Most people pay little attention to history. They know the big battles, big issues, and big names. Bunker Hill. Slavery. Eisenhower. As they skim the peaks, other details fade from view. We see a few recurring themes and tend to focus on the present, but not so much on how we got here.
As hunters we aren’t much different. We understand the effect of market hunting on the American bison and the passenger pigeon. We recognize certain luminaries who advocate for hunting. Roosevelt. Bear. Nugent. But we focus more on the here and now. The battles of the past have faded from view. When it comes to deer hunting history, however, some battles don’t fade. The names Leopold, Latham, and Alt are attached to wildlife biologists who were both behind the scenes and in front of the crowds, and they fought similar recurring battles in successive generations. These men fought the “deer wars,” and were casualties of those battles.
GARY ALT
Freshest in our minds is the name Gary Alt, who had deep roots in Pennsylvania. He earned his Ph.D. (1989) in Forest Resources Science at West Virginia University. His dissertation on the reproductive biology of bears and early growth and development of cubs established him as an expert in the field of black bears. He was hired by the Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) as the bear section leader and turned a declining bear population around, rapidly increasing their numbers, and he made the state a leader in
