CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME 55 



Prior to about 1920, the number of "outside" hunters visiting the 

 ]\Iodoc region each season was small and the majority of deer killed 

 tliere were taken by local residents. From that time until about 1930, 

 the number of sportsmen from other sections of the State who made 

 limiting trips into the area grew by leaps and bounds so that by the 

 end of this period a veritable army of outside hunters made annual 

 pilgrimages after these large animals. This condition naturally 

 resulted in a correspondingly higher annual legal kill which kept pace 

 Avith the increase in numbers of hunters until 1931, when reports of 

 less comparative success began to emanate from the sportsmen. In the 

 same period, restrictive legislation which will be discussed later, kept 

 up with the increase in hunters and was apparently responsible for 

 preserving the numbers of deer until 1928 or thereabouts. The Division 

 had no means of recording the annual kill or total number of deer 

 hunters prior to 1927 when the deer tag license law was enacted. The 

 statistics provided below for the deer kill in Modoc and Lassen 

 counties for the years 1927 to 1933, inclusive, will serve well to indicate 

 the relative mule deer kill for the entire area for this period and 

 reports from these counties only are provided for the reason that prac- 

 tically all the deer killed in them are mule deer whereas there is no 

 means of distinguishing between mule and black-tailed deer, in our tag 

 system, both of which are taken in the other counties in this area. We 

 have no means of ascertaining the number of hunters who annually 

 go after mule deer, but because of their known rapid recent increase 

 in this area, we are certain that the increase of sportsmen afield in the 

 Modoc region has been proportionately far in excess of the total increase 

 for the State, at least through the 1931 season. The Division hopes, 

 before the 1934 deer season opens, to evolve a means of checking hunters 

 in and out of the mule deer area which will in future provide this 

 nuich needed information. 



Deer killed Deer tags. 



Total both Total in total sold 



Ygar Lassen Co. Modoc Co. counties State in State 



in97 296 510 806 19,507 110,760 



l't?S 393 729 1,122 21,515 105, u38 



lO->o '511 835 1,346 21,222 115,472 



i^on 585 1,129 1,714 24,132 123,999 



q^l - 607 1,486 2,083 25,805 129,005 



iqQo 508 916 1,424 18,380 96.702 



I'ct'ln 551 954 1,505 17,689 94,500* 



* 



Approximate, exact 1933 total not yet available. 



It should be noted in the above table that the total State deer kill 

 in all years save 1928 bears a rather consistent ratio to the total 

 number of deer tags sold or number of hunters in the field. At the 

 same time, the kill in Lassen and Modoc counties increased out of all 

 proportion to the State kill. This is a result of more Imnters visiting 

 the area, at least through the 1931 season. The decrease in the number 

 of deer Idlled in these counties in 1931 and 1932 is out of proportion to 

 the decline in deer tag sales for the same period and is probably, in part 

 at least, a result of deer depletion. The increase in the 1933 Modoe 

 deer kill is gratifying for, in spite of unsatisfactory (dry) hunting 

 conditions that obtained in the region last season, more deer were taken 

 there than in the previous year, notwithstanding a falling off in the 

 total State kill and a decrease in number of hunters. 



