Changes to MT Upland Season - Resident Priority Takes Effect This Year

[Forkyfinder]

then we’ll just come out for the late shoulder season

Available Hunts/Now Booking – Birch Creek Guide Service

A cost effective 2000 for access on the otc b tag.

 

[MTTW]

If the season ended for everyone the 14th of november - would harvest be reduced? If so - why doesnt limiting the party responsible for half the harvest not do the same thing?

It could certainly reduce elk harvest too - weather being the significant driver.

If you have 10 hunters hunting 2 legal or desirable animals and you reduce the hunters by half it is very possible that harvest won't be reduced.

If you change season dates to where animals are less vulnerable, harvest will likely be reduced.

 

[Pagosa]

I cant see any valid reason why nonresidents can hunt for 12 weeks of general season (elk/deer) or make multiple trips to the state in archery and/or rifle. I was a nonresident longer in Montana than a resident and I would be really dissappointed in the hunting experience nowdays if I took off time to hunt Montana and drew a nr tag. Limiting the seasons, splitting up the seasons, or pick your weapon would likely benefit the majority of hunters and landowners.

 

[Gerald Martin]

If the season ended for everyone the 14th of november - would harvest be reduced? If so - why doesnt limiting the party responsible for half the harvest not do the same thing?

It could certainly reduce elk harvest too - weather being the significant driver.

FWP harvest numbers from 2025 show NR’s harvested 22% of total deer killed across the state. To my knowledge the only place NR’s are killing 50% of the deer is when you consider buck harvest in region 6 and 7 specifically.

Could your strategy improve resident hunter experience by reducing crowding on those dates? Yes. Will it reduce the harvest rates by NR? Doubtful to me. NR’s are averaging @ an 8 day hunt regardless of the length of the current season. Same amount of NR’s still come and hunt the same amount of days on average. It would just compress the same amount of hunters into a shorter time frame.

Would it change the percentage of NR harvest on buck mule deer in region 6 and 7?

 

[brockel]

FWP harvest numbers from 2025 show NR’s harvested 22% of total deer killed across the state. To my knowledge the only place NR’s are killing 50% of the deer is when you consider buck harvest in region 6 and 7 specifically.

Could your strategy improve resident hunter experience by reducing crowding on those dates? Yes. Will it reduce the harvest rates by NR? Doubtful to me. NR’s are averaging @ an 8 day hunt regardless of the length of the current season. Same amount of NR’s still come and hunt the same amount of days on average. It would just compress the same amount of hunters into a shorter time frame.

Would it change the percentage of NR harvest on buck mule deer in region 6 and 7?

I believe it would change the buck harvest for non residents in region 6 and 7. When I was younger non residents showed up for opening day of deer season for a week when deer numbers were better. Now you are more likely to see a higher number of them over the last weeks of the season when the mule deer bucks are dumb and easy to kill

 

[Forkyfinder]

FWP harvest numbers from 2025 show NR’s harvested 22% of total deer killed across the state. To my knowledge the only place NR’s are killing 50% of the deer is when you consider buck harvest in region 6 and 7 specifically.

Could your strategy improve resident hunter experience by reducing crowding on those dates? Yes. Will it reduce the harvest rates by NR? Doubtful to me. NR’s are averaging @ an 8 day hunt regardless of the length of the current season. Same amount of NR’s still come and hunt the same amount of days on average. It would just compress the same amount of hunters into a shorter time frame.

Would it change the percentage of NR harvest on buck mule deer in region 6 and 7?

I tbought we were concerned about mule deer bucks - not white tailed deer? Why you use "all deer"?

33.5% is the number of mule deer bucks


In addition - if the peak rut is from nov 10 - nov 25th - and "hunting the rut" is a great driver of harvest, how would not taking 33.5% of the harvest thats happening and moving all but 5 days out of the peak rut not make an impact?

If you believe that rut hunting mule deer contributes to the harvest - then yes. Id conclude it would reduce harvest.

