Montana Mule Deer Mismanagement

[El Jason]

I am not sure that NR would be ultimately limited to 10% in strategy one. NR numbers now state wide are not that much more than 10% if you only count A tags. Set quotas high enough and there are going to be left over tags at the end of the draw. FWP is going to sell those tags, and most are going to go to NR.

Correct. So you went to all the effort to get LE in order to achieve this. It seems like instead of making everything LE just so you can impose a 10% cap, it would be far easier to simply allocate X number of NR tags per region.

 

[cgasner1]

This has been the company line for a LONG time. It’s going to take a lot of political capital to change things, and will absolutely require support from folks many view as enemies.

Between that and everyone thinks their fart smells the best so we spend to much time cutting each other down instead of pushing and singular idea that could begin to make a change

 

[El Jason]

Between that and everyone thinks their fart smells the best so we spend to much time cutting each other down instead of pushing and singular idea that could begin to make a change

Yep. See plenty of that around here.

 

[8andcounting]

Nothing will change In Montana until residents and non residents both realize they are where it starts . Regional caps . Different season structure . NR will deal with season structure change . Most R will never give up the turkey day shoot

 

[brockel]

Nothing will change In Montana

I agree

 

[Eric Albus]

Glad to hear the guy who has taken hundreds of pictures of mule deer, has many mule deer skulls on the wall, and has collected dozens upon dozens of sheds has no clue that they actually have an excellent population right now. thats the definition of one who does VS one who types about. I would recomend you get out and WALK more.

Don’t know what state or region you’re talking about.
Mt R6&7 mule deer populations are down, significantly. Pockets with numbers with more private acres.

 

[Eric Albus]

Yeah - i think he heard big shooter and albus shoot down any sort of LE season plenty of times. Perhaps thats why it strikes a nerve any time its brought up

Unfortunately for moga MT residents wont pay for access to shoot 140" deer.

I’ve never shot down LE. I’ve advocated for it in R6 for mule deer.

I think LE should be last straw tho. Try changing season structure/split the tag wt/md, end rut hunt… Limited entry should be last thing tried when all other measures fall short.

 

[Forkyfinder]

Don’t know what state or region you’re talking about.
Mt R6&7 mule deer populations are down, significantly. Pockets with numbers with more private acres.

I’ve never shot down LE. I’ve advocated for it in R6 for mule deer.

I think LE should be last straw tho. Try changing season structure/split the tag wt/md, end rut hunt… Limited entry should be last thing tried when all other measures fall short.

NR harvest 3.4 x as many bucks in r6 in 2025 compared to 2006.

Season structure wont address that.

Would have to be tag qtys limited.

 

[brockel]

NR harvest 3.4 x as many bucks in r6 in 2025 compared to 2006.

Season structure wont address that.

It might. Most of those bucks could be getting killed because of easy rut hunting. Take the season out of the rut and they aren’t as easy to kill

 

[El Jason]

I think there’s a very high likelihood that I will apply for a Montana nonresident deer tag again before anything changes in terms of season structure or dates. And don’t plan on hunting there until I retire, so…

 

[INMT]

Season structure wont address that.

I think it’s hard to say without trying. The prairie area Ive hunted in R4 is night and day difference with bucks sighted from September->November.

I think a different season structure would make a difference there.

 

[Forkyfinder]

I think it’s hard to say without trying. The prairie area Ive hunted in R4 is night and day difference with bucks sighted from September->November.

I think a different season structure would make a difference there.

Success rates in other states would theoretically be lower then. Right?

 

[INMT]

Success rates in other states would theoretically be lower then. Right?

Maybe. You’d have to tell me. I honestly don’t pay attention to other states harvest stats.

 

[MTTW]

If you let everyone with an archery elk license hunt with a rifle, I would expect it to greatly effect harvest. In fact, I would expect the vast majority of bulls to be killed in many units in the state each year. That is essentially what MT does to mule deer but actually much worse, anyone with a deer tag can take a rifle and hunt the same unit through the entire rut. When the hunting in that unit is reduced to basically shit, they can move to the neighboring unit and do the same.

This stuff isn't that hard to figure out.

 

[Forkyfinder]

Maybe. You’d have to tell me. I honestly don’t pay attention to other states harvest stats.

Not from what harvest rates show.

 

[cgasner1]

Success rates in other states would theoretically be lower then. Right?

Harvest rates I don’t feel like would come into play due to how the structures are regulated. Think it would be more telling look at buck to die ratios to see why it works better

 

[brockel]

Success rates in other states would theoretically be lower then. Right?

Not if the number of bucks in those states are higher. I live in Montana but work in ND. I can tell you which state I see WAY more bucks in and it’s not the one I live in. Yes ND hunts the rut but it’s a restricted hunt

 

[mtmuley]

Montana harvest rates. Hilarious. Not one person at FWP in the state of Montana has ANY idea how many mule deer are killed here in any given year. mtmuley

 

[Forkyfinder]

Harvest rates I don’t feel like would come into play due to how the structures are regulated. Think it would be more telling look at buck to die ratios to see why it works better

Ease of harvest should affect success rate. The total bucks remaining would be a function of the total tags issused or hunters.

Wy manages specifically for those higher ratios by more than just season structure.

Perhaps why 10k nr tags vanished in the last 10 years there.

 

[Hem]

Increasing hunting opportunity in Headwaters is outright dumb...its not safe. No surprise FWP.