Helicopter hunting hogs down side

[J E Custom]

I have always been an advocate of hog control and management. So this came as a shock when it happened to me and some of my friends on adjacent hunting Leases.

I will start at the beginning so the impact will better be seen. We have been actively managing all the game in our area to improve the size and quality of all. We have also been actively culling and controlling the hogs numbers and quality. We have been using game cameras on all food plots and feeders.

In order to keep an accurate count we set all feedings at the same time and monitor the game at the same time on the cameras so we don't catch the same animals at more than one site. This has been a very accurate way of tracking how many of each we have.

All spring and summer we have been getting very good numbers of Deer, and Turkeys with some very nice Bucks. Hogs have been held to a very manageable level of two to three small (10 or less) sounders and an average kill rate of 20 to 25 each year.

All of this changed once the local farmers allowed the helicopter hunting to take place in our area in an attempt to better control the hogs.

Within 24 hours of this hunting, our game counts went drastically down hill. We thought it was just a temporary effect. Once again, we were wrong. We have been doing the same monitoring since, and after 2 months, the game count on deer has been down by 3 to 400 % and the large bucks have all disappeared. Turkeys have been nonexistent, and the hogs have only been reduced by 15 to 20 %. After the heli hunting we only found the remains of 4 hogs in 300 acres, so it appears all that the heli hunting did was to push the target game out of the hunting area and not effect the hog population very much if any.

This post was not to target any type of hunting and just to show the effects of hunting certain species on other game. The TPW has been given this information for evaluation and for now is recommending consideration for this type of hunting for your area. They also recommended not heli hunting and areas to be hunted for other game until AFTER the regular hunting season has expired.

Long term effects to an area has not been determined yet. In wide open areas of farm land it looks to be very effective on hogs, but in our type of hunting it has been devastating for the short term and as stated, the long term effects are not known at this time.

This is not an opinion piece, this is just the facts as we know them based on all the resources we have used to track all game in our area. Other hunting leases have seen the same effects that we have

J E CUSTOM

 

[Bob Wright]

I have always been an advocate of hog control and management. So this came as a shock when it happened to me and some of my friends on adjacent hunting Leases.

I will start at the beginning so the impact will better be seen. We have been actively been managing all the game in our area to improve the size and quality of all. We have also been actively culling and controlling the hogs numbers and quality. We have been using game cameras on all food plots and feeders.

In order to keep an accurate count we set all feedings at the same time and monitor the game at the same time on the cameras so we don't catch the same animals at more than one site. This has been a very accurate way of tracking how many of each we have.

All spring and summer we have been getting very good numbers of Deer, and Turkeys with some very nice Bucks. Hogs have been held to a very manageable level of two to three small (10 or less) sounders and an average kill rate of 20 to 25 each year.

All of this changed once the local farmers allowed the helicopter hunting to take place in our area in an attempt to better control the hogs.

Within 24 hours of this hunting, our game counts went drastically down hill. We thought it was just a temporary effect. Once again, we were wrong. We have been doing the same monitoring since and after 2 months, the game count on deer has been down by 3 to 400 % on deer and the large bucks have all disappeared. Turkeys have been nonexistent, and the hogs have only been reduced by 15 to 20 %. After the heli hunting we only found the remains of 4 hogs in 300 acres, so it appears all that the heli hunting did was to push the target game out of the hunting area and not effect the hog population very much if any.

This post was not to target any type of hunting and just to show the effects of hunting certain species on other game. The TPW has been given this information for evaluation and for now is recommending consideration for this type of hunting for your area. They also recommended not heli hunting and areas to be hunted for other game until AFTER the regular hunting season has expired.

Long term effects to an area has not been determined yet. In wide open areas of farm land it looks to be very effective on hogs, but in out type of hunting it has been devastating for the short turm and as stated, the long term effects are not known at this time.

This is not an opinion piece, this is just the facts as we know them based on all the resources we have used to track all game in our area. Other hunting leases have seen the same effects that we have

J E CUSTOM

You have the data to back it up. I'm sorry this has affected your hunting land. Hoping those that have hunting leases/ranches will monitor in the same manner and report.

 

[KyCarl]

Do you have any data showing the impact of hogs if left unchecked? I know it's a sticky subject but I have to go with land owner rights to do as he wishes on his land.

 

[CVCOBRA1]

You mentioned 300 acres, is that the total acreage you are monitoring? If that is the case it would only take minutes for a chopper to buzz that. Your turkey and deer could have simply moved to heavier cover close by that you don't monitor. If the heli hunters are paying to hunt that property you might check in to matching their price to keep them from buzzing your hunting ground. Have you talked to the property owner and explained the situation?

 

[J E Custom]

You have the data to back it up. I'm sorry this has affected your hunting land. Hoping those that have hunting leases/ranches will monitor in the same manner and report.

Thanks .

I was surprised at the end results Myself. Up until this happened I was a big advocate of this type of hunting because of the results, but had never thought about the side effects on hunting property.

I am still hopeful that it will resolve it's self before the end of hunting season and the game will return. Don't have any ideas what will become of the Turkeys in the spring
season.

Just thought I would share the effects on our hunting and at least give others a chance to decide for themselves.

J E CUSTOM

 

[J E Custom]

Do you have any data showing the impact of hogs if left unchecked? I know it's a sticky subject but I have to go with land owner rights to do as he wishes on his land.

Yes.
If not managed, They can take over and do great damage.

I totally agree with on the land owners rights, But in Texas most lease all hunting rights and the land owner is not aloud to hunt anything unless it is in his hunting lease.

In there defense, they though it would help all of us and did not have any proof that there would be any side effects. (None of us did). But now that we do, the lease agreement will have to control the amount and type of hunting.

