Montana Mule Deer - First timer

[BH107]

Research has shown that APR and/or width restrictions are not effective… the only answer is limiting tags. Unfortunaly for Montana the FWP is funded by the tags they sell and they won’t give up that revenue.

 

[AHayes111]

Research has shown that APR and/or width restrictions are not effective… the only answer is limiting tags. Unfortunaly for Montana the FWP is funded by the tags they sell and they won’t give up that revenue.

The other option is to make it more difficult to select the bucks with the best potential and force people to shoot bucks with less potential by season at a less than optimal time or weapon restrictions. Limited tag will also work, but even if cut tags by 75% and that remaining 25% target the bucks with the top potential we will not grow lots of truly big deer. With a season like Montana's, bucks like the one in my avatar will still get shot at an age before they reach potential and lesser bucks will die of natural causes. This is one of the reasons 270 is not producing as many top end bucks as it did at the start. There is just no short cuts to growing big deer and ultimately it will likely take a combination of both LE , Change in season and maybe weapon restrictions. We in MT will have to decide if it is worth it. Right now we have more pressing issues with mule deer to fix.

 

[Derekc6713]

How serious is it being looked at to change the season structure? I mean to me that would be the most obvious way to help mule deer recover. I can’t think of another state that allows for 5 weeks of rifle hunting including during the rut for whitetail or mule deer.

 

[BH107]

How serious is it being looked at to change the season structure? I mean to me that would be the most obvious way to help mule deer recover. I can’t think of another state that allows for 5 weeks of rifle hunting including during the rut for whitetail or mule deer.

In 2024 there were changes to some hard hit Region 4 units, including making some LE and others LE for the second half of the season. The problem with this is it redistributes those hunters to other general units increasing the pressure there. Until FWP controls the hunting pressure in every region all it is going to do is hurt the general units more.

 

[Jake Larsen]

In 2024 there were changes to some hard hit Region 4 units, including making some LE and others LE for the second half of the season. The problem with this is it redistributes those hunters to other general units increasing the pressure there. Until FWP controls the hunting pressure in every region all it is going to do is hurt the general units more.

LE is NOT THE ANSWER!

Season dates is the gigantic red easy button for MT. We hunt OTC general tags in the rut. That’s insane.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[finner]

LE is NOT THE ANSWER!

Season dates is the gigantic red easy button for MT. We hunt OTC general tags in the rut. That’s insane.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Season dates is easy, but so is pick your weapon, pick your region (or unit), and separating out whitetail from mule deer on the deer A tag. Ultimately, it's going to have to be some combination of measures if we want to avoid going to LE for residents.