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Crossbows and facts


Slayer1962

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I recently read an article on crossbows and the actual harvest figures and rates. The bottom line is crossbows have not changed the bow hunting success rates or deer numbers as much as people claimed or worried. They used hunter numbers, success rates and deer numbers to evaluate crossbow impact in several states. I know the occasional hero comes on and says I shot a deer at 75 yards with my ----- crossbow but reality is most use them as intended close range like a regular bow. So stop the panic and read the facts.

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I recently read an article on crossbows and the actual harvest figures and rates. The bottom line is crossbows have not changed the bow hunting success rates or deer numbers as much as people claimed or worried. They used hunter numbers, success rates and deer numbers to evaluate crossbow impact in several states. I know the occasional hero comes on and says I shot a deer at 75 yards with my ----- crossbow but reality is most use them as intended close range like a regular bow. So stop the panic and read the facts.

I agree in states like Ohio where you get limited tags and fill them however you want. In NJ, that's not the case, and the numbers prove the opposite of the point you are trying to make. The number of deer killed during the bow season surpassed the number killed during the shotgun season for the first time, after crossbows were legalized. Take a look as well at the increase in winter bow kills, which can be almost entirely attributed to crossbows. The last several seasons, the bow/crossbow season kill total has surpassed ALL gun season combined, even adding in the ML season. Sure, we added Sunday and decreased the safety zone, but to say crossbows had no impact on those skyrocketing kill levels, when the deer herd has been in rapid decline, is just plain fantasy. I've been told, quietly, that one of the big reasons the seasons will not be cut back is because the F&G Council, specifically the chairman, can't do that after assuring there would be no season reduction after adding crossbows. The crossbow manufactures would not be happy if a State had to reduce season lengths and bag limits after adding crossbows.

 

Not trying to fight a battle that has already been fought, just trying to inject some reality into the discussion of the after effects. 

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation UNDER GOD, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

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Spike, no offense taken. I read one article and applied blindly I guess. SG I know its easier but you still need to sit still play the wind and be close. I also agree with late season since its the main reason I started to use a crossbow.

There is no doubt more people will "bow hunt" because of the crossbow and more deer will be killed because of it but it appears in most states it was not significant. I personally would like unlimted doe done away with no matter what weapon. I think the answer is in number of tags or lagal deer you can shoot.

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you don't have to move much with a xbow or a gun where a bow you have that whole ritual you can't compare the 2 Bob it's too easy with a xbow you should know this hell the optics and a steady rest you can make pinpoint accurate shots you never could achieve with a bow I'll prove it this fall...I'm gonna shoot every deer I see and I'm gonna use your tags doing it too so be prepped buddy your phone is gonna sizzle HEY BOB COME TAG THIS HEY BOB HELP ME DRAG THIS

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Without actually asking a hunter to identify what they harvested with, you cannot support an argument that crossbows are the sole cause for increased harvest amounts. It's pure speculation without any actual evidence; which can and maybe should be collected to actually evaluate the hypothesis that crossbows are increasing harvest rates.

 

I hunt more now with a bow because it's 8-weeks of hunting in warmer weather with longer evening hours. Muzzy season is too short and doesn't accommodate weekends that much. I can't justify the license cost to hunt an additional day or two.

 

I also don't hunt shotgun season anymore and don't buy an extended shotgun tag either. It's three days long in zone 3, is a waste for me.

 

Winter now is an additional 3-4 weekends, so that's attractive to me.

 

The design of the seasons is better for me during now season than any of the gun seasons. I'm sure I'm not alone, but that too could be contributing to the increased harvest numbers.

 

More research and more data needs to be collected before you can say one way or another if a particular hunting implement or Hunter behavior is contributing to larger harvest numbers. Gotta get some data behind those numbers.

 

 

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Sapere aude.

Audeamus.

When you cannot measure, your knowledge is meager and unsatisfactory.

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IDK they both have pros and cons I guess for me the way i hunt a crossbow can be a pain..but in the long run i don't think crossbows are a huge difference if one is proficient with his weapon it should not be a problem  but actually being a good hunter is more important........

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Last year was the first year I went out during bow season since back when I was a youth hunter and it was included in my combo license, and it has nothing to do with the ability to use a crossbow. This year I will be out again shooting my compound and I doubt I'll buy a firearms license because the bow season is so much longer and I feel more justified spending the money on it.

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 I doubt I'll buy a firearms license because the bow season is so much longer and I feel more justified spending the money on it.

 

 

I haven't purchased a firearm license in many years for that very reason.   

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