The Daily News

It’s becoming increasingly obvious two types of deer management are being practiced in the Midwest and they’re often diametrically opposed to each other.

In North Dakota, an increasing number of really good bucks have been taken in recent years. This is not the result of the state’s management of deer but of the private landowner/lessee’s efforts. The state manages for numbers, while the private party, be they landowners, outfitters or hunters who lease land, usually manages for quality.

This is also true in Minnesota. Keep in mind, I am a native of Wadena, Minnesota and I bowhunt in the state every fall. I am not commenting from a distance.

James Komestakes, 26, of Fergus Falls with a monster whitetail buck taken in Wilkin County. The buck is an easy Boone and Crockett record book qualifier with a net green score of 180 7/8. Photo submitted Advertisement

The landowner who owns the property I bowhunt on in Minnesota has been a hunting and fishing buddy of mine for 25 years. Over the past two decades Mike Albertson has worked hard to manage the deer herd on his Wilkin County property. He doesn’t have a lot of deer habitat, maybe 30 acres, but it’s on the open prairie along a river, so it’s concentrated habitat. Mike is also an avid bowhunter who, understandably, keeps the hunting to himself and his family. There just isn’t enough room for others. I hunt a small acreage of his downriver.

Mike puts great value on his deer hunting which is a year-around pursuit, not just something he does a couple weekends in the fall. He keeps close track of the deer on his property, collects shed antlers, and provides them with food plots, wintering grounds and, most importantly, sanctuary. When the pressure is on the deer know they can escape it in Mike’s woods.

On Oct. 5th Mike’s nephew, James Komestakes, 26, of Fergus Falls, came out to bowhunt for the evening. The two have been hunting together for a few years and James has learned to let the mid-size bucks walk. On that evening it paid off. A huge buck they’d been monitoring for a couple years rose up out of the slough grass and walked within fifteen yards. James was shook up at such a sight but his arrow found its mark.

With a monstrous body and tremendously heavy main beams nearly seven inches in circumference, the buck’s typical antlers green-scored 191 6/8 gross and 180 7/8 net! It is the caliber of whitetail buck which most of us will never see in the wild.

Astonishingly, this is the third buck of that class taken on Mike’s property in the past decade and another buck scoring 174 was taken two years ago on the neighbor’s property. That buck was surely the result of the sanctuary and restraint practiced on Mike’s small property.

“None of these great bucks are the result of the deer management practices of the Minnesota DNR,” claims Mike. “If we hunted my property like the DNR manages the state my woods would be full of does and 1 _ year old bucks. I know of no other state that allows all hunters to take a buck but you have to apply for an antlerless tag in a lottery. That’s ridiculous! It’s one thing to manage for numbers but to completely disregard quality in a deer herd is a mistake. Some say plenty of big bucks are taken in Minnesota. I’m betting the vast majority of those big, mature bucks are taken on property managed by private landowner/hunters who don’t shoot every buck they see.”

Mike is also upset about the new gun season format. Previously, this area was open for two days the first weekend, then four days the next.

“The deer are rutting hard then and they at least had a chance to take care of business during the five weekdays between seasons. Now they’ll be under steady pressure for nine straight days. The deer population in this area is down significantly and cannot handle more pressure. All the DNR cares about is numbers and those numbers are way off,” complained Albertson. “The deer hunting in Minnesota could be so much better if the DNR took a few lessons from those who are practicing quality deer management. As a farmer, I don’t harvest my crops until they’re mature. We should be doing the same thing with our bucks.”

You don’t have to believe Mike Albertson. Just look at the buck. And the smile James is wearing.

SAFETY

While we’re all getting ready for the deer gun season in a couple weeks, and bowhunters are going full blast right now, it’s a good time to mention treestand safety. There have been numerous incidences already this year of hunters falling out of treestands because they weren’t wearing a safety harness.

It wasn’t a very safe early-October antlerless season in Minnesota as five treestand accidents were reported though they weren’t all falls. One genius chose not to use a haul line to pull his rifle into his stand. Instead, he ran his belt through the trigger guard and climbed up. Unbelievably, he also failed to unload it first and proceeded to shoot himself in the foot!

If you plan to leave the ground don’t do it without wearing a full-body safety harness. Don’t trust your life to a screw-in treestep, a ladder or a tree limb. Maintain three points of contact and wear your harness. If you don’t have one, get one.

LEFTOVERS

A total of 18,000 antlerless licenses remain in seventeen units across North Dakota and they will be sold through the end of the archery season, which closes on Jan. 4th. There’s no limit to the number of these licenses you may hold and they may be used during any open season, archery, gun or muzzleloader. The only restriction is you must stay in the unit for which the license is issued. The fee is $20 for residents and $55 for nonresidents and they can be purchased online at gf.nd.gov or by calling the Game and Fish Department at 701-328-6300.

MN DEER

The Minnesota DNR is encouraging the state’s nearly half million deer hunters to purchase their hunting licenses early to avoid long lines at the Electronic Licensing System locations. You can also purchase your deer license over the phone for a $3.50 convenience fee by calling 888-665-4236. Keep in mind, if you do it by phone it will take three to five days to receive your tag in the mail and you can’t hunt without it.

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