Hunting success picks up in week 2

While the 2008 hunting season has been slow out of the gates, weekend numbers showed an increase in hunter success.

Jerry Brown, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks area biologist, said the rain helped and rutting is beginning for whitetails.

“The mild weather conditions have not been conducive to productive hunting,” Brown said. “Animals have an extremely high dispersion right now. Nothing has forced them into more concentrated areas.”

Brown said it was fair on Saturday at the Canoe Gulch check station and slower on Sunday.

“We saw some nicer bucks coming in and the rain helps some … it quiets the woods and rutting season increases deer activity,” he said.

Region 1 figures through week two show deer and elk harvests on the rise.

Canoe Gulch has checked 1,601 compared to 1,563 last year. Hunters have taken 43 whitetails, the same as 2007. However numbers for mule deer and elk are down significantly.

At this time in 2007, 30 mule deer and 18 elk had been checked. Those numbers are 11 and seven, respectively, for 2008.

Interestingly, the number of black bears checked are at 14, compared to only three last year.

Numbers for Region 1 show numbers slightly down from last year, with 11,789 total hunters, 593 white-tailed deer – 226 of which were bucks – 90 mule deer and 87 elk.

In 2007, there were 11,995 hunters harvesting 681 whitetails, 261 bucks, 127 mule deer and 90 elk.

Hunting is now closed for antler-less white-tailed deer until Nov. 27, unless the hunter is disabled with a permit to hunt from a vehicle or a youth age 12-15.

Mule deer are buck-only for the entire season.

Officials remind hunters to refer to regulations where a hunt is planned.