I’ll keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn’t get too bad but where I’m wanting to hunt is right on the fringes of the “extreme” drought right now so it may be alright. It does appear that this drought is based on the last few months and is not long-term though. Looks like there was no severe lack of precipitation before January of this year.


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