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It’s debates like this that keeps reducing hunter numbers. We need more hunters not less. The crossbow is a great choice to get young hunters and first time hunters in the woods during the warmer weather. A dead deer is a dead deer regardless of the weapon used. Manage tags given out, not weapons used.
I could be totally off base here, but it seems like a lot of the seasons, restrictions, tags, and other conditions are all tools to manage the herd as a whole. If a tool is deemed as more effective or efficient, there are shorter seasons or more restrictions for it's use. Traditional (non-crossbow) archery seems to have the longest seasons and least restrictions correlating to the lower success rate. I can see the similarities between crossbows and muzzleloaders, so needing that tag is reasonable, but allowing it's use in late bow season is a concession to the similarities with archery (with respect to effective range, at least), and restricts the use of it to less time overall than traditional archery. If an airbow or a muzzleloader firing an arrow are permitted, then they'd fit into muzzleloader season only, in all probability, for the same reasons. When the deer herd is decreased, then more restrictions or shorter seasons would apply. Aside from that, it seems like the wildlife biologists are trying to accommodate the hunters with whatever tool they choose to use, and they establish a framework of seasons, restrictions, tags, and accessibility to fit within the herd management objectives. Whether people using longbows, recurves, compounds, crossbows, flintlocks, percussion, in-lines, handguns, iron sights, telescopic sights, or anything else all approve of each other's choice of implement is not their concern. They just need to manage the program to be within what their herd management objectives are. If a new implement gains popularity, and enough people express an interest in using it, they'll find a place for it.The only thing about this is the two don’t normally coincide as far as changing rules to deer herd sizes. For example, the last two years most of the Hudson valley has been hammered with EHD. Rule changes this year allows you to now shoot 30 min before sunrise and 30 min after sunset- extended the muzzleloader season from Xmas to New Years and they gave out doe tags like candy at Halloween. One thing I think we have to factor as far as introducing youth to hunting is to actually have a good deer herd. We have rule changes in this state every few years that make it easier to take deer. Years ago they changed the season to start on Saturday instead of Monday adding a weekend- then they extended the bow season 2 weeks longer- then they added xbow- now they’ve extended muzzleloader and shooting times. If you take youth out hunting and they barely ever see deer the will get bored fast and not want to go anymore in my opinion.