Deer harvest declines 20 percent

The Daily Inter Lake

The 2008 hunting season was one of the slowest since 1997, according to results from the six Northwest Montana check stations.

The general big-game hunting season ended Sunday. The five-week season was marked by poor hunting conditions with little or no snow.

Check-station totals for the season showed that 24,995 hunters checked 1,532 white-tailed deer (876 of these were bucks), 219 mule deer, and 147 elk.

In addition, there were 11 moose harvested, compared to 14 a year ago. The black-bear harvest was sharply higher than in 2007, with hunters bagging 29 bears this year compared to eight last year.

Overall, the check-station numbers mean 7.6 percent of hunters were successful. A year ago, the success rate was 9.8 percent.

The harvest for whitetails was down about 20 percent from last year. Mule deer harvest was down 25 percent, while the elk harvest was about the same as 2007. Hunter numbers were up slightly from last year.

Biologists pay close attention to the white-tailed buck harvest because that hunting regulation is consistent from year to year. This year's white-tailed buck count at the check stations of 876 was the lowest since 612 were harvested in 1997.

From long-term white-tailed deer research in Northwest Montana, biologists know that buck harvest is the best indicator of population trend. Buck harvest at the check stations gives a preview of the overall harvest survey conducted by phone this winter.

"Based on our check station results, it appears as though the whitetail deer population is declining," said Jim Williams, regional wildlife manager for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

Williams listed several factors for the decline, including a long, cold winter in some parts of the region resulting in poor fawn survival. This showed up in significantly fewer yearlings brought through the check stations this fall.

Predation from mountain lions and wolves, in addition to hunting harvest, also has reduced the numbers of whitetails. Tough hunting conditions also reduced hunter success.

Given these concerns, biologists will closely monitor the results of the detailed Fish, Wildlife and Parks hunter telephone survey and look at recommending fewer B tags for white-tailed deer across Northwest Montana next year.

The actual game harvest by hunting district will be available in spring as determined by the phone survey of licensed hunters.

The check station numbers represent only a sample of the total harvest in each hunting district, but trends usually are similar.

Individual check stations all showed declines in hunter success. At the Canoe Gulch station near Libby, for example, only 4.4 percent of hunters had game, compared to 7.4 percent in 2007.

The busiest check station - on U.S. 2 west of Kalispell - logged 7.6 percent of hunters with game, compared to 9.4 percent last year. Hunters passing through the Olney check station had the best success, 9.3 percent (down from 11.7 percent a year ago).