 

[8andcounting]

I tbought we were concerned about mule deer - not white tailed deer? Why you use "all deer"?

33.5% is the number of mule deer.

View attachment 415435
In addition - if the peak rut is from nov 10 - nov 25th - and "hunting the rut" is a great driver of harvest, how would not taking 33.5% of the harvest thats happening and moving all but 5 days out of the peak rut not make an impact?

If you believe that rut hunting mule deer contributes to the harvest - then yes. Id conclude it would reduce harvest.

Still . It isn’t the NR slaughter fest that’s doing all the damage . In fact way less than half . I do think things should be capped regionally . For both NR and R

 

[Treeshark]

Applying this to big game- logically, it’s hard to argue it wouldn’t make a difference. Less days allowed afield for the highest performing hunter group is indeed likely to lead to a harvest reduction. Would it be drastic? I’m not sure, but taking the top rifle hunters out of the rut has to make a difference you’d think.

We see this philosophy deployed in sports fairly regularly to account for performance discrepancies between males and females (different qualifying times for Boston, completion cutoffs for the Iron Man etc)- it works to level the playing field and redistribute achievement. Its kind of a similar concept to the youth hunt- only with adults.

 

[Forkyfinder]

Still . It isn’t the NR slaughter fest that’s doing all the damage . In fact way less than half . I do think things should be capped regionally . For both NR and R

Well the share of NR harvest of MD by percentage has almost increased 60% in the last 20 years.

So - i think its safe to say if the mule deer are declining and residents are getting and smaller share, its time to do something for R.

 

[brockel]

Still . It isn’t the NR slaughter fest that’s doing all the damage . In fact way less than half . I do think things should be capped regionally . For both NR and R

Have you not seen region 7 harvest data? The NR slaughter fest may not be hurting the overall population much. But it’s definitely having an effect on the mule deer buck population

 

[Treeshark]

residents are getting and smaller share, its time to do something for R.

Lower the qualifying time for the top performing group (or restrict them to 10/1-10/31).

 

[Irrelevant]

Same amount of NR’s still come and hunt the same amount of days on average. It would just compress the same amount of hunters into a shorter time frame.

Which will increase crowding. Something everyone also loves to complain about

 

[Forkyfinder]

Which will increase crowding. Something everyone also loves to complain about

Youre right. The best thing would be to correct the legislative nightmare requring a minimum and cut tags to a sustainable level.

5k off the top seems likely next session or season setting.

 

[El Jason]

How did an upland birds thread turn into a mule deer thread? Oh wait…

 

[Ben Lamb]

How did an upland birds thread turn into a mule deer thread? Oh wait…

You must be new to Hunt Talk.

 

[DFS]

Youre right. The best thing would be to correct the legislative nightmare requring a minimum and cut tags to a sustainable level.

5k off the top seems likely next session or season setting.

Here are some popular Wyoming general units. I promise to step down as Complainer in Chief if we get close to those levels. I wonder why Wyoming had to cap nonresidents in those regions.

 

[Gerald Martin]

How did an upland birds thread turn into a mule deer thread? Oh wait…

Wait until it becomes common knowledge that NR hunters applying for the 900 series antelope license enjoyed an 80% success rate in drawing their licenses this year..

 

[DFS]

Wait until it becomes common knowledge that NR hunters applying for the 900 series antelope license enjoyed an 80% success rate in drawing their licenses this year..

That’s fine we had record counts since they started counting this year.

 

[brockel]

How did an upland birds thread turn into a mule deer thread? Oh wait…

Don’t worry it will be trumps fault at some point in this thread

 

[Forkyfinder]

Wait until it becomes common knowledge that NR hunters applying for the 900 series antelope license enjoyed an 80% success rate in drawing their licenses this year..

I guess we'll just always wait for you, moga, and mcs to address the shifted baseline of why 1 in 5 to 1 in 3 md bucks harvested should be acceptable to the resource shareholders.

It does speak to what long time residents say though. NR are a problem for mule deer.