Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Wildlife Restoration Program

Warren Blesh is president of the Simms Creek Wildlife Management Association, in Mills and Lampasas counties.

We’re really 75 landowners that have come together in cooperation with Texas Parks and Wildlife. We work with the recommendations from the biologist to manage the deer herd for our ranches—and what we’ll harvest each year.

The landowners have adjoining properties, and Blesh says since the association began seven year ago, they’ve seen improvement in their collective deer herd.

The ages are getting a lot better. When we started the association the average age of our deer harvested was one and a half, two and a half years old. We’ve moved that up to two and a half three and a half, and tree and a half to four and a half.

Older deer lead to a better herd. Association treasurer, Damon Holditch says improving the land, with thoughtful hunting, creates a stronger, healthier herd and turns shooters into hunters.

A shooter shoots the first thing that comes out. A hunter will actually work his particular ranch or blind area and select which deer should be harvested for the betterment of the whole herd.

Holditch says hunter education—Simms Creek style—weeds out the shooters from the hunters.

I think some of the guys who think they’re hunters and they’re shooters, they only stay around one year because they don’t want to be harassed—but that’s fine—we don’t want them here anyway, because they’re not good for the herd. The guys who really are hunters they do appreciate it.

That’s our show…with support from the Wildlife Restoration Program…working to restore habitat in Texas. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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