Montana Region 1 Mule Deer

[Pagosa]

I have mostly hunted whitetails during the past three seasons in around the Kalispell/Plains area. I'm looking at trying to hunt mule deer this fall and wanted to know some general info about mule deer in northwestern Montana.
During past seasons by Plains it seemed the mule deer were in very concentrated in general areas that were more open and up pretty high in the mountains. There were large areas that were devoid of mule deer, until you got up higher. Is this normal from what others have experienced? Are the mule deer numbers really low, because the harvest is only 5-15% of the total harvest or people mainly hunt whitetails? I'm going to continue to hunt the Plains area in more isolated areas, but will probably go into the Swan/Seeker drainage since it's closer. Does anyone have any contacts for MTFWP personnel that focus on mule deer? Thanks for the help and I'm interested to hear what others have to say.

 

[Stone_Ice_1]

You are pretty much spot on for the Mule Deer around Plains. They are up high and in isolated areas. There are some areas worth hunting, but the deer are still fairly spread out. Only difference I'd say is I've seen more in the thickest timber areas around Plains than I have in any open areas.

 

[Gerald Martin]

Seems like there tends to be pockets here and there, with some drainages being good and others devoid of muleys. Mule deer bucks especially seem to stay high.

I'm sure there's a scientific reason why the deer prefer some areas more than others but I've found if I want to hunt for a mule deer specifically, I just head for the areas I've seen deer in the past.

Whitetails make up a large percentage of the harvest because they are much more accessible to the general public hunting off roads, lower elevations, and private lands. My guess is the whitetail/muley population is somewhere @ 70% whitetails and 30% mule deer.

 

[Pagosa]

Guys thanks for the feedback. I'm getting spring fever to go looking for antlers down there. I appreciate the help.

 

[BigHornRam]

Pagosa,

Talk to FWP biologist Bruce Sterling in T Falls. He has spent a lot of time up in the air doing survey's in unit 1. Nice guy too.

 

[Ben Long]

Bruce is a great source. My understanding is that the Fisher River drainage has the best muley habitat in R1 and all my mulies have come from that drainage. I see the same microhabitats holding mule deer year after year. Generally on the top third of the mountain, good water and some browse. I think mule deer here are well adapted to forest cover, but not the dense Douglas fir that whitetails really thrive in. Whitetail are a lot easier to put in the freezer, both because there are a lot more of them and because you don't have to climb a mountain to get to them. R1 has the potential for trophy mule deer, but it's not at all like the prairie or even sagebrush country.

 

[Bulldog0156]

The bio I talked to last fall said even though the Fisher has some of the best habitat in R1 for muleys, the population was not really growing.

 

[Ben Long]

I would agree with that Bulldog.

 

[Pagosa]

Pagosa,

Talk to FWP biologist Bruce Sterling in T Falls. He has spent a lot of time up in the air doing survey's in unit 1. Nice guy too.

Thanks for the contact. I will probably stick with hunting near Plains, since I already have a couple seasons invested there instead of hunting the Fisher River area.