Michigan conservation officers share tips for safe bowhunting

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Michigan’s bowhunting season opens today, Oct. 1, and Department of Natural Resources conservation officers are sharing tips for a safe bowhunting experience.

“Bowhunting is a popular pastime in Michigan and we want everyone to have a safe and enjoyable hunting season,” said Sgt. Tom Wanless, supervisor of the DNR's hunter education program. “There are some common-sense safety tips every hunter should review before heading to the woods.”

The top safety tips for bowhunting are:

• Before you go out, inspect equipment, including your tree stand. If anything is worn, frayed, cracked or peeling, replace it or get it fixed. If using a compound bow or crossbow, make sure the cables and pulleys are in good working order.
• When sharpening broadheads, be careful and take your time.
• Practice tree-stand safety. Nearly every year, a Michigan hunter is killed or seriously injured because he or she fell out of a tree stand. The DNR recommends using a full-body safety harness to get into and out of your tree stand.
• If using a tree stand, always use a haul line to raise and lower your gear.
• Keep arrows in the quiver until you are ready to use them. A common injury is to stab or injure yourself or a hunting companion while carrying arrows in your hand or nocked on your bow.
• Obtain permission from a landowner before hunting on his or her land, or using their land to access public land.
• Never take a shot at a deer that is beyond the maximum effective range at which you are comfortable shooting.
• If you are successful, field dress your deer and cool its meat immediately. Michigan’s unpredictable weather means we sometimes have warm October days. Warm temperatures can cause the meat to spoil quickly.
• When heading out to the woods, make sure you tell someone reliable where you are going and what time to expect you back. This information is valuable in helping conservation officers or sheriff's deputies to find you if you are lost.
• Also, think about carrying a cell phone, a compass, a flashlight and other small safety items when in the woods

EARLY MUZZLELOADER DEER SEASON BEGINS OCTOBER 11

Iowa’s popular early muzzleloader deer season begins Saturday. The season is an

opportunity for hunters to pursue deer using muzzle loading rifles or pistols. The early muzzleloader deer season runs from Oct. 11 – 19.

Hunters can expect deer behavior to begin changing as the breeding season, or rut, gets closer. Bucks are starting to show signs of preparing for the rut by making scrapes and rubs. Some cool weather may cause an increase in this behavior. 

Deer will have plenty of places to hide as the harvest has been delayed due to cold and wet conditions.  They will likely be seeking out any remaining green browse and acorns, if available.  Stand sites that take advantage of these food resources or trails connecting them to bedding areas are good bets during this season. 

Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) that impacted the deer herd in certain local areas was not reported in 2014. Deer will begin moving in to those areas where a void was created by the disease in 2012 and 2013.

Muzzleloader hunters should remember that well camouflaged bowhunters and others who enjoy the fall countryside will be sharing the woods with them. Hunting hours are from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset and muzzleloader hunters are required to wear blaze orange

All deer taken must be reported using the harvest reporting system by midnight the day after the deer is recovered.  Accurately reporting your kill is an important part of the deer management program in Iowa, playing a vital role in managing deer populations and future hunting opportunities.  Hunters can report their deer online at www.iowadnr.gov, by calling 1-800-771-4692 or at any license vendor.  For hunters with Internet access, the online reporting of your harvest is the easiest way to register your deer.

Last year, early muzzleloader hunters reported harvesting about 2,950 deer.

Related articles

• Archery Deer Hunting Season Opens October 1
• Primitive Weapons Deer Season Opens Oct. 11
• 7 Secrets to Using Deer Decoys Effectively

Indiana Top 5 deer hunting misconceptions

1. I cannot harvest an antlerless deer in firearms season.

• FALSE—An antlerless deer can be harvested in firearms season with the proper license (such as a bonus antlerless license). A deer firearms license is valid for one antlered deer.

2. When hunting in an urban deer zone, I have to follow all urban deer zone regulations.
• TRUE and FALSE—If you're hunting in an urban deer zone, using an urban deer zone license and working towards those bag limits, you must follow those regulations (earn-a-buck). If you're hunting in an urban deer zone and working towards statewide bag limits (archery, firearms, muzzleloader, etc.), you would follow the statewide bag limits and regulations.

