Fall Mule Deer Survey Completed

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s fall mule deer survey indicated production

courtesy muledeer.org

in 2014 bodes well for the future.

Biologists counted 1,969 (1,761 in 2013) mule deer in the aerial survey in October. The buck-to-doe ratio of 0.50 (0.46 in 2013) was slightly above the long-term average of 0.43 bucks per doe, while the fawn-to-doe ratio of 0.95 (0.74 in 2013) was the highest since 1999, and above the long-term average of 0.90 fawns per doe.

“Overall, this year’s fawn production is very encouraging, and with average-to-good survival should result in another increase in the spring,” said Bruce Stillings, big game management supervisor, Dickinson.

While it is encouraging to see mule deer numbers increase for the short-term, Stillings said challenges remain for continued population growth, including changes in habitat quality due to fragmentation and disturbance, predators and weather.

The fall aerial survey, conducted specifically to study demographics, covers 24 study areas and 306.3 square miles in western North Dakota. Biologists survey the same study areas in the spring of each year to determine population abundance.

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New deer habitat grant program available in Michigan; application period opens April 1

The Department of Natural Resources today announced that, starting April 1, the application period will open for the new Deer Private Land Assistance Network (Deer PLAN) grant program. The Deer PLAN, funded by the Fish and Game Fund, is designed to support private-land deer habitat improvement projects in the northern Lower Peninsula.

"There are two primary goals applicants should strive to meet," said DNR wildlife biologist Brian Piccolo. "The projects should produce tangible deer habitat improvements and build long-term partnerships between the DNR and sportsmen's clubs."
For 2014, $50,000 will be available, focused on the following counties: Alcona, Alpena, Crawford, Montmorency, Oscoda and Presque Isle. Funds will be allocated across these six counties based on a competitive grant application scoring process.
“A focus area will concentrate habitat projects in a particular region, and in doing so will provide greater benefits to deer populations in areas where we have identified habitat issues,” said DNR Deer Program biologist Ashley Autenrieth.
Application amounts must be between $2,000 and $10,000 and the grant recipient is required to provide 25 percent of the total grant amount. Projects can take place on private land, Commercial Forest Act land or other non-state-owned land.
Project applications are due by May 14. Successful applicants will be notified by May 30.
The complete grant application package is available online at www.michigan.gov/dnr-grants by following the Deer PLAN link under Wildlife Habitat Management near the bottom of the page.
The Deer PLAN grant program is made possible by Michigan's new hunting and fishing license structure.

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Michigan DNR now taking applications for deer habitat improvement grants

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Sportsmen's clubs and other non-government organizations interested in deer habitat improvement on private land in the Upper Peninsula are encouraged to apply for Deer Habitat Improvement Partnership Initiative grants now through Sunday, March 31, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced today.

A total of $50,000 will be available in 2013 through the competitive DHIPI grant process. Project proposals from organizations with a formal mission to promote wildlife conservation and/or hunting seeking between $2,000 and $10,000 in funding are eligible for consideration.

Now in its fifth year, the DHIPI grant program is designed to attract and support proposals from non-government organizations interested in improving deer habitat on non-state-owned land in the Upper Peninsula, including private property and Commercial Forest Act-enrolled land. (Projects that provide foot access to the public are more likely to be successful.)

"There are three primary goals applicants should strive to meet," said DNR private lands wildlife biologist Bill Scullon. "The projects should produce tangible deer habitat improvements, build long-term partnerships with the DNR, and identify ways to showcase the benefits to the public."

Scullon said he encourages representatives of interested organizations to contact their local DNR wildlife biologist for help in developing competitive project proposals.

In 2012, six projects were funded in 11 Upper Peninsula counties, improving deer habitat on a total of 691 acres of private industrial forest and federal land.

The projects completed in 2012 ranged from planting red oak seedlings in Mackinac County to creating or improving wildlife openings in Delta, Menominee and Ontonagon counties. In addition to improving deer habitat, successful projects in Delta and Iron counties also provided improved access for youth and disabled hunters.

