Big game harvest numbers remain high
The big game harvest in Northwest Montana remains high through two weekends of the general hunting season, according to check station data.
A total of 219 white-tailed deer, including 121 bucks, have been reported at check stations across the region, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said in a press release. A total of 36 mule deer and 32 elk have also been reported. The overall percentage of hunters with game at the stations has been 13.6 percent, compared to 5.9 percent through the same period in 2019. FWP did not operate game check stations on weekends during the 2020 season. The counts at the stations represent a sampling of the harvest and do not represent the complete number of animals taken.
Check stations are open on weekends during hunting season from 10 a.m. to approximately 1.5 hours past sunset. The regional game check stations are located at U.S. 2 West of Kalispell, Montana 83 north of Swan Lake, Montana 200 west of Thompson Falls, and U.S. 93 near Olney. Hunters must stop at all check stations that they pass, even if they have not harvested any animals.
The general deer and elk season runs through Nov. 28, 2021.
This year, FWP will continue surveillance for chronic wasting disease in specific areas known as Priority Surveillance Areas. In Northwest Montana, those areas include Hunting Districts 100, 103, 104, 120, 121, 122 and 170. In those specific areas, hunters are asked to voluntarily submit a sample from their animal. For instructions on how or where to submit a sample, visit fwp.mt.gov/cwd.
Testing for CWD is voluntary throughout the state. FWP will assist hunters with sample collection and submission. In northwest Montana, hunters can bring their animal to the FWP office in Kalispell, Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. FWP staff will also assist with CWD sample collection at game check stations when possible and safety allows, based on traffic at the station. Stopping at game check stations remains mandatory. FWP will cover the cost of testing hunter-harvested animals for CWD.
A CWD sampling station in Libby will operate Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays, 10 a.m. to 1.5 hours past sunset at the Montana Department of Transportation shop on U.S. Highway 2 south of town. Hunters are not required to stop at the Libby CWD sampling station.
Hunters who want their animal sampled should leave 2 to 4 inches of the neck below the low jawbone and base of the skull to ensure lymph nodes are present and not inadvertently left with the carcass. Samples cannot be collected from frozen heads.
Contact a Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks regional office for more information. In northwest Montana, call (406) 752-5501.