Latest info on 16 day gun hunt in 2010

[Cooter]

For me I'm very glad to see it looks like the opening date will remain the same if they do go with the 16 day season:

Email | Print 16-day deer hunt starting Saturday before Thanksgiving proposed for 2010

MADISON – A 16-day gun deer hunt starting the Saturday before the Thanksgiving holiday will be the basis of a proposed 2010 deer season framework presented to the Natural Resources Board for consideration at its December 8 meeting in Madison.

“The special committee formed by the Natural Resources Board to develop effective alternatives to earn-a-buck discussed dozens of ideas and season structures,” said DNR Secretary Matt Frank. “They ended up recommending a 16-day gun hunt with either an early or a traditional start date. At public hearings we heard sentiment overwhelmingly against an early start date so we are recommending a traditional opening date to the board at this time.

“This was one of the most heavily attended public hearing schedules in recent history. On behalf of the department, I want to thank all the organizations and individuals that participated in the public review process over the past few months. Public involvement in this decision process is invaluable.”

The complete proposal is available on the Natural Resources Board meeting adenda for December page of the DNR Web site. The special committee’s report [PDF] is also available on the Natural Resources Board Web pages.

If approved, the 16-day season would be an alternative to the use of earn-a-buck in areas outside the chronic wasting disease management zone beginning with the 2010 season. The season would open on the Saturday before the Thanksgiving holiday. Numerous Wisconsin hunting and conservation organizations have registered preference for the Saturday before Thanksgiving opener.

Other key features of the proposal include: extending the archery season through all gun seasons and extending archery season until the end of January in herd control units; addition of a four-day October antlerless only statewide muzzleloader hunt; a four-day October antlerless only gun hunt in herd control units; a four-day youth hunt that coincides with the October antlerless hunt; a seven-day statewide December muzzleloader hunt; a four-day December antlerless only gun hunt and a 10-day buck plus quota holiday hunt in farmland and central forest deer management units.

“An understandable reaction to creating additional hunting seasons is a concern that deer herds will be over harvested,” said Keith Warnke, DNR big game ecologist. “The safeguard against this is the existing quota system. Under this system the harvest of female deer is limited by permit to maintain populations at healthy, sustainable levels.”

The proposal calls for a unit by unit review of the effectiveness of any new season structure. In units that are more than 20 percent over goal and the expected harvest under a third year of any new season structure is unlikely to bring the herd to within 20 percent of goal, additional harvest measures will be considered.

More than 1,600 people attended the series of 11 public hearings held across the state in October and November. An additional 6,500 people used the web-based comment form or submitted email or mailed comments. Department social researchers also mailed a randomized survey to 1,000 hunters to gauge opinion. The response rate to the survey was a very respectable 71 percent.

Legislative review of any NRB action should be completed by March 2010 with any changes taking effect in time for deer season setting in April 2010

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Keith Warnke - (608) 264-6023 or Bob Manwell - (608) 264-9248

[DonBo]

The DNR's been trying to get a 16 day season passed for as long as I can recall. The public has ALWAYS been against it. With (what sounds like) the harvest numbers way down again this year I can't imagine the justification of this now.

Can anybody closer to this issue than me help me understand?

[Cooter]

An understandable reaction to creating additional hunting seasons is a concern that deer herds will be over harvested,” said Keith Warnke, DNR big game ecologist. “The safeguard against this is the existing quota system. Under this system the harvest of female deer is limited by permit to maintain populations at healthy, sustainable levels

Went from having to apply for a hunters choice tag to being required to shooting a doe and now concern about overharvest of does. A lot like a pendulum, hope we can nestle into a happy medium soon and stay there.

[gardn184]

I'll agree with you DonBo, seems like there's hardly enough deer in the northern half of the state to even think of having a 16 day season, but where we hunt down by Wisconsin Rapids there are a ton of deer so who knows I guess, maybe they should do a normal season in northern Wi and a longer one in the southern half of the state

[Cooter]

And a quote from a report on the gun season thus far:

This fall, wildlife staff indicated that they expected lower total harvest numbers - especially antlerless deer harvest numbers - due to several factors including lower deer numbers in many areas of the state, fewer herd control units and no earn-a-buck units outside of the chronic wasting disease management zone.

How about, "...due to several years of overharvesting does"?

[nolte]

Why doesn't the DNR just have a rifle or muzzleloader season run non stop from Oct 1 to Dec 31st. With all these different seasons, it pretty much feels like that anyway. I can't hardly keep them all straight anymore. All they are doing is watering down the seasons and traditions we already have.

My biased opinion is that the number of tags/seasons has little effect on how many deer someone is going to shoot. Everyone has their "number" and probably won't shoot more than that. In addition, the areas that get pounded by all these excess tags will most likely be public.

If you want to recruit new hunters the way to do it is not to create more seasons, but to make the available hunting "better" in areas where everyone can hunt.

[Cooter]

I agree on several of those points, like you said available tags doesn't mean people are gonna fill them - unless forced to with EAB. And yep its tough on public land especially with liberal doe tags.

And for heavens sake, I get bored sitting all day to see maybe a couple deer - great way to turn youngsters off to hunting is boring them to death.

[GatorBait]

The bill would give the Department of Natural Resources board -- which sets agency policy -- the ability to hire and fire the secretary, a power it enjoyed until 1995. Democratic lawmakers say the bill would reduce the influence of politics in conservation decisions.

This is the reason the DNR has been a simple disaster and are now so caught up in their lies not knowing what to do next. Kick politics out of conservation and you would see a more common sense approach to things we are dealing with now that is ruining our sports.

[Cooter]

Is there currently a term length for the DNR secretary as they are appointed by the governor and if so I'll assume its a 4 year term beginning/ending at the same time of the governors?

[GatorBait]

They are in there on 4yr terms, but Matt Franks was appointed to the DNR in 07 so I'm not sure if it'll coincide with the Gov's terms. Franks is one of Doyle's good ol'boys who forced out Scott Hassett of his DNR Sec position. Once again, good ol politics at play, it's sickening.

[mn_bowhunter]

I wish they would let bow hunters hunt during gun season. I don't really understand why you couldn't. Wear orange and that's about it. Also, where are there deer around Wisconsin Rapids? I've lived here a little over a year, and everyone I talk to says the numbers are way down. Last year on opener I went out by Babcock and was stopped by a CO. He was checking for guns out of cases, and told me he hadn't seen many deer in the area the summer before.