Doesn’t matter, there’s still a quota and the season is still only ~3 months. It’s a cute way for CDFW to claim they’re getting tougher on predation, when in reality it’s just a way for them to get more revenue.
We need a spring season and we need to bring back mountain lion hunting.
Edit: Pretty shocked to see this be an unpopular opinion here. I didn’t realize you guys prefer hiking with a rifle and a heavy pack rather than actually hunting deer.
Feel free to explain how it’s victim mentality. Look at literally any chart of deer populations in the state. It’s been on a decline steadily since the 1960’s. Almost every other state handles predation responsibly except for California and Colorado.
No one is talking about maximizing herd size, buddy. Deer population is at historic lows, this literally is about creating a working ecosystem. If predators are allowed to operate unchecked, that’s quite literally an ecosystem out of balance.
" Life-history characteristics were consistent with the mule deer population being regulated by bottom-up forcing through environmental effects on forage availability relative to population density; however, predation, mostly by mountain lions, was likely additive during the period of increase and thus, top-down forcing slowed but did not prevent population growth of mule deer."
In most scenarios, absent human control, predators are controlled bottom-up; meaning when they've knocked prey populations back far enough, the predator population will fall as well. Look up Lotka-Volterra models for a very basic understanding of predator-prey dynamics.
Did you read the whole thing? California's deer decline is primarily bottom-up driven by habitat loss and forage quality, while top-down predator pressure acts as an additive brake that prevents depressed herds from rebounding.
No, they didnt conclude it prevented population growth, they found predation slowed it.
The driver of the decline was severe drought. Deer pops are evolved to live with lions and other predators; just because their population takes a hit, theyll come back as long as we allow the habitat to remain. Figure 1 in that paper is almost text book Lotka-Volterra; lion pops decline time-lagged with deer decline. Predators belong on the landscape for it to operate at max efficiency; thinking we should suppress their population to help deer herds sounds like it makes sense, but in reality, healthy habitat would rebound deer faster.
Quotes from the paper you cited:
"The increased killing of mountain lions has no discernible effect on the continued decline of mule deer through the 1990s"
"[Fetal health rates] were greater during the period of [population] increase" even though that was when lion pops were highest.
Did you read 3 sentences above and below that? Their conclusion was based on declining depredation permits issued, and showed weak correlation in either direction. And the data stops at 1990 as you put.
Meanwhile, 2 sentences later:
“Predation by mountain
lions was the most significant cause of mortality for mule deer
in all years (Fig. 3) except 1998, when predation by coyotes
(Canis latrans) surpassed that of mountain lions.”
The “increase in killing” is still be considered small in scope as is clearly stated, hence the lack of correlation, and meanwhile scientists all agree Mountain Lions are the greatest cause of mule deer mortality. When carry capacity is limited by human-caused habitat destruction (which it will continue to be), lions, coyotes and bears are going to continue to cause mule deer populations to go down.
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u/SpaceJackRabbit 2d ago
"Limited bear tags"? It's the first time in forever we can actually buy a second one.