DSORe eNews S707

VOL: FEBRUARY 18, 2012 ISSUE: SHOW #707

thisweek

• Has technology made fishing too easy?
• The good, bad and ugly of trail cameras

• USA Ice Team returns from Kazakhstan

eMail: outdoorsradio@gmx.com

RESULTS FOR POLL S706
Do you favor the adoption of statewide fishing regulations for bass, muskies and northerns?
YES 37.5% | NO 62.5% | MAYBE 0% | UNDECIDED 0% | COMMENTS [3]

INSTANT SURVEY VOTE ON - POLL S707
Do you approve of Assembly Bill 384, which would allow crossbow use by hunters over 65 and those with disability permits during most firearms seasons for big game and small game?

Assembly committee takes no action on ‘X-bow’ bill

Wisconsin Outdoor News Contributor Tim Eisele writes:

“Madison - The Assembly Committee on Natural Resources heard testimony Jan. 18 on a bill that would allow crossbow use during most firearms seasons for big game and small game, but the committee didn't vote on the bill that day.

AB 384 would not allow use of crossbows during the archery deer season beyond the exemptions that already exist - for those 65 and older, and for handicapped hunters.

It would allow crossbow use in gun seasons for deer, bear, elk, turkeys, and small game.

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JAMES LINDNER Co-host of Angling Edge talks about how technical innovations have changed fishing in recent years and shares highlights from his seminar at the Madison Fishing Expo, Feb. 24-26 at the Alliant Energy Center
BOB MERCIER Author of Dominance is Everything to a Monster Whitetail Buck shares some tips from his book and his seminar at the SCI Wisconsin Chapter Big Game Hunters Expo and Banquet, Mar. 9-10 at the Wyndham Milwaukee Airport Hotel
LES DAVENPORT Columnist for Deer & Deer Hunting Magazine reveals mistakes many hunters make when using trail cameras, the topic of his seminar at the Field & Stream Deer & Turkey Expo, Mar. 30-Apr. 1 at the Alliant Energy Center
GENE DELLINGER \| Proprietor of D&S Bait in Madison, Wisconsin reports good ice fishing activity in the Madison area

THE EVENTS CALENDAR HAS BEEN MOVED DANSMALLOUTDOORS.COM/EVENTS

•FISHING CONTESTS: Find them ALL online @ American Fishing Contests
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Wisconsin leads nation in trophy whitetail bucks

MADISON -- The number of trophy bucks taken in Wisconsin has risen by 857 percent in 30 years, with a record-breaking 383 entries during the five years ending in 2010, according to historical records kept by the venerable Boone and Crockett Club.

Marlin Buck
Wisconsin Buck & Bear Club measurer Marlin Laidlaw of Marshfield with a large buck he shot a few years ago. While impressive, it falls short of record book standards. Contributed photo

That makes Wisconsin the number one state or Canadian province in North America for trophy whitetail production, muscling up from its earlier position of third.

The records show the number of trophy white-tailed deer in North America shot up by 400 percent during the past 30 years. During the period from 1980 to 1985, North American hunters entered 617 trophy whitetails, every one of those antlers scored by a certified Boone and Crocket “measurer,” a designation that can take years to earn.

For the period 2005-2010, that number jumped to 3,090 trophy deer, dramatic evidence that North America’s whitetail deer herd has grown by leaps and bounds.

One long-time, certified measurer is Marlin Laidlaw of the Wisconsin Buck & Bear Club, also a member of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress big game committee. Laidlaw says Wisconsin’s number one ranking is about a lot more than numbers.

Laidlaw said while there is good deer range throughout the state, there are more unofficial refuges now – private lands where deer are not hunted or are hunted lightly – where bucks have a chance to grow older.

“Plus, you have people who just don’t care to shoot small bucks anymore,” Laidlaw said.