A Fall Tradition

Joogetcherdeeryet? A question heard around the state this time of year which translates to "Have you harvested your one allotted white-tailed deer at this point in the season?". Mainers have a way of simplifying long sentences into a single jumbled word that takes on its own meaning when muttered in the right circles. As a lifelong outdoorsman, November is a special time of year for me with the opening of regular firearms season for deer. Here at T.A. we have a solid cohort of kids who take part in this fall tradition but the number of young hunters I see in my classes seems to get smaller and smaller each year. This is a troubling trend as the future of our wildlife management system in the U.S., arguably the most successful in the world, relies almost solely on revenues generated by hunters and anglers. Without young people getting into hunting and fishing, the future of these activities and the bountiful wildlife we have come to expect across the continent could be in jeopardy.

Cody with a nice buck he caught up with after football practice. 

On a more positive note, there are still kids getting out into the woods in search of their first deer, a milestone in a hunter's life that they will never forget. Deer hunting in Maine is no easy task, ask anyone who has sat still in the November woods, freezing for hours at a time, just hoping to catch a glimpse of a deer. The overall success rate for deer hunters in Maine comes in around 15%. Our annual harvest has hovered between 18-27,000 deer in the last decade which at first glance feels like a huge number of deer. However, when compared to states like Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania which regularly top 300,000 deer harvested per year, one can begin to appreciate the challenge involved with "tagging out" in Maine.

Tony with his first deer, achieving his goal while on crutches with a broken leg made his accomplishment even more memorable. 

In my Maine Fish and Wildlife class, we use real harvest data to analyze what regions of the state have the best deer habitat and the methods used by biologist to manage our population. White-tailed deer are the most popular game animal in North America and for good reason. They are delicious table fare and provide a season's worth of food after being processed. On years that I am lucky enough to harvest a deer, we have a sampling in class. It is great to see kids who would otherwise never have the chance to try venison not only try it out but love it. Creating the connection between an actual animal and meat on a plate is eerily foreign to many young people.

Stephen got a nice doe in early November

One of the coolest parts of my job is being the go-to person for each kid to share their success with. Having someone at school who gets genuinely pumped up about their accomplishment is important and I feel lucky to be that person. I love hearing stories of success and failure from kids as they come in after each weekend during the season. Those highs and lows are what make hunting so exciting. You learn something new every time you step into the woods. Humans are natural story tellers and hunting stories have been part of who we are for thousands of years. A kid re-living his weekend deer hunt with his teacher is not that far removed from the tales told around camp fires by the first hunters in North America 10,000 years ago. Let's hope our fall tradition continues for a few more millennia.

Cole tagged out with a beautiful 8pt buck before school one morning.

Fall Trout Action

The Thornton Academy Anglers' Society got out for its last open water outing of 2018 last weekend. We utilized the recently updated state stocking report to select a local pond that had been stocked with a pile of trout about a week prior to our arrival. The Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and wildlife fish culturists are busy this time of year releasing fish all over the state in preparation for the upcoming ice fishing season. Several years back, in an effort to increase angler opportunity, the state began leaving many of these waters open to fishing throughout the late fall. Anglers are only allowed to use artificial lures and all trout and salmon must be released.

Marcus with a nice male brook trout

We hit the water early and got a bit of a slow start. It was windy out there and we were continually blown to the other end of the pond. Finally, I heard a hoot from across the way and saw Nolan land a nice trout. I breathed a sigh of relief as at least one person had caught a fish and we wouldn't be skunked. A few minutes later in the same cove, I noticed Marcus and Cody each had a trout on. By the time I got to them there were two big brookies in the net. At that point we had them dialed in and nearly every kid had caught a trout or two by the end of the morning.

Cody with a healthy female brook trout

Catching all of those trout with the club was so awesome but being able to share that experience with my students in Maine Fish & Wildlife class and relate it to the concepts we are currently learning is just perfect. During our latest unit, kids have been learning about sexual dimorphism and primary/secondary sexual characteristics. Male brook trout develop a vibrant color pattern, thick body, and hooked lower jaw (called a kype) during the fall spawning season. Females, while colorful, don't take it nearly to the same extremes. This is a classic example of sexual dimorphism through a secondary sexual characteristic. Being able to share our experience with my classes on Monday helped to drive home these concepts. I get real pumped up about making those connections and I hope the kids feel the same way.

A male brook trout in fall spawning colors, an example of a secondary sexual characteristic.