Moose Management changes 2020/2021

[biflora]

[COLOR=#000000]At the end of the day, this new system isnt going to be any better than the old. - dmichel:

Agreed-something had to be done,and it is easy to pick and choose after the fact-but this system will be no better then the old one.Just different groups will have better chances(or worst).

We wait 3-5 years with this system,and then WE ALL will go back to the MAGIC of the moose "DRAW".If the moose population declines as it is..........
Because there will be more "enough point"owners then moose tags available -so they WILL need to draw if they want any fairness.

In my opinion that is more than obvious. The fact that the draw remains in place for WMUs where there are more applicants with the same number of points than the number of tags available. I guess nobody had the impression that the number of tags will increase proportional with the number of hunters having the maximum number of points. What other method do you see for sorting out this problem ?

[gbk]

In my opinion that is more than obvious. The fact that the draw remains in place for WMUs where there are more applicants with the same number of points than the number of tags available. I guess nobody had the impression that the number of tags will increase proportional with the number of hunters having the maximum number of points. What other method do you see for sorting out this problem ?

I think they could/will also constantly RAISE a required point limit,thus decreasing the pool of eligible hunters.

[gbk]

Otherwise biflora-i do not have a solution.
I have ideas:

They SHOULD shut down the moose hunt for ALL in Ontario ,for 5 years.

Enforce it with REALLY heavy fines,which would be returned to enforcement ONLY-this would allow reasonable revenue to increase game warden numbers-and would be an incentive for catching the bad boys breaking the moose hunting ban.

They could also put out a Call in line to encourage illegal moose harvest reporting,with big $$$ AND points as a reward if the call = illegal moose hunter caught.
All this paid for buy the illegal moose hunter!

The illegal moose hunting and the non regulated moose hunting would die down A LOT for sure.

They should add incentives for predator hunting(bear-wolf)not in $,but in points (which could be applied to eligibility points) WHEN the moose hunt opens again.
They should also KEEP the application process,and payment year after year(like 20-30$)to keep points accumulating-and to use that money for moose management(ONLY).Think like investment in moose hunting opportunity ,not a money grab.
They should start the point system from zero for all-then we could see who really wants to hunt the scarce Ontario moose,IN 5 YEARS to come.

Please do not" kill "me for these thoughts.

[redd foxx]

They could also put out a Call in line to encourage illegal moose harvest reporting,with big $$$ AND points as a reward if the call = illegal moose hunter caught.
All this paid for buy the illegal moose hunter!

They already have the call in lines. The MNRF Tip line and Crime Stoppers.

[cricket]

I too, hope they don’t change them. Guys in our group picking leave dates now....they have never deviated from the tentative dates in the past so, here’s hoping !!!!

Rick, I actually hope they do switch the date again. Im hoping they put it back to the 19th which is the third Monday in Oct. That way we get a week in between the moose and deer hunt.

[Paul J]

I am new to this site but I agree with closing the season but it will never happen to many $ involved. So why is the moose population so low? What has changed in the last five or so years? Or is it a case of the government being to late reacting

[trimmer21]

Trimmer-the groups will be still allowed-if You draw,you will be able to have 9 (or 10 -not sure +10 or 10 total....)more in your hunting party.
This is pretty much the same as the Elk hunt philosophy: one is allowed every 4 years to draw a tag(in theory)and can hunt in group of total 4 hunters.So-if one is lucky every consecutive years from the group of 4(and being successful puts you back 4 years)then in THEORY one can hunt elk every year.Just someone else will have the tag.

Same will apply here-and yes,some groups will break up due of individuals now can have their own hunt(but then they will wait a LOT for the next opportunity)or they will GROUP hunt,as before.
I think that will happen mostly-with the common sense moose groups at least.

Then-we go back to square one-larger groups with "senior" hunters(not by age -but by point numbers)will have it all.

When I was told about groups no longer existing,that meant that group applications would no longer exist. No one ever said groups couldn't hunt together. That's the reason for the $35 license without the tag,so,hunters who were unsuccessful in the draw can still party hunt with a tag holder. Sorry,I should have been more clear. With this new system,to me,it won't matter how many years a hunter has been unsuccessful,the points will still accumulate,but,that still won't mean a hunter will get a tag just because his/her point total is very high. We still need to be successful in the draw. There's no guarantees. The average hunter could still foreseeably only "win" a tag once or twice in a lifetime depending to which zone they apply and the number of hunters in the same point tier applying to the same zone. The only way the system won't work that way is if a tag is good for any WMU where there's an open season for Moose. I can't see that happening because it would be self defeating if the idea is to maintain a viable population,but,at this point,I'm only speculating. I have no further information to add.

[sawbill]

I am new to this site but I agree with closing the season but it will never happen to many $ involved. So why is the moose population so low? What has changed in the last five or so years? Or is it a case of the government being to late reacting

Its been longer than 5 or 6 years. Seasons have been shut down at least twice that I know of, once back around 1890 then again in the late '40's. Continuous declines in the population have been noticed since the early '60's then in the early '70's when we saw the first of the reduced seasons. 1980 saw 2 tags per moose and since then its been jiggled and worked and tweeked to find some positive solution. Nothing much has worked. In reality, the only thing that can and will work is a full closure for EVERYONE for something like 5 years or maybe even longer. For these closures it won't be the government who wants the cash from licence sales, it'll be outfitters, service stations, restaurants and hunting supply stores that scream the loudest.

[rick_iles]

Its been longer than 5 or 6 years. Seasons have been shut down at least twice that I know of, once back around 1890 then again in the late '40's. Continuous declines in the population have been noticed since the early '60's then in the early '70's when we saw the first of the reduced seasons. 1980 saw 2 moose per tag and since then its been jiggled and worked and tweeked to find some positive solution. In reality, the only thing that can and will work is a full closure for EVERYONE for something like 5 years or maybe even longer. For these closures it won't be the government who wants the cash from licence sales, it'll be outfitters, service stations, restaurants and hunting supply stores that scream the loudest.

Agree Sawbill, but I’m sure you meant two “tags” per moose, not two “moose” per tag..... When I started moose hunting, if it was black, it was fair game. Those were the “good old days”...I suspect our group is pretty much done moose hunting after this year....

[Ahuntr300]

The illegal moose hunting and the non regulated moose hunting would die down A LOT for sure.

You have good thoughts, but must be joking if you think these or any other measures will have any effect on the "non-regulated " hunt! - never going to happen.