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Managing Deer and Deer Hunters in Northeast Lower Michigan

Managing Deer and Deer Hunters in Northeast Lower Michigan. Brent Rudolph, Ph.D. Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Division Deer and Elk Program Leader (517) 641-4903 ext. 248 rudolphb@michigan.gov. Overview. Summary of deer permits and licenses

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Managing Deer and Deer Hunters in Northeast Lower Michigan

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  1. Managing Deer and Deer Hunters in Northeast Lower Michigan Brent Rudolph, Ph.D. Michigan Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Division Deer and Elk Program Leader (517) 641-4903 ext. 248 rudolphb@michigan.gov

  2. Overview Summary of deer permits and licenses Deer Management Unit 487 special regulations Review of northeast Michigan deer harvest, population, and TB trends Hunter opinions regarding TB management

  3. Deer Permits and Licenses • Disease Control Permits • Deer Damage Permits (“Crop Damage” Permits) • Deer Management Assistance Permits (“Block” Permits) • Antlerless Licenses • Archery, Firearm, and Combination Licenses

  4. Disease Control Permits • Livestock producers and private landowners in a county with a confirmed case of TB or 30 mi radius of confirmed disease • Antlerless or antlered deer • Antlers must be submitted; heads must be submitted if required • Free of charge WCO Section 5.77

  5. Deer (Crop) DamagePermits • Landowners with significant agricultural or horticultural damage documented by Department • Not valid during deer hunting seasons • Antlerless, or antlered deer if approved by Wildlife Supervisor • Free of charge WCO Section 5.40

  6. Deer Management AssistancePermits • Landowners or their designated agent where a variety of conditions exist, including where “regulations are insufficient to achieve landowner deer management objectives” • Only valid during deer hunting seasons • Antlerless deer WCO Section 5.80

  7. Antlerless Licenses • Separate Private & Public licenses and quotas • Early & Late Antlerless Seasons (private land) • Archery, Firearm, Muzzleloader Seasons • Liberty Hunt & Independence Hunt WCO Section 3.101

  8. Archery, Firearm, Combination Licenses • Archery and/or Firearm: new license package replaces with single tag, all season license • Combination License (2 tags) • Typically “buck” tags • Some opportunities for antlerless deer • Some restrictions on types of antlered deer WCO Section 3.101

  9. DMU 487 Regulations

  10. DMU 487 Hunting & Harvest • Statewide • ≤50% of hunters purchase 1 or more antlerless licenses • Hunting strategy of ~40% of hunters: take 1st legal buck • Point restrictions typically increase 2 ½-yr-old buck harvest DMU 487 • Only 50-60% of hunters purchase 1 or more antlerless licenses • >50% of harvest is antlered bucks • >50% of antlered bucks harvested are yearlings

  11. DMU 487 Regulations • Antlerless deer: firearm hunters use any license • Antlered deer: min 3 antler points OR 1 buck • shift harvest pressure from young bucks to antlerless deer (to reduce the population) • do not constrain harvest of older bucks (more likely to be TB positive) • Assessments will consider: • Short-term success: increasing antlerless deer harvest over last 4 seasons? • Long-term success: decreasing TB prevalence, population size?

  12. Harvest, Population, TB Trends

  13. 5-County Deer Harvest

  14. 5-County Deer Population Trend Relation to Highest and Lowest Antlerless Harvest

  15. TB Deer Trend 1995-2012, DMU 452 Apparent Prevalence and 95% Confidence Limits, Adult White-Tailed Deer No Trend, 2005 – 2009

  16. Hunters, TB, and Deer Management

  17. Hunter Opinions: TB and Deer Management It is important to reduce or get rid of TB… From deer: • Strongly Agree 23.2% • Agree 56.5% • Not sure 5.0% From livestock: • Strongly Agree 35.4% • Agree 54.6% • Not sure 3.5%

  18. Hunter Opinions: TB and Deer Management It is possible to get rid of all TB… From deer: • Strongly Agree 4.7% • Agree 19.4% • Not sure 14.1% From livestock: • Strongly Agree 8.2% • Agree 38.3% • Not sure 13.9%

  19. TB Management Volunteers The opportunity: Michigan sportsmen & women outnumber Detroit Lions & Pistons combined home attendance The Limitation: Hunting is another form of recreation, and participants expect to enjoy the product

  20. Thank You! www.michigan.gov/deer

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