Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/742011
S P O R T I N G C L A S S I C S • 115 behind the decline of mule deer, though predation, highway mortality, wildfires, and the spread of invasive weeds have also had a detrimental impact on deer numbers. With that in mind, in 2016 MDF, in cooperation with state and federal agencies, will complete more than $30 million of habitat restoration projects in mule deer habitat throughout the West. Last July the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Mule Deer Working group released their status report on mulies and black-tailed deer. In most states, mule deer numbers bottomed out in 2010, but favorable weather the last four years, in conjunction with increased emphasis on deer management by state wildlife agencies, has led to increased numbers of mulies. To help restore both species, join MDF as a member or volunteer. Find out how you can help at www.muledeer.org. – Miles Moretti, president and CEO T he decline of mule deer and black- tailed deer in North America is real. Anyone who has been deer hunting the last 20 or 30 years has experienced the decline in the number of deer to hunt, places to hunt, and the opportunity to draw a tag. No one factor contributed to this , and no single factor will bring the deer back. While we will probably never see the numbers of mule deer and black-tailed deer we experienced in the 1950s, '60s, and early '70s, I believe there is a brighter future ahead for "The Icon of the West." That future depends on us. Sportsmen have always stepped up to help wildlife. The North American Model of Wildlife Conservation is a good example of how a few individuals can make a huge change in how we view wildlife. We must quit focusing on how we hunt mule deer or how many we can kill. Simply increasing the number of mule deer will provide mULe Deer FoUnDaTIon increased opportunity for all of us. More mule deer means more opportunity. You can't have big bucks unless you have old bucks. We need a healthy deer herd consisting of good numbers of bucks to ensure breeding occurs over a shorter time period, and healthy adult does producing healthy fawns. Closing hunting seasons or reducing permits does little to improve the herd. We must focus on those things that we can influence or change, and not worry about those that we cannot control. This is where an organization like the Mule Deer Foundation, which was founded in 1988 in Redding, California, can help. The mission of MDF is to ensure the conservation of mule deer, black-tailed deer, and their habitat. MDF has accepted the challenge to bring back mule deer populations by restoring or enhancing more than three million acres of habitat. Loss of habitat is the foremost reason photograph by vic schendel