The DHIPI grant application packet can be accessed online by visiting www.michigan.gov/dnr-grants and clicking on the "Deer Habitat Improvement Partnership Initiative" link. Application deadline is Sunday, March 31; successful applicants will be notified by Monday, April 15. For more information, contact Bill Scullon at 906-563-9247 orscullonh@michigan.gov.

DHIPI grants are funded by the state's Deer Range Improvement Program (DRIP). Created by legislation in 1971, the DRIP fund is supported by a $1.50 allocation from each deer license sold (except for senior licenses), which equals $2.2 to $2.8 million in funding annually. This restricted funding is for the enhancement, maintenance, and acquisition of deer habitat statewide.

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Iowa Upcoming Reserved Hunt Opportunities

Beginning July 1, hunters can apply for the following reserved hunt opportunities: Dove, Military/Refuge Deer Firearm & Archery, State Park Deer Reduction, and Pheasant Draw hunts. Go towww.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/5834.htm to get specific details about each hunt. 

The Pheasant draw hunts are at Game Bird Habitat Areas in Benton, Newton and White counties. These areas were purchased or leased with funds from the Game Bird Habitat Stamp that is required when hunting pheasant, quail, dove, wild turkey, and ruffed grouse. The game bird habitat stamp is included in the resident youth hunt/trap license and the comprehensive lifetime hunting licenses.

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KDWPT SIGNING WALK-IN HUNTING CONTRACTS

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Signup deadline July 15 for landowners; new counties eligible for incentive payments

PRATT — Landowners interested in the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism’s (KDWPT) Walk-In Hunting Access Program (WIHA) — which pays landowners to allow public hunting access on their land — are reminded that the deadline for enrollment is July 15. The WIHA program, which began in 1995, has grown to include more than 1 million acres and nearly 3,000 contracts with Kansas landowners.

Almost anyone who owns, leases, or manages 80 contiguous acres of land with suitable wildlife habitat can qualify. A little more than half the land enrolled in WIHA is federal Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) grass, but other lands are also considered, including native rangeland, weedy wheat stubble, milo stubble, and riparian and wetland areas.
After receiving applications, KDWPT biologists evaluate wildlife habitat on the applicants' land. Payment rates are based on the size and location of tracts and the number of months the landowner will open the land to hunting. A 50-percent additional incentive payment is offered for WIHA in the following urban counties: Butler, Coffey, Cowley, Douglas, Franklin, Harvey, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Kingman, Leavenworth, Lyon, Miami, Osage, Ottawa, Reno, Saline, Sedgwick, Shawnee, Sumner, Wabaunsee, and Wyandotte.

Counties that have had historically low or are declining in program participation are also eligible for the 50-percent additional incentive payment. The following counties are eligible under this criteria: Allen, Anderson, Atchison, Barber, Barton, Bourbon, Brown, Chase, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Clay, Cloud, Crawford, Dickinson, Doniphan, Elk, Ellsworth, Geary, Greenwood, Harper, Jewell, Labette, Lincoln, Linn, Marion, Marshall, McPherson, Mitchell, Montgomery, Morris, Nemaha, Neosho, Pottawatomie, Pratt, Republic, Rice, Riley, Stafford, Washington, Wilson, and Woodson.
Once enrolled, the property is posted with signs indicating access dates, and a map of the tract will be included in a free atlas provided by KDWPT. Natural resource officers periodically patrol WIHA properties. In addition, state law provides protection to private individuals who lease their land to the state for recreational purposes from liability for damages or injuries resulting from ordinary negligence.

Lease options include open periods running Sept. 1-Jan. 31 and Nov. 1-Jan. 31, with the option to run through March 31 in areas where habitat and hunt opportunities are appropriate. A popular spin-off is the Spring Turkey WIHA Program, with lease dates from April 1- May 31. For more information, phone 620-672-5911.

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The Next Pure Michigan Hunt Winner Could Be You!