3. I need both a hunting and a deer license to hunt for deer.
• FALSE—A hunting license is not required to hunt deer. Only a deer license for the appropriate season is required.

4. There is an acreage requirement to qualify for the farmland license exemption.
• FALSE—There is no acreage requirement. To see if you qualify, check out the Hunting & Trapping Guide.

5. The license vendor is responsible for knowing what license I need.
• FALSE—It's always the hunter’s responsibility to have the right license for the right season.

View the deer hunting FAQs.

Deer Hotline
If you have questions about deer hunting regulations, call
(812) 334-3795, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Clarification on firearm use during archery season

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission recently adopted several changes to the Deer Management Assistance Permit (DMAP) program, in order to provide additional assistance

to landowners on an individual basis.

A DMAP is a permit that allows for the take of an antlerless deer and may only be utilized during an open season for deer. In order for a landowner to receive DMAPs, one of the following four criteria needs to be met:

• Significant agricultural or horticultural damage.
• Documented serious disease outbreak that threatens humans, livestock or deer health.
• Significant safety hazard caused by deer.
• Current antlerless deer regulations insufficient to achieve landowner deer-management objectives.

In the past, individuals possessing a DMAP were able to utilize only the legal equipment for that particular hunting season (e.g., only archery equipment could be utilized during archery season). However, in some cases archery equipment has proven to be ineffective, and damage incurred by deer has continued through the season as a result.

The new change to the DMAP program will allow a DMAP holder, on a case-by-case basis, to seek additional signed permission to harvest deer using a firearm during select time periods of the archery season. DMAP holders will be required to have hunted their property during the archery season for the last two years and be in good standing with the DMAP program, meaning they have reported all DMAPs requested, issued and utilized on an annual basis.

The changes recommended to the Natural Resources Commission were developed collaboratively between Michigan Farm Bureau and special-interest groups, including Michigan United Conservation Club and the Michigan Bow Hunters Association.

“We understand when several special-interest groups come together to come up with a solution, compromise on all sides is important but can be difficult,” said DNR deer biologist Ashley Autenrieth. “These changes to the DMAP program will have a sunset in three years, at which time we will evaluate the changes and determine whether they are having the desired impact.”

Statewide, DMAP holders can seek additional signed permission to harvest deer from Oct. 1-14with a firearm. Within a pilot area of the northern Lower Peninsula (Antrim, Benzie, Charlevoix, Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties), DMAP holders can seek additional signed permission to harvest deer with a firearm during the majority of the archery season. Firearm use will be prohibited Oct. 1-4 and Nov. 10-14 in the new pilot program area. In all cases, the use of a firearm during archery season will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and DMAP holders must have signed permission in order to utilize firearms during any portion of the archery season.

Related articles

• Nuisance antlerless deer hunting tags will be made available for public use in a select area within Florence County
• Landowners Seek Doe Hunters

Fall Hunting Preview: Opportunity and Regulations Roundtable

---

Are you up to speed on the deer hunting regulations for this season? Curious about the additional hunting opportunities available to you this fall? Ever wonder about the most common hunting violations that conservation officers see? These issues and more are covered in our latest video, Fall Hunting Preview: Opportunity and Regulations Roundtable. So sit back with a warm beverage on a cool fall afternoon to watch the video from beginning to end, or click the times listed in the video description to view individual topics that catch your interest. 

Also, don't forget to tweet your harvest photos this deer season using the hashtag #MiDeerPic, or share your favorite hunting memories and mentoring experiences using the hashtag#MoreToTheHunt, because there is always more to the hunt than the harvest!

Finally, we encourage Michigan hunters to support Sportsmen Against Hunger when you purchase your license this hunting season. Just tell your license vendor you would like to donate to MSAH. Your donation will be used to help process venison donated to the program. Hunters can also support the program by donating a legally taken deer to one of the supporting processors across the state. Each year venison processed through this program helps provide a healthy source of protein in over 100,000 meals. For more information go to www.sportsmenagainsthunger.org. Let’s keep this important tradition of helping others that need a hand going and growing stronger.

