Exciting news for ND Mule Deer hunters

[hansontyrel]

Sounds like some good news for those of us who hunt mule deer in ND.

http://www.thedickinsonpress.com/sp...ish-western-nd-mule-deer-population-increased

To add, extra land for us as well:

http://www.thedickinsonpress.com/ne...-family-land-game-and-fish-establish-wildlife

 

[Flatrock]

Yea it was definitely a good week of news! The badlands are going to be kicking out some monster bucks.

 

[8andcounting]

just hope they continue to leave the doe's alone...... the population has nearly doubled since they quit shooting does, because in 2011 the population was nearly decimated because of over harvest...... mixed in with bad winters .

 

[Jamen]

When I was out hunting this past rifle season I could tell the numbers were way up from what they were. It is good to see the numbers bouncing back. Most likely will not draw a tag it took us 8 years to get the one we have but you never know! if nothing else I will be out there bow hunting. Now if I could draw a moose or big horn tag this year id be a happy camper

 

[Trigger50]

We are starting to see the mule deer numbers rise in eastern Wyoming too. G&F has NOT allowed doe harvest for 4 yrs now. Hope the trend continues.

 

[hansontyrel]

I was really happy with the numbers I saw this year. Slickheads everywhere it seemed. Hopefully can draw this year too, saw some absolute monsters come out of the Medora area.

 

[Badlandcat]

Population is looking better every year over there, lots of bucks, ultra long bow season and the chance to get two Muley buck tags! Great state to hunt. Wish Mt would figure out that you can't kill does all the time and hope the population increases.

 

[Jamen]

It has done wonders for their population. I almost would like to see it happen to whitetails as well but I highly doubt we will see that. I agree there were slickheads all over most of which all had young with them, I saw a lot of twins and even a few triplets.

 

[speedgoatstunna]

Cant wait for bow season to get here. Love those badlands mulies!

 

[mixedbag]

Are bow hunts for muleys otc there? 9 deer per sq mile is pretty good.If your seeing twin and triplet fawns they must be very healthy deer.Glad to see some game commissions closing doe seasons to rebound the numbers.I wish they would do that on the gamelands by my home

 

[speedgoatstunna]

Deer Bow – Resident – not limited. Nonresident bow licenses valid for any white-tailed deer statewide are not limited. Nonresident any-deer bow licenses, valid for any deer except antlerless mule deer in deer gun hunting units 3B1, 3B2, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E and 4F, are limited to 172, a number equal to 15 percent of the total mule deer gun season licenses made available during the previous year.

Resident bow tags are otc. If a nonresident wants to hunt muleys tho one would have to apply. Never heard what the odds are for that drawing before.

 

[BlakeA]

Are bow hunts for muleys otc there? 9 deer per sq mile is pretty good.If your seeing twin and triplet fawns they must be very healthy deer.Glad to see some game commissions closing doe seasons to rebound the numbers.I wish they would do that on the gamelands by my home

No. It's a lottery for non residents and the quotas are set each year based on a total of 15% of the previous years total resident gun mule deer tag quota. As far as game commissions are concerned, they were a MAJOR factor in the complete decimation of the mule deer population and overall deer population in our state 8 years ago. They were not the only factor by any means but they played a huge role. The only reason we have had a few solid seasons of good quality is because they cut the tags by 60% and removed doe harvest for 5 years. We went from 140k tags in 2007 to 45k last year for statewide gun hunting.

 

[hansontyrel]

Cant wait for bow season to get here. Love those badlands mulies!

Nice looking velvet buck! Some of the badlands/Killdeer moutain bucks I have seen made me smash the brakes in the last couple years!

 

[Jamen]

There was talk a few years back about the thought of only allowing one buck tag per person, bow, gun, or muzzleloader. That never went through, so potentially one could get 2 mule deer bucks and a whitetail buck in the same season. I like how they managed the mule deer population after it dwindled to very low numbers. I think they should look at a better way of managing the whitetail. Though it is a hard juggling match to play.