Southern Sportsman":2ega9yby said:
It's getting harder to deny that our season is too early from a reproduction standpoint.
. . . . . . .
We don't have more turkeys.
We're just killing a bigger percentage of what we have.
That's
EXACTLY RIGHT.
I'm afraid our turkeys are on a slow roll to going the way of our bobwhite quail.
In all fairness, many of the reasons for the decline in quail & now turkeys is beyond much anything TWRA can do.
But as to what TWRA can do, and should have done, they've just sat on their laurels,
"they" being as much those commissioners as much as TWRA's top "leaders".
Behind the scenes at TWRA, they are trying to balance a budget,
and turkey-hunting non-resident hunters contribute greatly financially.
Same can be said for non-resident fishermen.
Meanwhile, many of us complain about the high costs of our resident licenses,
which in turn causes TWRA to rely more on non-resident turkey hunters to make up the shortfalls.
IMO, any alternative other than both residents & non-residents paying higher licensing fees,
that's even worse.
The main alternative floated is letting the State take over the funding of TWRA via higher taxes on everything,
but in turn, the state legislatures (most of them non-hunters) gain much more control of all TWRA decisions.
May be one of those damned if you do, damned if you don't choices.
Although some states do this well (albeit with a state income tax), If you think this state funding might be a better alternative, just take a look at how it works with the game & fish regulations in the State of Illinois as an example. Our current regs are remarkably good and simple by comparison.
I will say, considering all the factors, TWRA does a great job with their budget,
but it may be taking its toll on our turkeys.
I don't know what the answer is, other than everything has a price,
and if we resident hunters remain unwilling to pay more (financially) into the system,
I do understand the financial management dilemma of the TWRA bean counters.
Just saying, not bashing TWRA, just bashing their turkey mismanagement,
for which perhaps most county wildlife officers are not party.
Our county wildlife officers just do as they're told by the TWRA leaders in Nashville.
They certainly don't necessarily agree with all the management decisions,
but as in the military, they follow orders.