PLOTS Regulations

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Out-of-state hunters are reminded that state law does not allow nonresidents to hunt on North Dakota Game and Fish Department owned or managed lands during the first week of the pheasant season.

Private Land Open to Sportsmen acreage and state wildlife management areas are open to hunting by resident hunters only from Oct. 11-17. Nonresidents, however, can still hunt those days on other state-owned and federal lands, or private land.

The law applies to all small game, waterfowl, furbearer and big game hunting on PLOTS and state wildlife management areas during the first seven days of the pheasant season. Starting Oct. 18 this year, nonresidents may hunt on PLOTS and WMAs as long as the appropriate season is open.

In addition, all hunters are reminded that activities such as riding horses for hunting purposes or for pleasure on PLOTS require written permission from the landowner. Permission from the landowner is always required for motorized vehicle access, such as for setting decoys in a field, unless specially designated on the PLOTS sign.

Also, leaving equipment or other provisions in a PLOTS area overnight, for example tree stands or blinds, decoys, firearms and archery equipment, trail cameras, or any type of bait used to attract big game animals, is not allowed without written permission from the landowner.

Pure Michigan Hunt winners hit the woods for fall hunting season

Every year Pure Michigan Hunt winners get to spend their fall hunting season living out a big dream - pursuing elk, bear, antlerless deer, turkey and ducks in Michigan's outdoors. For the most recent group of winners, the hunting adventure has begun.
On Sept. 14, Frank Zrepskey of Algonac successfully harvested a large 6 x 7 bull elk with the help of his guide, Gene Skiba, and sons. Zrepskey used his 30.06, given to him by Michigan Gun Owners as part of his Pure Michigan Hunt prize package, to harvest the elk.
“This elk hunt was great. The weather was perfect, we saw lots of game, and when the right bull came along, we were successful,” said Zrepskey. “The whole Pure Michigan Hunt contest win has been a great experience for me!”

Bruce Shaneour of Osseo also was successful in his elk hunt. He harvested a nice 6 x 6 bull elk on Sept. 27 in the Vanderbilt area with help from his guide, Kevin Johnson of Big Boys Adventures. [Pictured: Bruce Shaneour, left, and guide Kevin Johnson with Shaneour's Pure Michigan Hunt elk.]
“What a hunt! The elk were in full rut and bugling all around us. I’ve hunted elk out west a few times, but I’ve never had an experience like this,” said Shaneour. “Kevin Johnson and his team at Big Boys Adventures were excellent. It was the most phenomenal Michigan elk footage they’ve ever captured.”
Bill Kring of Cadillac is still awaiting his chance to harvest a trophy Michigan bull elk.
Bear season is also under way for the Pure Michigan Hunt winners.

This year, there was a Pure Michigan Hunt license transfer of a bear tag. Kring generously transferred his bear tag to a Michigan veteran from Manton. This veteran had the opportunity to hunt with Rob Nixon, on land southwest of Cadillac, and was able to harvest a 217-pound black bear. The veteran reports having a great time on his hunt and being "extremely happy" with his harvest. [Pictured, a Michigan veteran from Manton (left) with the black bear he harvested and guide Rob Nixon.]
New this year, Pure Michigan Hunt winners can now transfer one or all of their licenses to another eligible hunter of their choice or keep the licenses for themselves. This will allow anyone to buy as many applications as they want for themselves and others instead of needing to know someone else’s driver’s license number, address and birthdate to apply for the other hunter.
All three Pure Michigan Hunt winners have the flexibility to hunt many different times and places, with the ability to pick and choose hunt areas and seasons that fit into their schedules.
For hunters who dream of experiences like this, there's still plenty of time to make 2015 the hunt of a lifetime by applying for the Pure Michigan Hunt. Along with all of the hunting licenses, each winner will receive a hunting prize package valued at more than $4,000. Visit www.michigan.gov/puremichiganhunt for more information and to purchase applications.
Waterfowl season is coming up next for the Pure Michigan Hunt winners; look for more about their adventures coming soon.