Good Bye Food Plots

[woodlandfarms]

While I do not hunt, and am still wrapping my head around the idea of a food plot, I saw this in the paper today... Looks bad for anyone who has food plots, but not sure how they would enforce this.

Now on second reading it looks like it is a state bill and not a national...

Washington bill would outlaw feeding wildlife

Thursday, February 5 | 8:15 a.m.

The Washington House is considering a bill that would prohibit private citizens from feeding many wild animals - elk, deer, bears, raccoons, opossums, cougars, wolves, coyotes, wild turkeys and skunks.

Rep. Brian Blake of Aberdeen told The Olympian the goal is to prevent animals from becoming troublesome because they depend on people. He knows of one person who feeds 100 pounds of dog food a week to a large black bear.

An owner of the Eco Park Resort near Mount St. Helens, Mark Smith, feeds hay each day to as many as 100 elk. If the bill passes as written some of those elk would starve.

The state Fish and Wildlife Department feeds elk at nine stations that were created to help animals that lost their range to farms and ranches.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

This has nothing to do with food plots. It is actually people feeding wildlife with feeders and such that pull animals into one tight area to feed and potentially spread disease. Food plots are not affected because they are large areas.

 

[charlz]

I guess that depends on the language of the bill.

I ride dirtbikes and some of the WA bills that get proposed around the aspects of trying to outlaw OHV's in WA are mindboggling with their ignorance and over reaching. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if some of the language in a WA bill concerning 'feeding wildlife' could be applied to farms. After all what separates a feeder/foodplot/farm but relative size? Animals are still chowing down.

woodlandfarms do you have a link to the text of the bill?

 

[257NH]

Right on Robert,otherwise they'll have to outlaw farms because of all the animals that browse on the crops.

 

[Flatheadyoungin]

i don't care if people feed animals.....in the right conditions....

right now, i live on the out-skirts of town......some new neighbors from the city (they think this is the boonies) moved in next door and began feeding the deer; corn, salt lick, etc.....they have a large spot light to see them. out of their bedroom window, i see camera flashes........

now, i love to watch them too and my kids love to watch them......however, i'm tired of picking dead deer out of my front yard......we live on a very busy two lan road.......the road isn't but 30ft away from our house.....

 

[Conservation]

Sometimes very well intentioned people do things that are harmful to animals. Society takes away food and habitat opportunities from wildlife, so folks try to help by feeding the wildlife. The problem is that these animals are not healthy in groups. Chronic wasting desease is a big problem for deer in Illinois. It is spread by saliva, and when deer eat in groups, spreading the desease in inevitable. People very close to me feed corn to deer, and they have a dozen deer sleeping in thier yard pretty regularly in the winter. There is no talking them out of it, and if they stopped now, those deer would be in a desparate way for the rest of winter.
Food plots are generally less harmful because they spread out the animals a bit. Also, birds of various types are often the target feeders for food plots, and other animals aren't as interested in those foods.
It's a real shame that many conservation and set aside programs have been cut in many states. Combine that with recent upswings in the price of grains, and habitats are disapearing quickly.

 

[F.L. Jennings]

A fed bear is a dead bear is a common saying among fish and game agencies. Too many people that have appointed themselves to be wildlife experts are squeeling about issues that they know next to nothing about. The "Bambi-ization" of deer by the Disney corporation has perverted wildlife management for generations.

We live in a rural area and have all kinds of wildlife issues. I plant food plots and manage the number of deer coming to them by killing them for food. I enjoy trapping, hunting fishing, sawmilling, identifying trees and everything that has to to with wildlife and the outdoors - have since I was a kid. It's a total experience and a full time one. We live hand in hand with nature and have to deal with predators, deer eating the garden and all of that. Too many of those that are yelling the loudest are least connected to the land. If you have a real connection with God's creation you know that everything has its purpose. You don't even have to be an educated naturalist or wildlife manager to make the connection.

