Additional deer seals 2016

[JBen]

That's (just 6%) is surprising Mike. I know some resent the feeling that the MNR relies on us so much. I've never minded, I view it as doing my part, helping versus anything else. Nor am I one to assume a good percentage will lie (claim more or less).

We have so many different areas in the province. What 4 or 5 different climate zones let alone habitat/geography. Then we have agricultural areas like SW Ontario. Where we are really talking about 2 different worlds. Drives me "nuts" when people who live in the land of plenty, don't appreciate the diffulcties( ?) of hunting the big woods of central Ontario and say hunt camps that employ it's brown it's down, or use dogs to push etc etc.

Try micro managing all that and 100 units. Let alone Moose or Walleye or Wolves. We level a lot of criticism towards the MNR. Sure they can do "better". Who wants to be first in line and volunteer another 3,000/year in taxes.

6%

[Fox]

They gather the information from the Questionnaires that hunters are asked (not mandatory) to complete every year. The problem is not enough guys do their part. I was at an MNR deer seminar a few years back and the biologists told the crowd that only 6%...yes that's right 6% of the questionnaires were returned.

Mind you that was before on-line reporting and it has probably gotten much better....but for all the finger pointing towards the MNR for not knowing what's going on...they sure don't get much help from those doing the pointing.

Make is mandatory, if you did not fill in your surveys you cannot get a license the next year until you fill in the surveys.

[terrym]

If they want credible data they should make it mandatory to check in the carcass. There's enough staff warming chairs in the MNR that could be deployed in the field a few weeks a year to man check stations. I bet many have never seen a big game animal up close. Quebec has mandatory check ins and it is one tool that certainly hasn't hurt their game management.

[pbonura]

Species8472 Im from 85 and yes we do have extra tags but we shouldn't have are deer numbers have gone down by at least 65 to 70% from there high in 2009 and 2010 I used to see winter yards of 200 plus in my family's bush now we are lucky if we see 30 and we have took it on to are selfs to not shot does and fawns the last 2 season so when I see someone posting about coming to 85 to hunt because they weren't smart enough to know when they're deer are in trouble and stop buying extra tags don't come here and hunt are deer that are all ready over hunted and number are way down its people thinking oh they have extra tags must have a lot of deer so I'm going to hunt there cause we weren't smart enough to know when to stop shooting all are deer I was one of the worst I used to buy every tag I could for a couple of years we where a load 7 and I would fill them all young and stupid now I shot mature bucks and if the Bush I'm hunting has 5 or more does then I will take one doe if the farmer ask me too

Honestly will have to say this comment was not appropriate. I hunt 87 and 79 and each wmu is really really hard to predict. You can not discourage someone from hunting your area because you do not agree with them. Give your head a shake. Each wmu has pockets and blank statements on a whole really do not apply unless you have permission to every property in that wmu.

[Dythbringer]

All of the above are factors for sure Dyth but I am not to sure how much stock I put in to what the natives claim to have harvested. and I know after the brutal winter 2 years back almost no fawns were seen on my trail Cameras that run year round so the doe's likely reabsorbed their fetuses do to the harsh winter.

HJ, all I was trying to do was simply show that while the native hunt is a contributing factor in reducing the deer herd in the valley, the deer herd had dropped by half with only 2 hunts in (approx. 60 deer taken out) so the official hunt helped but it wasn't the only factor. I would say the deer population took two big hits in the past 2 years: brutal winter 2 years ago helped the yotes smash the adults and the bucks didn't have a solid recovery because of the snow and last year where everything was so bloody warm, I would imagine there was a lower successful percentage of breeding because of the lack of movement through the day by the does; however, any successful bred does had an easier winter than in the past.

Species8472 Im from 85 and yes we do have extra tags but we shouldn't have are deer numbers have gone down by at least 65 to 70% from there high in 2009 and 2010 I used to see winter yards of 200 plus in my family's bush now we are lucky if we see 30 and we have took it on to are selfs to not shot does and fawns the last 2 season so when I see someone posting about coming to 85 to hunt because they weren't smart enough to know when they're deer are in trouble and stop buying extra tags don't come here and hunt are deer that are all ready over hunted and number are way down its people thinking oh they have extra tags must have a lot of deer so I'm going to hunt there cause we weren't smart enough to know when to stop shooting all are deer I was one of the worst I used to buy every tag I could for a couple of years we where a load 7 and I would fill them all young and stupid now I shot mature bucks and if the Bush I'm hunting has 5 or more does then I will take one doe if the farmer ask me too

You know I think this post embodies what is wrong with some guys in our hunting fraternity. A hunter who took complete advantage of the additional deer seals and now is whinging that the population in his area isn't where it used to be and that other hunters shouldn't try to get additional deer seals in a system which is open to all hunters in the province for his WMU so no one else can shot "his deer" because he now has reformed his ways.

[skeeter1]

I'm a heading to 85

[Species8472]

I'm a heading to 85

Maybe we can carpool.

[Farmer G]

I think the coyotes smashing the fawns in the spring and taking down deer in the deeper snow has had more of an impact on the deer herd than the native hunt. The hunt has been going on since 2011 with the first year having a quota of 40 (which 31 deer were taken) and then the next 2 years having a quota of 80 per year but only 37 and 30 deer taken then in 2014 & 2015 the quota was reduced to 60 deer with 35 deer taken in 2014 (I haven't heard how many were taken in 2015 but one could make an educated guess).

In 2009, an aerial population was conducted and the herd was pegged at 550 deer and then in 2013 the population was almost halved to 266. I am not saying the native hunt didn't contribute but there were other factors (I would say more significant) which lead to the herd dropping that fast.

Those numbers are hog wash. I live there and seen more deer harvested.

[kokes]

Maybe we can carpool.

joe can can I carpool with ya as well? I'll split on gas and even drag your deer out of the woods for ya...

[Species8472]

joe can can I carpool with ya as well? I'll split on gas and even drag your deer out of the woods for ya...

Anytime buddy. You going to Boofest this year?