Private Deer Hunting on the Coastal Plain of North Carolina

Abstract

INTRODUCTION. Hunting is an almost ubiquitous recreational pursuit in the United States. In 1980, 17,444,000 hunters spent almost $8,545,000 on hunting, and 11,400,000 ofthese hunters hunted deer. (1) In North Carolina, as in other Southern states, deer hunting is perceived as a sport that cuts across socioeconomic lines and which in recent years has increased in popularity. Although it has been considered a revenue source by some woodland owners, hunting rarely is the primary use of the land on which it occurs. In most instances, the primary use of the land is for timber, and little real interest is shown in wildlife management. This study is designed 1) to determine the amount and distribution ofland hunted by deer clubs on the Coastal Plain ofNorth Carolina and 2) to analyze spatial, ecological, and economic relationships between deer hunting and other uses of the land on which it occurs. (2) BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY. Most of the forested land of the Eastern United States provides a habitat suitable for white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) . Desirable habitats are found in woodlands with numerous small clearings which provide edge zones where seedproducing and browse species grow in proximity to woodland cover or in bottomland hardwood areas where the diversity of species is great and cover is excellent. The history of the decline and resurgence of the white-tailed deer population in North Carolina mirrors that ofthe country as a whole. The number of white-tailed deer in the United States and Canada declined from an estimated 30,000,000 in 1500 to no more than 1,000,000 in 1900 as a result of subsistence as well as commercial hunting by Indians and European settlers. (3) In the Southern states, the low point was reached about 1920. Since that time, however, the deer population has recovered significantly in response to restocking efforts, more effectively controlled hunting, and reversion of cropland to forest. In Eastern North