Photo by Ralph Hensley.

Deer numbers are down in Pennsylvania, and most hunters are not happy about that. But our herds have improved in quality, and a majority of hunters are very happy about that. Thanks to new antler restrictions, it's now possible to harvest trophy-class bucks in the Keystone State.

Across most of the Commonwealth, bucks are growing older and larger, on average, than they have been in many years.

Looking at our deer from a quality perspective, the prospects are encouraging.

Sound data is the key to effective deer management, and this data can be gained only through research.

When Pennsylvania embarked on its new deer management program, some significant data was missing. The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) has addressed this lack of data as quickly as possible through cutting-edge research projects.

"Evaluation of Biological Effects and Social Acceptance of New Antler Restrictions for White-tailed Deer Hunting Season in Pennsylvania" is one such study, begun in 2001 in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at Penn State University.

The study includes buck survival rates, causes of mortality and movement patterns. This is key research in determining the effectiveness of antler restrictions and in determining whether or not these restrictions should be adjusted.

This study may be the largest radio-telemetry dispersal study of white-tailed deer ever conducted in the nation. Among other primary goals, it will determine the survival of bucks from six months to 30 months of age. This information will be combined with the two-year fawn mortality study to create a better picture of mortality causes for deer.

Monitoring the movements of bucks should indicate how far bucks disperse, when they disperse, and how many disperse.

Perhaps of most interest to hunters will be the changes in the age structure of our bucks due to antler restrictions. This phase of the study will attempt to determine how age affects antler size and how breeding behavior changes.

Research in other states has already shown that bucks grow their largest antlers between the ages of 4 and 8 years; and that age and habitat quality, along with genetics, play significant roles in antler development.

Finally, this study will evaluate hunter satisfaction with antler restrictions.

There are two study areas, one in a 4-points-on-a-side wildlife management unit (WMU) in Armstrong County, and another in Centre County, which lies in a 3-points-on-a-side WMU. Bucks are captured, have radio collars attached, and then are released. They are then tracked from the ground and from the air.

Opponents of antler restrictions frequently mistake the motive behind them as being solely to produce trophy bucks. In fact, big antlers are just a secondary benefit. The actual goal of antler restrictions is to improve the age-structure of the buck population and to restore it to a more natural balance, which should promote a healthier, heartier deer population.

Another study, titled "Reproductive Characteristics of White-Tailed Deer in Pennsylvania," should answer some of the most frequent questions asked by deer hunters. Conducted since 2000, it will look into the timing of the rut and when fawns are born. Wildlife conservation officers are gathering data by studying road-killed deer.

Over the first four years of this study, 3,180 does were examined. It was determined that 91 percent of adult does and 26 percent of female fawns were pregnant.

Only 17 percent of pregnant fawns carried twins or triplets. Among 2-year-old does, 67 percent had twins or triplets. Among 3-year-old does, 78 percent had twins or triplets.