Conservation (the wise use of resources) is often confused with preservation. Wildlife however can't be preserved, but it can be used wisely for those who like to watch, study and photograph and also for those who like to hunt and use what they kill. Most often - I like to believe - they are the same people. Wildlife is a perishable commodity and can't be placed in a museum, zoo or fenced sanctuary to live an eternal life. My family were all pioneer stock and have always depended on God's creation for at least part of our sustenance. As a boy I sat on my grandfather's porch and watched him as he made and repaired his hoop nets. He was a commercial fisherman, farmer , hunter and trapper.

In the years since I sweated to create my food plots out of woods and vine choked thickets, I have seen an increase in the numbers and variety of creatures using our land. Keeping their numbers in check is part of the process.

The Sierra Club and other preservationist groups have done much to harm intelligent management practices in this country. Outraged hollywood types and wild eyed tree huggers pressured the USFS so that no burning of undergrowth took place in national forests for years. The catastrophic result came when natural and arson set fires raged through the fuel rich forests burning valuable timber, homes and parks, - also taking human lives.

Thank God for the independent land owners that can manage their property in a common sense way. Attracting hordes of any creatures by enmasse feeding is just a prelude to disastrous die offs, disease and scary rabies outbreaks. Moderation is always good but is rarely practiced. Any practice that drastically tilts the natural balance of things will reveal very negative effects, either in the short or long term, for both man and animals.

Food plots are OK, dumping out large piles of certain foods that will lead to total dependence by some animals is not. Common sense is the key. I"f you don't use your head you might as well have two butts" a friend of mine always liked to quip. I'm still trying not to have two myself.

I made this field from a tangle of river bottom trees and vines and five deer were taken from it this past November. Many more still come to feed, along with turkeys and other fowl.

 

[mjarrels]

I lived in Wa state for ten years... Whidbey Island, used to be a saying... "If a dump truck turned around on your property" You had wet lands due to the tire marks! Property taxes horrible... no hot school lunches in Coupeville schools... Son rode a bike quarter of a mile to catch the bus... Finally house number five was built on our dead end road and we could get mail delivered within a quarter mile to the house!

mark

 

[BigD23]

My neighbor (thinking they're doing the right thing) leave a big bowl of cat food out day after day after day...So far in the past 4 months I've live trapped 9 skunks (never the same one twice)....Never had a critter problem before they started the free meals.

Don

 

[AD18]

My neighbor (thinking they're doing the right thing) leave a big bowl of cat food out day after day after day...
Don

My old neighbor was doing the same thing. She liked to watch the coons as she ate her breakfast. I had to tie the lids of my garbage cans down.

The other neighbor to the south had a strange affection for what she referred to as " our woodland friends". She called and left a hysterical message about my cats eating her friends. I went over to make peace only to discover she was talking about field mice and wood rats. She had been feeding the on her porch. I moved.

 

[Conservation]

You guys have some hum dingers for neighbors. Or had.

 

[Flatheadyoungin]

case-in-point....

laying in bed last night about 10, watching TV.....BAM! i looked out the window to the neighbor's house that feed the deer......young boy in an older car backed up in to their driveway......got out and examined his vehicle that is now missing a headlight, and steam is coming from the radiator......you can tell he is thinking, "how am i going to afford to fix this......" his passenger walks over and shines a light on the deer laying against the mailbox......they all jump back because it's still alive.....no one bothered to put it out of it's misery.......i didn't volunteer because we've had our differences and felt best if i stayed out because i'd probably have said something.....

from the young driver's perspective, he was just driving along and one of those "rascal" deer jumped out in front of him......i'm sure he didn't notice the salt block, huge pile of corn or the nice spot light in the back yard.....

 

[czechsonofagun]

FLJ, great comment, could not agree more.

