Maine’s 2005 deer hunting season is over.

What kind of a season was it?

Although the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIF&W) traditionally doesn’t release any official deer harvest figures until late winter or early spring, there is plenty of anecdotal evidence. Hunters love to talk about the hunt, swap stories and compare notes. The coffee shop talk, as well as some early trends from around the state, suggest that the deer kill for November was down — at least below preseason harvest predictions.

Before the first shot was fired in the Maine woods, MDIF&W spokesmen were forecasting a deer kill of about 32,000, which was a few thousand above last year’s total whitetail harvest.

My guess is that when all the tagging station data has been tabulated, the total deer harvest will not eclipse last year’s total of about 30,000.

What explains the harvest shortfall? Theories abound: 1) warm weather 2) Too many acorns 3) Not enough acorns 4) Low hunter effort.

During November, I spent many hours deer hunting three different areas of the state: Franklin County, Piscataquis County and Penobscot County. From what I saw theory No. 4 (low hunter effort) is the central reason for the lower deer harvest. Except for the usual parade of heater hunters driving the roads in their trucks, I just didn’t see many hunters taking to the woods. In fact, I don’t recall ever running into another hunter in the woods of any of the three counties, unless is was a hunter from my own party.

This decrease in actual hunter effort is not a one-time phenomenon. I’m convinced that it is a growing trend that warrants close scrutiny by Augusta’s fish and wildlife policymakers. There is a growing gap between licensed hunters and hunters who actually get out and hunt more than once or twice. In time, this will translate into reduction in license sales and unregulated deer populations in some already deer-dense areas of the state. That’s the downside. There is an upside for those of us who still like to get in the woods and work for a deer. Fewer hunters mean more deer and deer hunting territory to go around, and the option of expanded hunt opportunities for the diehard deer hunters.

Skeptics are saying that this fall’s lower than expected deer harvest can be attributed to fewer deer than statewide deer population estimates. This theory doesn’t square with what I saw this fall. In fact, before I finally killed a four-point buck, six different deer were in my scope. It went like this:

Day 2: Penobscot County

Two does crossed an opening at 7:30 a.m. in front of me at about 100 yards. One stopped for a fleeting moment, but not long enough to fill my doe tag for WMD 26.

Day 4: Franklin County

At 7 a.m., a doe and a yearling jumped across a logging road in front of me, and bounded up a big hill along the edge of a fresh cut. I sat down. After a few minutes, the two deer showed themselves at the brow of the hill. For the next 10 minutes or so, they alternately browsed among the beech tops while looking up at me, blowing for scent, and returning to feeding. Watching them through my rifle scope at about 80 yards, it was as though they knew I had no doe permit for their neck of the woods.

Day 6: Piscataquis County

A tracking snow. By 10:30 a.m, I was on the track and moving a buck and a doe in front of me. At 11:30, a good sized deer was walking fast off to my right at about 50 yards. Buck or doe? No shot taken. I’ll never know.

Day 7: Piscataquis County

Working my way along a cutting road that followed a stream bed, I was impressed with the sign. Not so impressive was the amount of water in the woods. High rubber boots were a must, but a quiet slog as long as you steered clear of the shell ice. Finding an intriguing funnel-like area near the road, I stepped off the road to find a dry spot to sit for a spell. Snort! Crash! Crash! A large deer exploded from the beech whippets. Buck or doe? Although I found out too late, the size of this critter’s track indicated that it was clearly a heavy buck.

All in all, I would say that our moderate winters have helped Maine’s deer numbers, especially in some areas of Piscataquis County that have seen some pretty lean deer numbers in past years. With winter settling in, our worthy prey will soon face their ultimate survival test. The ever-increasing loss of decent deer wintering areas means that the winter severity index dictates more than ever what next fall’s deer hunt prospects will be.

V. Paul Reynolds is editor of the Northwoods Sporting Journal. He is also a Maine Guide, co-host of a weekly radio program “Maine Outdoors” heard Sundays at 7 p.m. on The Voice of Maine News-Talk Network (WVOM-FM 103.9, WCME-FM 96.7) and former information officer for the Maine Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. His e-mail address is [email protected].