East Aurora Advertiser

Column: New Deer Association to focus Hunter and Conservation Mission



There is one thing that has always bothered me about conservation and sportsman groups with a common purpose, be it hunting, fishing, hiking, shooting, conservation – the list of categories is long. The more groups there are in one category, the more divided they become, since most folks cannot belong to them all. Overall, these multiple groups are essentially powerless on policy and legislation when they stand alone. People choose one, and that is who they support with activities and funding.

Enter deer hunting. In July of last year, the Quality Deer Management Association (QDMA), formed in 1988, and the National Deer Alliance (NDA), formed in 2016, revealed a joint venture to unify their two organizations into one: the National Deer Association. Bravo!

The result is a new super-group in deer and wildlife deer conservation that will combine their strengths, resources and core initiatives. After finalizing their mission and strategic vision, the new organization will be called the National Deer Association (NDA). Their growing list of objectives includes counterproductive wildlife policies, shrinking hunter numbers, loss of habitat, the rapid spread of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and other challenges. The need for a robust and unified leader in deer conservation has never been greater.

Their now singular, modernized outfit will serve all wild deer species conservation (white-tailed deer, mule deer, black-tailed deer, Coues deer and Key deer), the hunters, non-hunter education (public), as well as the industry more effectively at this crucial pandemic era in our time. The new group is formed at a time when the need for worthy groups to survive is greatest.

The National Deer Association is planning to focus on four critical areas: (1) education and outreach, (2) recruitment, retention and reactivation, (3) policy and advocacy and (4) deer diseases. Teaching the non-hunting public about the keystone position of deer in all wildlife conservation success or failure will be among new goals. Similarly, the new group will empower hunters to be more informed, and hence, more successful and engaged stewards of deer and wildlife, including mentoring young hunters. Deer diseases, including the invariably fatal Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), present a severe threat to all deer species’ future and related wildlife conservation/health. Wildlife policy and legislation are part of that new goal, at the same time bringing hunters, the non-hunting public and wildlife managers together with a common theme. The new group combines memberships from both core groups, with members in all 50 states and Canada.

The new National Deer Association combines the National Deer Alliance and the Quality Deer Management Association to form a new group with a notable conservation focus. Image from National Deer Association

Learn more about the new NDA by visiting their website at https://www.deerassociation.com.

If you are a new hunter or are a not-so-new hunter without usual success, you will want to see and download this freebie. The National Deer Association is committed to helping you get started in hunting and how to learn more about deer hunting. You’ll find plenty of information here, and you can also grab a free copy of their E-book, “QDMA’s Guide to Successful Deer Hunting.” Also be sure to check out their complete DEER HUNTING 101 video series on YouTube, which is also free. If you want to travel and wish to know where to go for guided hunting or the best free-range hunting, including deer populations by state, cost of hunting by state and other information, get a free copy of the NDA 2021 Deer Report. It’s more than 60 pages long! Link: www.deerassociation.com/2021-deer-report/. Links are provided. Enjoy!

On another note, the results of a statewide Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) law enforcement operation named “Operation Back Road” were released last week. The effort provided a specific focus targeting illegal hunting from roads. During the 2020 hunting season, environmental conservation officers used technology, local intelligence and 147 robotic decoy deer to catch poachers hunting from vehicles or along roadways, essentially putting people and private communities in danger. During the detail, officers apprehended 19 suspects for shooting at the decoys from roadways and issued tickets for 37 misdemeanors, 29 additional violations of the Environmental Conservation Law (ECL), and seven charges outside the ECL. Officers conducted the Operation Back Road detail during the last two weeks of the Northern Zone and the last three weeks of the Southern Zone hunting seasons. During the 2020 fall hunting season, officers statewide issued 244 tickets for road hunting-related offenses. The NYSDEC Police Officers and Investigators enforce the 71 Chapters of NY Environmental Conservation Law, protecting fish and wildlife and preserving environmental quality across New York. In 2020, the 298 ECOs and Investigators across the state responded to 29,673 calls. They worked on cases that resulted in 11,952 tickets or arrests for crimes ranging from deer poaching to solid waste dumping, illegal mining, the black market pet trade and excessive emissions violations. Let’s all stay legal!

Get out there, smile more and stay safe!  

Outdoors Calendar

Feb. 18: FLY TYING online, Orvis virtual presentation w/ Tom Rosenbauer, 8 p.m. start, FREE. Learn to tie the Clouser Minnow. Register at https//subscribe.orvis.com/flytying101/.

Feb. 19-21: Greater Niagara Fishing and Outdoor Expo, CANCELLED, postponed to Feb. 17-20, 2022.

Feb. 20: Birding 101 at Reinstein Woods Education Center, 93 Honorine Dr., Depew, 10 a.m. start, www.reainsteinwoods,org/. 

Feb. 21: 3D ARCHERY, Niagara Region Outdoor Archery League, at Wood & Brook Sportsmen’s Club, 13712 Genesee St., Crittenden, 7:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., walk-on shooters welcome. Info: 725-5822 or 870-2653.

Feb. 21: 3D ARCHERY, Winter 3D Team Archery, at Glen Coe Conservation, 9869 Foote Rd., Glenwood, Info: Dave Neely, 536-4268.

Feb. 24: Pistol Permit Class, Firearms Training of WNY, $75 fee, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., www.ftwny.com. Info: 903-2558.

Mar. 10-13: WNY Sport & Travel Expo.  Info: eriepromotions.com/wny-sport-show/. 

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Share life with others, make new friends in the outdoors, lead by example. Send comments to nugdor@yahoo.com.

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