Hunters register 276,985 deer in November hunt
News Release Published: December 2, 2008 by the Central Office
Contact(s): Keith Warnke (608) 264-6023
MADISON – A call-around count of deer registration stations across Wisconsin conducted by Department of Natural Resources staff has yielded a preliminary kill tally for the just-ended 9-day November gun deer hunt of 276,985.
While the call-in tally appears to be down in parts of the state, this number is preliminary and is expected to change before a final report is published in late winter. It does not include harvest information from the archery, October antlerless deer gun hunt, muzzleloader, December antlerless deer gun hunt or late archery seasons.
A table of county by county harvest broken down by DNR Region (pdf; 81 kb), with comparison to the 2007 preliminary harvest is available on the DNR Web site.
“Hunters have been doing a good job, and deer populations may be moving toward healthy goals,” said Keith Warnke, DNR big game biologist. “Their commitment and involvement are having a positive effect and will help to ensure a healthy deer herd in the future for them and for a younger generation of hunters who are coming up through the ranks.”
“We still need to look at all the numbers from all deer seasons before we can say anything for sure,” said Warnke, “but it looks like our estimates of winter mortality and fawn production may be off, which if it proves true, would lead to over estimation of the pre-hunt population.
“Preliminary counts seem to indicate a lower than predicted deer population. That may indicate that deer populations could be moving toward healthy population goals.”
Many factors could have impacted this year’s hunt say wildlife managers including winter conditions lasting longer into spring than estimated and a late, cool spring which caused lower fawn production than average. Fawn production statewide was the lowest it has been in 15 years. The deer season was also quite late, past the rut in most parts of the state, meaning deer were not moving as much as hunters might have hoped.
Hunters across the state have commented that there appeared to be fewer deer in the woods than could be expected from prehunt population predictions. While this comment was common, registrations in the DNR’s South Central Region actually increased 3 percent over last year and the Southeast region held pretty steady, dropping about 4 percent.
The DNR’s West Central Region and Northeast Regions are coming off of several years of herd reduction and earn-a-buck season structures designed to lower numbers to healthy populations. The preliminary results would seem to indicate that the strategies are working, say wildlife managers.
“In the final analysis, once all the numbers are in, it is possible that there will be fewer herd control and earn-a-buck units in the coming season,” Warnke said.
As happens every year, department wildlife managers and scientists will be closely analyzing this year’s hunt data and making any necessary adjustments for 2009 seasons. Wildlife managers will be examining a number of factors including age and sex structure of the harvest, expected over winter mortality, and fawn production rates. A recent audit by national experts indicated Wisconsin’s deer population prediction method is among the best in North America.
“It is our job to manage this icon of Wisconsin wildlife in a manner consistent with our responsibility to protect and sustain our wildlife resources and traditions and we take that responsibility very seriously,” said Warnke. “We use the most accurate data available to manage deer. We constantly strive to balance a healthy and sustainable herd with public opportunities for a safe, productive and enjoyable hunt.”
Hunt is third safest in history
DNR hunter education administrator and DNR’s hunter safety expert warden Tim Lawhern, said there were 9 total hunting incidents involving firearms during the 9-day hunting period making 2008 the third safest season on record. Sadly, one of the incidents was fatal. Of the nine incidents, six involved shotguns, two involved rifles, and one involved a handgun. Nearly half – 44 percent – were self inflicted.
“While the circumstances of these incidents may have been different every one can be traced to a failure to practice the four cardinal rules of firearm safety,” said Lawhern. “Treat every gun as if it is loaded; BE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN OF YOUR TARGET AND WHAT IS BEHIND IT; always point the muzzle in a safe direction - never point the muzzle at anything you would not want to shoot; keep your finger out of the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.”
More than 846,000 2008 deer licenses sold
DNR’s Automated License Issuance System, known as ALIS, peaked at 201 deer gun licenses sold per minute at 5:30 p.m. on the Friday before gun deer season. An additional 11,196 hunters bought licenses during the 9-day season, bringing the gun deer license total sold to date to 642,419, slightly above 2007 totals. When archery licenses are added in, more than 846,000 backtags have accompanied hunters in the woods and fields so far this year to hunt deer. Additional licenses will likely be sold during late bow, muzzle loader, December Antlerless and “holiday” hunts that are still to come.
Of Wisconsin’s deer gun hunters:
* 94 percent were residents
* Hunters throughout the U.S. and several foreign countries purchased a Wisconsin gun deer license. The highest number of nonresident hunters came from Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, and Florida), each having increased in participation over last year.
* Youth hunters aged 12-17 represent 11 percent of the total number of deer hunters, and 8.1 percent of the total hunters are female.
* The most deer licenses were sold in Dane County, with Brown, Washington, Marathon and Waukesha counties following.
* All ages participate in the hunt. More than 53,000 hunters are age 65 or older. Nearly 24 percent are between the ages of 12 and 25. The ages most represented were 47 and 48.
During the week prior to the opener, DNR’s Customer Service Call Center was receiving 1,200 to 1,400 calls per day, peaking at more than 2,000 on the Friday before the opener; 818 hunters called in on opening day. The call center handles nearly 230,000 a year, with 30 percent received on nights and weekends. Call center staff are available to serve hunters and other customers from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m., seven days a week by calling 1-888-WDNR INFo (1-888-936-7463) or online. Spanish and Hmong service is available. Hunters wishing to report a violation can call 24 hours a day and seven days a week at 1(800)TIP-WDNR [800-847-9367] or cell #367.
