Texas Hunting Leases

AUSTIN — Expansion of mule deer hunting opportunities tops a short list of regulatory changes adopted by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission as part of the 2010-2011 Statewide Hunting and Fishing Proclamation.

The commission approved an open general hunting season for mule deer in Dawson and Wheeler counties, and added a day to the mule deer season across the Trans Pecos region. The change addresses a priority goal in Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Land and Water Resource Conservation and Recreation Plan to increase access to and participation in the outdoors.

The commission finalized a nine-day, buck-only season in Dawson County and a 16-day, buck-only firearm season in Wheeler County and a 35-day archery-only season to offer increased hunter opportunity without adversely impacting mule deer reproduction or distribution.

The extra day of hunting for mule deer in the Trans Pecos region is being tacked onto the front end where the season will now begin the Friday immediately following Thanksgiving and continue for 17 days.

According to TPWD wildlife biologists, mule deer populations in these counties are limited, but are present in some areas having suitable habitat and implementation of a buck-only season will not have any measurable impact on herd productivity or expansion.

The Commission also adopted changes strengthening commercial fishing reporting requirements and administrative reorganization to split the commercial and recreational hunting and fishing regulations apart, as well as a clarification of rules regarding catching and possessing fish within protected length limits or in excess of bag limits.

The Texas Outdoor Annual, a complete digest of all Texas hunting and fishing regulations, including seasons and bag limits, will be available Aug. 15, 2010 wherever hunting and fishing licenses are sold and on the TPWD Web site http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/.

The annual spring turkey season in Texas is set to begin March 20 with the south zone opener.  The North Zone will follow on April 3th and will run through May 16th.  Across the state, spring turkey hunting is a welcome “out of season” distraction for many hunters.  A traditional turkey hunt offers the best of all elements in hunting including decoying, calling skills, patience and the potential for a climactic ending.  Once a hunter has been part of a successful hunt, it usually hooks them for life.  For a list of Turkey hunting leases, please see our lease listings here.

Although most Texas hunters may not be as familiar with Georgia based QDMA - Quality Deer Management Association, they are sure to be familiar with the contents of their 2nd annual “Whitetail Report“.   Texas takes its Odocoileus virginianus very seriously and are arguably some of the most knowledgeable sportsmen on the subject.  So we are sure that many of the state’s one million plus hunters will be keenly interested and somewhat surprised on where we rank relative to other whitetail hunting states.  The report is 77 pages long and is full of great information on the various state and regional issues affecting whitetails and the hunters who pursue them.

According to its own introduction, “QDMA launched the Whitetail Report in an effort to share what [they] know about the threats, concerns, successes and challenges that are shaping the future of white-tailed deer”.   Some interesting observations we found were as follows:

• Texas harvested the most whitetail deer (1.5 years or older)  in 2008 with 340,159.   Michigan was second with 248,350.
• Wisconsin harvested the most doe in 2008 with 313,378.  Texas was second with 279,491.
• Texas was not even in the top-five for QDMA’s “Deer Success Management” rankings.  Mississippi was number one in the Southeast Region.
• In 2008, 68% of the reporting states sold more hunting licenses than the year before.  Texas was up 1.8%.
• Texas ranked second in “hunter effort” with 9.5 man-days.  Michigan was first with 9.7.

Also in the report are interesting studies on adult buck home range size which included one by Texas A&M – Kingsville.  The average home range size in the South Texas study was 2,271 acres.  But some deer were found to roam upwards of 7,000 acres.   The study also found that as bucks mature, they did not necessarily increase their range size.  However, bucks do move more just before the peak of rut.  Collared bucks in Texas moved 7 to 15 miles per day!

The Whitetail Report is full of other interesting issues, trends and research on the subject.  There are just too many to reference here.  But for those of us who actively pursue this passion, its a great read and our congratulations to QDMA on their fine work.