Again just a heads up.

J E CUSTOM

 

[J E Custom]

You mentioned 300 acres, is that the total acreage you are monitoring? If that is the case it would only take minutes for a chopper to buzz that. Your turkey and deer could have simply moved to heavier cover close by that you don't monitor. If the heli hunters are paying to hunt that property you might check in to matching their price to keep them from buzzing your hunting ground. Have you talked to the property owner and explained the situation?

The patch of land that we monitor is just one of many thousands of acres that have been monitored and affected the same. and the heli hunting has covered many thousands of acres and many miles of coverage. To get an accurate game count the areas have to be separated by some acres and tightly controlled to get accurate results and a general consensus by the Parks and wildlife (TPW)

Heli hunting has to be approved by every land owner or they can be sited for trespass hunting By TPW. Each helicopter has to have an active GPS and has to warn/prevent them of interring areas that they have no approval to hunt from the land owner. He is loud to fly over, but not to hunt without permission.

J E CUSTOM

 

[KyCarl]

Those pigs are so nasty I shot a couple in Fl. and Tx. ones are probably much the same. Ugly and stink!
If they were on my land I would use any and all means to get rid of them!
Traps..Dogs..Poison.. I would declare Pig Jihad! Me or Them!
Pigs are smart.If you hound them hard enough they will leave.
Just like Brian Q. (Pigman) says" This isn't hunting! ..This is Invasive Species Control"!
Not the same at all!

 

[26Reload]

JE...not to be a smartalick or a b's"r....
But how does this differ from the over burder we up here in the north now have to contend with...as in wolves....game (numbers) has changed locations...i know a rancher whose crops are now being inundated by elk because wolves have moved into and denned up in what was marginal areas for elk habitat....deer and moose numbers are going to take a drastic dive very soon....and add in the winter kill of the past few years....game management is the only answer....
Hogs have raged havoc on ranches...
Elk have taken to cultivated areas....
It's all going down the drain....
Your deer and turkeys should come back out of hiding....
Lots of these critters have moved on to other mountain ranges....
Management is the only true way to get things back to a norm of what has been in past several years.....
Pigs were introduced to the American continent by the Spanish....
As were "most" of the horses...indians didn't have horses until they caught up the fallen Spaniards ride or collected the wild herds later on...
Change.......its inevitable......

 

[cohunt]

I have a buddy that has property just outside of Abilene-- he used to have tons of white tail and turkey-- he has feeders for the white tail set up-- the hogs have come in and torn up his property and driven out both the turkey and white tail, there are no helicopters over any of his property or any where near it --he does not put out "hog bait" but still uses the corn feeders for the deer-- he even put up "hog wire" (barbed wire low on the bottom of the fence to keep the hogs from going under the wire) to try to keep the hogs off his property but they just push through and break the hog wire too

he tells me that the only time he sees turkey or deer now is when the hog population goes over to the neighboring property as his neighbor does put out hog bait --in his situation the hogs are pushing the turkey and deer when in the area

Texas has had the "pork chopper law" for 8 or so years now, you'd think they would have an idea of the affects by now--its big business, those helicopter hunting companies charge $2000/hour to do those hunts -- there is $800 million worth of crop damage done in Texas by hogs, but at $2000/hour that would be off set by 400000 hours of hog hunting tours--there are over 100 companies now doing helicopter hunts which would mean that each of those companies would need to fly for 4000/year and they would bring in the same $800 million that was lost to crops--its a huge loss to the farmers, BUT Texas gains more revenue from the hunting fees than are lost in crops

I'm not saying its good or bad, just showing both sides of the coin -- I doubt that the deer and turkey are gone completely, they have just moved to different areas

by the way, how is that hot air balloon hog hunting going?-- they just passed that law this past year IIRC

I also know that most of those helo hunting companies have written contracts with the property owners that they have to try to collect the deceased hog carcasses when possible and often have "runner trucks" that police the hunted areas and pick up of and dispose the dead hogs, which is why you may not be seeing the carcasses

you do not own the air space over your property, it is "a public travel way" and you don't own the animals on your property either (unless of course you stock them and fence them--then they would be "livestock or exotic animals) --so legally a helicopter can fly over your property and they can push "publicly owned game animals" around due to their being in the area-- but they can not "endanger you or your property dwellings"

the best thing to do would be to speak with the adjoining property owners and see if they would try to keep the helicopters from flying over your property --thought they don't have to abide it would be "neighborly"

 

[26Reload]

In oregon one flying in any contraption could not harass animals on any adjoining properties....
A big time guide from "four corners" learned that the monetary way....
Trying to push elk from neighboring properties to his to hunt....then kill them all winter long and throw the carcus in the dug ditches....
Probably still doing that......i think he needs fo be put in one of his ditches........and anyone that has worked for him doing that little project......

 

[cohunt]

In oregon one flying in any contraption could not harass animals on any adjoining properties....
A big time guide from "four corners" learned that the monetary way....
Trying to push elk from neighboring properties to his to hunt....then kill them all winter long and throw the carcus in the dug ditches....
Probably still doing that......i think he needs fo be put in one of his ditches........and anyone that has worked for him doing that little project......

but how do you prove that is is "actively pushing game animals" or just flying over ? I dont think the OP ever said the choppers are intentionally pushing game animals, he just stated that because they are in the area they are causing the game animals to migrate--there is a big difference

 

[KyCarl]

The BIG difference I saw was Elk not Hogs To me that's a whole different story!
I bet it is to Game and Fish too!

 

[CVCOBRA1]

He did say they are finding dead hogs so they are obviously shooting out of the choppers.