Montana General Season Structure Proposal

[Gerald Martin]

@Gerald Martin do you feel like the elk will be too vulnerable on private in october if there is late rut action?

Might be the only insightful comment i saw on facebook.

Too vulnerable with the proposed rifle
antlerless on private in October? No I do not think they will be too vulnerable since most antlerless harvest is by unit specific B licenses. Regional biologists will still be setting the numbers of B licenses available based on where the herd is at in relation to unit objectives.

There are some units that allow either-sex harvest with the either sex elk tag but many of those units have pretty extensive public land. Public lands will not be open for antlerless harvest in the October season and elk which are dispersed from private to public because of hunting pressure will be safe until November.

 

[DFS]

Gonna be something like @1300-1500 per unit to spread out 200K hunters. LE permits statewide would ensure that there’s going to be a lot of folks not hunting each year.

It’s crazy to me that some folks most critical of the proposal because of “loss of opportunity” are at the same time calling for LE state wide.

Completely agree.

 

[DFS]

For the people that are saying don’t take my opportunity away to hunt rutted up muleys they sure are offering their opportunity up pretty fast with LE. There is also the crowd that are saying extremely low buck to doe ratios are healthy. Studies coming from states where there is no general rut hunt and not the same mix of private vs. public land.

 

[Forkyfinder]

Too vulnerable with the proposed rifle
antlerless on private in October? No I do not think they will be too vulnerable since most antlerless harvest is by unit specific B licenses. Regional biologists will still be setting the numbers of B licenses available based on where the herd is at in relation to unit objectives.

There are some units that allow either-sex harvest with the either sex elk tag but many of those units have pretty extensive public land. Public lands will not be open for antlerless harvest in the October season and elk which are dispersed from private to public because of hunting pressure will be safe until November.

Appreciate the response and i agree after hearing this.

Personally i wont shoot a cow on a property that wont let me hunt a buck/bull so it doesnt marter much to me.

 

[FREAK]

For the people that are saying don’t take my opportunity away to hunt rutted up muleys they sure are offering their opportunity up pretty fast with LE. There is also the crowd that are saying extremely low buck to doe ratios are healthy. Studies coming from states where there is no general rut hunt and not the same mix of private vs. public land.

Go read rockslides take. They’re all about low buck:doe ratios. Bunch of forky blasters over there. “Everything fine now that FWP limited doe tags…”.

Wild a bunch of “hunters” want to bring a species to the brink of extinction.

 

[cgasner1]

Go read rockslides take. They’re all about low buck:doe ratios. Bunch of forky blasters over there. “Everything fine now that FWP limited doe tags…”.

Wild a bunch of “hunters” want to bring a species to the brink of extinction.

I hope they show up with the argument of we should also manage sheep the same way

 

[DFS]

Go read rockslides take. They’re all about low buck:doe ratios. Bunch of forky blasters over there. “Everything fine now that FWP limited doe tags…”.

Wild a bunch of “hunters” want to bring a species to the brink of extinction.

Correction the commission limited doe tags. Our biologists advocated for continuing to eradicate them. Yet we are supposed to trust them. If anything gets done I certainly don’t expect fwp to support it.

 

[FREAK]

I hope they show up with the argument of we should also manage sheep the same way

Yeah that is there too…no need to consider diseases, whether, hunting pressure, land development…as long as we’re at the minimum viable fawn recruitment targets, we’re good for “opportunity” management objectives. According to them, You/we are just a bunch of disgruntled bubbas..

most of them..there’s some that agree with the proposal.

 

[Rie Bread]

I like the preposed regulations. I didn’t realize there was a pdf of the plan in the first post and have read that draft now. I have a few notes that may or may not matter or have been discussed

1. I don’t see a reason to have archery season go into August for any species. The reset period is somewhat of a joke anyway.

2. the over all days of mule deer hunting are unchanged and I don’t see any benefit to the change other than no rut hunting. I’d wager the number of hunter days would be almost the same. I don’t see the need to change the mule deer rifle season at all except limit rut hunting, so 3 weeks( concentrating pressure?)

3. I’m unsure the region limitation is needed due to the outlined whitetail/ mule season outlined in the pdf. Why not just have the season dates be the regulation, whitetail only in November, mule deer in October?

 

[Ought Six]

I like the preposed regulations. I didn’t realize there was a pdf of the plan in the first post and have read that draft now. I have a few notes that may or may not matter or have been discussed

1. I don’t see a reason to have archery season go into August for any species. The reset period is somewhat of a joke anyway.

2. the over all days of mule deer hunting are unchanged and I don’t see any benefit to the change other than no rut hunting. I’d wager the number of hunter days would be almost the same. I don’t see the need to change the mule deer rifle season at all except limit rut hunting, so 3 weeks( concentrating pressure?)

3. I’m unsure the region limitation is needed due to the outlined whitetail/ mule season outlined in the pdf. Why not just have the season dates be the regulation, whitetail only in November, mule deer in October?

I think if you read this thread, all 3 of your notes are elaborated on and clarified

 

[rogerthat]

Go read rockslides take. They’re all about low buck:doe ratios. Bunch of forky blasters over there. “Everything fine now that FWP limited doe tags…”.

Wild a bunch of “hunters” want to bring a species to the brink of extinction.

Funny thing is I was the one arguing with those guys on the low buck to doe ratios. They were blasting me that 30-40:100 was way out of line. On my way to my work location tonight, I threw on one of the later Rokcast podcasts on. It’s Robbie Denning talking to the Colorado Gunnison game manager talking about in that DAU they manage for a 40:100 ratio. What a bunch of clowns. People will grasp at whatever supports the narrative they like.

 

[Shed God]

Gerald iam willing to give up opportunity to hunt every yr. To go to LE. And alot of others are too. But like u say some are not. Going to LE is actually managing the mule deer.

 

[Shed God]

Calling it right now. U get 200k deer hunters out there in October, alot more elk problems are going to happen on private land. With that October mule deer season you basically lose out on some archery elk and the elk will head to private refuge.

 

[Gerald Martin]

Calling it right now. U get 200k deer hunters out there in October, alot more elk problems are going to happen on private land. With that October mule deer season you basically lose out on some archery elk and the elk will head to private refuge.

Did you download and read the actual proposal?

 

[Eric Albus]

I would have loved to had the experience hunting there in the 80s .

I thought we were crowded back then too!!

 

[cgasner1]

Calling it right now. U get 200k deer hunters out there in October, alot more elk problems are going to happen on private land. With that October mule deer season you basically lose out on some archery elk and the elk will head to private refuge.

Other states also run a deer season first and don’t seem to have an issue getting elk killed. It’s kinda like these animals have a 6th sense about when it’s not an open season on them.

 

[Shed God]

I read it, Gerald. I don't think u will shock them off the private with a 2 week cow season when 200k people are running around looking for mule deer. Just my opinion. Even with pick your unit and species.

 

[Shed God]

Basically the public will push alot of elk onto private through October. It's generous that the private are willing to accept a 2 week cow hunt only. I imagine alot of the bulls will stay on the private. So Basically u get a shot at them during archery season.

 

[Straight Arrow]

200k people are running around looking for mule deer

I would opine that a large number of those "200k" deer tag holders are elk hunters with a deer tag "just in case". Many will not even hunt in October.

 

[Forkyfinder]

I would opine that a large number of those "200k" deer tag holders are elk hunters with a deer tag "just in case". Many will not even hunt in October.

Exactly.

Unit 410s war on cow elk turned into a mule deer hunt for a lot of people