I see several possible reasons for the decline in the deer population in the area where I hunt. For one, some of the local yokels kill their limit and keep on killing and register the excess in their childrens' names, some of the children being pre-school age. That is outlawing any way you look at it.
Then there are the true outlaws who poach year round. Year before last we saw three deer carcasses lying side by side right on the side of the road during the opening week of deer season. Two had the hind quarters cut out and the third was fully intact. Apparently they had been spotlighting on the road and almost got caught so they just left the whole deer behind rather than get caught.
Thirdly, there seem to be a lot of hunters per square mile. Everyone owns their hundred acres or so and have several hunters on each plot. The land that is not owned locally is being leased to out of state hunters more and more. In a ten mile stretch you can see at least three makeshift deer camps set up every fall on just one gravel backroad and most of those folks are from out of state.
The year before last I was fortunate enough to harvest my limit for the first time in my life. I got an eight point and a six point. Last year I saw a few does, fawns and yearlings. I have not had much time to check out the woods this year but I normally see from one to seven deer on the seven mile stretch from the main highway to my uncle's driveway and this year I have done well to see one or two at night. Two winters ago it was not unusual to see herds of 7-8 deer on the highline which runs across my uncle's property. I have only seen a few tracks this year....