 

[ampsucker]

totally agree with last two posts.

at one point i was contracted to maintain a 10 acre complex of senior living. they had a good variety of landscaping plants and young trees planted. couldn't figure out why the plants kept getting eaten and the residents couldn't grow tomatoes in pots, etc.

of course, there was a nice pond on the property and one resident insisted in putting out a salt block to attract the deer. i think the deer were plenty attracted by the safe, well mowed, predator free food and water source already! the salt block was just icing on the cake. i counted about 15 - 20 deer in the herd pretty regularly when i was night mowing.

and yes, the property bordered a busy road with a 45 mph speed limit.

tons of other stories just like this. and yes, every other farm in the state (kansas) grows corn in unfenced fields, winter wheat, etc. the deer can have all they want and still insist in coming into my yard and eating the hedge right in front of my house. it just happens to be convenient for them in the grazing corridor they used for generations along the creek long before our subdivision came into existence.

i would be for some type of well thought out and well researched legislation that would keep people from doing stupid things with wildlife and also allow the wildlife to access the resources they need for survival. i don't think food plots on large acreages should be affected, just problem areas where large predators come into play or roads or agricultural areas are affected by the generosity of nature lovers.

 

[F.L. Jennings]

Deer population has increased significantly in our area over the last few years, but not due to feeding. Land management is the reason. Primarily "even aged management" - clear cutting that is. After large areas of land are clear cut - and perhaps planted back with pine, deer thrive and increase for several years as the undergrowth/brush phase of the growth in in control. As these areas of replanted pine forest (replaced the mixed hardwoods/pines) mature, the populations fall off, since there is less and less for them to eat as the pines grow larger, shading out the understory growth they depend on for food. I've been associated with and made my living from the forest industry for many years, but have never liked the practice of clearcutting. I've seen the clear/gravel bottomed mountain stream I live on turn to a muddy mess too many times from an upstream monsoon that fell on clearcut land. I'm 100% for logging, loggers, sawmillers, firewood cutters, but clearcutting in our part of the state is replacing much older growth mixed hardwoods with nothing but pine. I often wonder when and what will eventually run rampant through the pine plantations. A mono-crop anywhere year after year is asking for trouble. Sooner or later something is going to hit those millions of acres of pine trees - and those hardwoods will never be replaced.

In earlier years I hunted deer on the White River National Wildlife Refuge in the south eastern part of Arkansas. I saw trees there that I will never get to see again. White Oaks that were 60" dbh and better, with not a limb below forty feet up. I saw truckloads - yes whole truck loads - of 24" dbh Persimmon logs! When is the last time you saw a 2 ft. diameter Persimmon tree? Me too.

This boom time for populations is still reigning here and we often have to dodge deer. I've killed one with my pick up truck (damaged my left headlight and bent the bumper) and my son hit one that nuked the left front (fiberglas construction) of his car. I don't know how many close calls we've had. After an accident on our place that put a nice gash in my forehead, my wife was taking me to the emergency room for a few stitches. Our driveway is 1/4 mile long, and as we were going out the drive that night 5 deer ran directly in front of the car causing her to have to lock up the brakes. I very nearly lengthened the gash on the windshield.

recent top ten states for car/deer collisions

1) Pennsylvania
2) Michigan
3) Illinois
4) Ohio
5) Georgia
6) Minnesota
7) Virginia
8) Indiana
9) Texas
10) Wisconsin


This car vs. deer crash happened recently on I-55 in Mississippi;

What we really need around here is a good coyote thinning! During the day when I'm working our neighbor tells us that one bold fellow routinely trots right up the middle of our drive way - probably going to inspect my chickens.
I don't feed em' but they're coming anyhow! I've shot two and also a black wolf and several feral - totally wild - dogs.

Frank...

 

[Ridgewalker]

Great posts Frank!

I am with you on the predators, I recently walked my land after a snowfall and was amazed at the tracks I saw. Tons of deer and turkey but also lots of rabbits off in my woods.

I also saw several set of coyote tracks so I ordered a predator call from Bass Pro and plan to do my best to thin that herd.

I have two food plots and a feeder on my 50 acres. In the two years I have owned the land we have taken 4 deer. I do my best to thin that herd as well.

 

[mattman]

The deer population here in south arkansas was not long ago nearly nothing. My dad can rember when it was something to see a deer. Now days they are everywhere. You are doing good if you don't see one. I don't have a problem with feeding wildlife, but be responsible. You rember the movie Lake Placid where the old lady was feeding the huge alligator, that is not the kind of feeding I had in mind. There is a place for feeding, as well as the type of wildlife to feed. Predators should not be feed. They will lose their fear of humans. People need to use common sense.