Would you like to hunt elk and bear, along with other species in Michigan next year? You can if you win one of three Pure Michigan Hunt (PMH) packages. However, to win you need to apply. Applications for the 2013 drawing are now available for purchase. You can purchase an unlimited number of $4 applications for Michigan's "Hunt of a Lifetime" from now until Dec. 31. Three winners will be drawn to win the ultimate prize package of licenses to hunt elk, bear, turkey, deer and waterfowl, plus various hunting merchandise yet to be determined. Dollars generated from this opportunity fund wildlife habitat management here in Michigan. Wildlife management in Michigan is funded by the users.

The three recent winners - Brad L. Belcher from Howell, Mark A. Schulz from southeast Michigan, and Dan A. Beaudoin from Waterford - were announced Feb. 9, 2012. In addition to their hunting licenses for elk, bear, turkey, deer and managed waterfowl, the three winners received the following prize package from Michigan companies and organizations:

• Ameristep: Brickhouse Groundblinds
• Darton Archery: 2012 Scorpion II Crossbows packages
• Ducks Unlimited Michigan Chapter: One year subscription and duck decoy
• Michigan Gun Owners: 30.06 Savage Arms rifle
• Michigan United Conservation Clubs: One year subscription youth and adult magazine
• MOR Archery: Nine Square Target Systems
• National Wild Turkey Federation, Michigan Chapter: Custom Box calls, hunting vests, turkey patches
• Northwoods Wholesale Outlets: Soroc sports sleds
• Quality Deer Management Association, Michigan Chapter: QDM start-up package

"When you are buying your new 2012 licenses, buy yourself a couple Pure Michigan Hunt applications," said DNR Wildlife Chief Russ Mason. "You could win every limited-access hunt the state of Michigan has to offer. We can't wait to hear the recent winners' stories of this spring turkey season. Last year's hunters had a blast."

You can purchase Pure Michigan Hunt applications anywhere DNR licenses are sold or you can purchase one online at www.mdnr-elicense.com. For more information on the PMH, visit www.michigan.gov/puremichiganhunt. The 2013 prize package of merchandise is currently being put together, and will be posted on the PMH website soon.

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North Dakota: Popular Hunting Areas Affected by Flood

Image via Wikipedia

More than half of 72,000 wildlife management area acres along the Missouri River that were once a haven for wildlife and a destination for hunters will likely be devoid of each this fall.

North Dakota Game and Fish Department biologists say nearly 40,000 acres – some of the most pristine public hunting lands in the state – have suffered from months of flooding.

Jeb Williams, wildlife resource management supervisor in Bismarck, said 15,000 acres of the Oahe Wildlife Management Area have been inundated with water, essentially making it swampland that is at least temporarily unattractive to wildlife.

“This area south of Bismarck-Mandan has been extremely popular with deer and pheasant hunters, because it provides some of the best wildlife habitat in the state,” Williams said. “But this year’s flood has changed the dynamics dramatically.”

There are 20-plus WMAs from Williston to south of Bismarck on the Missouri River System, and many were entirely or partially flooded through spring and summer.

Kent Luttschwager, wildlife resource management supervisor in Williston, said hunters will have to adapt this fall, as wildlife populations that have called the Missouri River bottoms home are now displaced because of high water.

“Lewis and Clark WMA is popular with hunters because it offers some of the most prolific wildlife habitat in the region,” Luttschwager said. “But exceptional wildlife habitat has been covered in water for several months.”

Dan Halstead, wildlife resource management supervisor in Riverdale, said the spillway channel running through Riverdale WMA near Garrison Dam was originally 30 yards wide, but is nearly 200 yards wide today.

“But this area was only covered in water for maybe a week as the water quickly made its way back into the channel,” Halstead said. Because of this, he said access is gradually coming around, and will continue to improve through September.

“We are going to have some vegetation issues, but the river bottoms in this area is in better condition than Bismarck and Williston, just because of the prolonged effects of overland flooding in those areas,” Halstead said.

While no one can predict how much property will be lost to this year’s record flood, Luttschwager said it will take time to recover.