Where Are Deer Management and Hunting Going?

By Dr. James C. Kroll

My hunting career transcends 59 years while my biologist career has included 53 years, making me one of the most blessed men on Earth. My “memory banks” are stuffed with countless experiences and joys of pursuing and studying whitetails. These are vivid memories. There is not a hunter alive who cannot tell you every detail about the first buck he or she shot.

I took my first buck near Hunt, Texas, in 1963 on a hunt with my biology teacher, Mr. Victor Rippy. I used a World War II surplus .30-06 open sight rifle, with an iron butt plate that promised to kick like a mule. Yet, I never felt the recoil that day, as I raised the rifle when the buck suddenly appeared among some sheep quietly grazing in a field. I just aimed and pulled the trigger, never giving a thought to the sheep until after the shot, but then I got worried.

Scanning the field, I saw no white bodies lying near the buck, so I breathed a sigh of relief and ran to the buck. I can tell you exactly what the weather was like, and the sights and sounds of woods on that December day, including my pounding heart.

Much has transpired since that day, and I have been fortunate enough to be part of the development of deer hunting and management in America. As a deer scientist, I contributed to the growing knowledge about deer biology and management, helping gather the “low hanging fruit” so abundant in those early days. Even then, although deer were the most popular game animal, we actually knew very little about their biology, much less deer management. It would take Al Brothers and Murphy Ray to open the door to actually managing these fantastic creatures in 1975, with their book, “Producing Trophy Whitetails.”

By the 1970s, interest in trophy hunting and deer management was snowballing. My friend, Jerry Johnston, made the first real advancement, with publication of The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters in 1975. In 1983, North American Whitetail magazine debuted. I have been blessed to contribute to both magazines since their inception.

It’s safe to say these two organizations and publications fueled the growing interest in trophy deer hunting and management. Each month, these magazines showed American hunters bucks they only could imagine shooting. Big buck shows and extravaganzas cropped up across the country, including the Hunters Extravaganza and the Dixie Deer Classic.

My motivation in those days was to develop interest in actually managing deer on private lands by providing sound scientific information. Each issue of these magazines featured monster bucks taken in far away places like Texas, Mexico and Canada. But I wanted to show people you did not have to travel far to find good bucks. They could be produced right where you live, if you just applied a few simple management principles.

An entire industry developed around deer management, including food plots, minerals, feeds, and equipment such as the trail camera, which we were instrumental in development. Many of these products were just gimmicks, but the growing demand for new things out-raced education about the efficacy of products. Many hunters and landowners were searching for those magic bullets that provided a shortcut to success, and marketers were more than happy to feed that demand.

By the turn of the 21st century, deer management and hunting had become a mature industry, with a confusing, fragmented array of interest/user groups. Who would ever have thought bowhunters would war over the type of bow used? “Management mania” on private lands really scared professional biologists, who considered private management as a violation of the North American Wildlife Model. Deer hunting and management was quickly becoming a rich man’s sport. That young man who killed the buck near Hunt, Texas, in 1963 had saved up his money to pay the $50 lease fee to hunt on that ranch. The folks who had that lease were mostly relatives, and going to the lease was a memorable experience. We had Thanksgiving at the lease, dining on venison and wild turkey.

In 1999, Jerry Johnston, Gene Riser and I decided there was a need for a new organization in Texas that would represent all interests in deer management and hunting. We called it the Texas Deer Association. Our primary goal was to provide support to the “little man,” the folks who owned small parcels of land that had been passed down for generations. Farming and ranching on a small scale was dying, and in order to own property, you had to have a city job. The emerging developments in deer breeding provided an alternative source of income for these folks. At least, that was our theory. Through support from folks like Ken Bailey, we developed artificial breeding, something I now regret. Instead of helping out the little man, a huge industry made up of wealthy breeders took control. This further exacerbated resistance from state agencies to private management, especially when public perception had it marked as a rich man’s sport.

Today, many hunters suffer from what I call “antler fatigue.” A few years back, we had a replica of Milo Hansen’s world record typical in our booth at the Extravaganzas. I remember at shows in the 1980s, a 160-class buck would draw attention. But, you would be amazed how many people walked right by the world record, without a comment. Outfitters were fighting the trend where prospective clients would not even consider any buck scoring less than 170.

The author was inundated by folks wanting help managing their relatively small properties for wildlife. These were people who had inherited their land or had worked all their lives to afford to buy a small piece of land. Landowners want to develop a place for their kids and grandkids, and they want to leave their land better than they found it.

In the 1960s, the goal in the Hill Country was to kill an eight-pointer. Because no one had ever heard of Boone and Crockett in South Texas, hunters on ranches set their sights on killing a 20-inch buck. My father-in-law and rancher, Bo Masters, when told by my wife that I had killed the fabled Boggy Slough Monster, sporting 9-inch bases and four drop tines, asked, “How wide was he?” Hunting was simple then.

With all this said, I had become pretty cynical over the last 10 years about the future of our beloved past time, until I opened my eyes to what was going on around me. I was being inundated by folks wanting help managing their relatively small properties for wildlife. These were people who had inherited their land or had worked all their lives to afford to buy a small piece of land. This included folks who had developed trust relationships or leases with larger landowners, and had been given the opportunity to manage land. In all cases, when asked about their goal, they replied, “We want to develop a place for our kids and grandkids, and we want to leave this land better than we found it.” What I had been seeking all along was right there under my nose and I did not even notice it!

This last decade has been one of the most exciting periods in my career. We now have landowners and lessees all over North America quietly developing their version of paradise for their families and friends. The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters has been a trailblazer from its beginning in providing what you, the reader and member want. At TTHA, we want to be leaders, not followers.

So, this column is the first of a threepart series, highlighting what folks are doing to enhance the real experiences associated with deer management and hunting. The second one will showcase a young family who do not own land, but have expanded on their three-generation relationship with a neighbor to assume the stewardship of an East Texas property. The third will highlight another family developing a relatively small property as a family heritage venture. These are not rich folks, just good people trying to leave a little piece of the earth better. I am excited to tell you about these folks.