mt_archery_guy
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Curious if anyone has spent much time in the 314 goat area lately that knows if the numbers of mature Billys is on a downward trend?
Goat area 314 quality
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Schaaf
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It’s an okay goat unit
EYJONAS!
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Contact julie at fwp, she'll get you lined out. There's a few billies in there.
mt_archery_guy
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I tried to contact Karen Loveless for weeks, who is the biologist for that area and finally found out she was leaving the position. So I was told to contact Julie Cunningham, and when I talked with her, she said it wasn't her area, and didn't know anything about it. The reason I was asking about the billies , was in the midst of all this, I was told the number of younger billies being taken over the last few years has been going up.
EYJONAS!
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Where are you located
The Hedgehog
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I'm not claiming to know anything about that unit, other than there's lots of goats and it's big area with lots of goat country. My guess on the young billies is the disproportionate number of hunters who don't have a clue of what they are shooting at. Roughly 1/3 of the goat harvest long term in all the units, including the best ones are nannies - which sorta proves my point.
mt_archery_guy
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I live in Butte
EYJONAS!
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If your in Bozeman, or live in the area? If not do you travel to Bozeman? One trip into Stone Glacier and talk to Pete and the boys there and youd probably be more lined out than talking to a Biologist......... Someone from SG may even have the same tag......
EYJONAS!
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There's lots of goats, lots of area, lots of access, not a high quality Billy unit. Like Greenhorn said, "My guess on the young billies is the disproportionate number of hunters who don't have a clue of what they are shooting at. Roughly 1/3 of the goat harvest long term in all the units, including the best ones are nannies - which sorta proves my point."
If you find a 9 inch older goat I wouldn't be passing..... older meaning over 7 or 8.
If you find a 9 inch older goat I wouldn't be passing..... older meaning over 7 or 8.
mt_archery_guy
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Well, I'm going to wait later in the season, so I'm not looking for a record book Billy. I would be satisfied with a nice mature Billy with very good hair.
EYJONAS!
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Sounds good. Good luck to you share some pictures and the story when you connect!
mt_archery_guy
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Sure, if I get any decent photos during scouting I will post.
mt_archery_guy
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Ran into this guy a few weeks ago...
Drake4
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That is a great goat unit and I’d guess has as many mature billies as any other unit in the state.
I’ve spent a ton of time in the unit although only 1 day goat hunting. We saw a lot of goats and a big, mature billy came home with us.
I’ve spent a ton of time in the unit although only 1 day goat hunting. We saw a lot of goats and a big, mature billy came home with us.
BuzzH
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Does anyone beside me see the trouble with this?
When hunters know more about the unit than the biologists, who are making the decisions on harvest numbers, etc...Houston, we have a problem.
Same thing when a friend drew a tag years ago in the Bitterroots. He called the local biologists/fwp and wanted to know about the populations, etc. similar to what the OP is asking. He was told to contact Duncan Gilchrist as he "probably knows more about the goats than we do".
Gee, I wonder why we're down to 1 goat tag in the 'root?
To answer the OP's initial question, I hunted goats there a long time ago and any information I have would be out of date. Judging by the number of goats I saw way back then, and knowing they have spread out more, I would think there are good mature billy goats to be had.
When hunters know more about the unit than the biologists, who are making the decisions on harvest numbers, etc...Houston, we have a problem.
Same thing when a friend drew a tag years ago in the Bitterroots. He called the local biologists/fwp and wanted to know about the populations, etc. similar to what the OP is asking. He was told to contact Duncan Gilchrist as he "probably knows more about the goats than we do".
Gee, I wonder why we're down to 1 goat tag in the 'root?
To answer the OP's initial question, I hunted goats there a long time ago and any information I have would be out of date. Judging by the number of goats I saw way back then, and knowing they have spread out more, I would think there are good mature billy goats to be had.
mt_archery_guy
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Well, hopefully we don't have an early snow year which will allow some decent access.
Thanks to all...
EYJONAS!
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In some cases boots on the ground information is better than someone flying around in a helicopter 1 time a year.
BuzzH
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Right, because its so difficult to contact the handful of hunters that draw tags each year...I mean, its only their job to manage our wildlife.
BigHornRam
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Hunters are required to bring in their goat within 10 days of harvest to FWP. Pertinent information is gathered at that time.
BuzzH
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Yeah right. They measure the horn lengths, take a stab at aging (don't collect teeth) and ask where you shot it, BTDT.
I offered up information on where I saw every goat, classified them by nanny, billy, kids, dates along with GPS coordinates. I hunted a total of 19 days and saw goats everyday. I also spent a long weekend scouting and had information from the previous 2 years when I hunted unlimited sheep. I also saw goats on a late elk hunt in the same unit that year I killed my goat.
"We don't need any of that information" says Bob Henderson while I checked my goat I shot in 314 at the Missoula office on Spurgin Road...
So, no I don't think "pertinent" information is collected at that time, even when its offered to them.
If I put that kind of "effort" into my job, I would hope I was fired.
