Michelle Michels with some of the Antigo Country Store's hunting supplies this morning. Deer hunters are flooding the area for the start of the 2009 gun season Saturday morning. |
Deer hunters facing mixed bag Saturday Nov. 20, 2009 Depending on which direction you drive, the gun deer season opening Saturday could be very good, or rather dismal.
To the south of Antigo, the Department of Natural Resources says there are plenty of whitetails, with extra tags available for does. But to the north and east—indeed across the entire northern third of the state—there are few if any doe tags available and it will be a “bucks only” year in the woods.
“Deer numbers are significantly low this year in these areas,” Eric Borchert, DNR wildlife technician, said.
“We’ve hit the herd pretty hard for many years and it’s a rebuilding time,” he said, adding that a few bad winters have also led to the decline.
Borchert said that due to the tangled web of rules governing the various units, it will be more important than ever for hunters to know exactly where they are when they harvest their deer.
“Know where you are hunting,” he stressed. “Know what unit you are in and what you can and cannot hunt in that unit.”
In the area immediately around and north of Antigo—units 38, 42, 43 and 44—there are no antlerless tags available and “it’s going to be a bucks-only hunt,” Borchert said.
But there still is a limited number of antlerless permits available for purchase in unit 46, southwest of Antigo. And to confuse things more, unit 47, which includes the Mattoon and Phlox areas, is designated as a herd control area, with hunters receiving free antlerless deer tags with their license and the opportunity to buy more for use in herd control units only.
Borchert admitted it is complicated but the goal is simple—to bolster whitetail numbers where they are low and trim the herd where there is an overabundance.
The wildlife technician said that observations from the bow season indicate “pretty decent” antler development, suggesting that some “respectable” racks should be showing up at registration stations.
The Nov. 21 start comes as the mating season is at or near its conclusion, he said, and the snowless conditions will make it pleasant in the woods, but reduce visibility somewhat.
Regardless of the numbers, Borchert said the deer hunt is a tradition that Wisconsin proudly continues from generation to generation.
“There are going to be people who are going to be somewhat satisfied with what they see, and others who will not be,” he said. “I just hope people go out and have a good time.”
In 2009, 642,419 hunters took to the woods, harvesting 352,601 deer.
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