nfh
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Here it is Mightyhunter about what we discussed. The info is out so I will post it all to see about the deer herds in 105,106,109 and the North fork herd...
Hello,
I hope this email finds you well enjoying the warmer weather. I am writing to update you on the results from the two meetings we held in February for the mule deer in the Cody area. Both meetings were very well attended with over 40 at the Powell meeting and close to 90 at the Cody meeting. First and foremost we want to thank you for your participation and for your passion for the mule deer herds surrounding the Cody area. It is very encouraging to us to see so many show up to discuss future deer management in these areas.
We were able to summarize levels of support for each of the questions from both meetings into the graphs attached in this document. Briefly, a majority of people think there are issues with the number of bucks in each herd, a majority of people fully supported or supported with some reservation a reduction of days to the general season in both herds, a majority of people fully supported or supported with some reservation a reduction in the limited quota licenses in the Clark's Fork heard, a majority of people fully supported or supported with reservation a mix of general and late-season limited quota licenses in the Upper Shoshone heard, and a majority of people fully supported or supported with reservation the reduction of non-resident Region F general licenses.
An overwhelmingly large proportion of meeting participants supported a threshold system to return days to the general season if there was a decrease in those days. It was clear from our meetings there is a lack of trust with the department on gaining back days if days are removed from the general season. This weighs very heavily on all managers involved in the proposal we are bringing before you during this season setting process. We want to be very upfront and clear that our goal is to allow population levels and buck numbers to rebound and then allow the days to return as warranted. We are committed to revisiting these proposed seasons in two to three years to evaluating biological data and hunters perceptions of buck numbers and hunt quality to determine if returning days to the general seasons in both herds is warranted.
Our proposal tries to combine all the discussions and the support for each of the options presented. In the Clark's Fork, we reduced days by 7 in the general season and reduced the 105, 106 and 109 limited quota (LQ) licenses by half. The reduction in days in the Clark's Fork should reduce buck harvest and protect a portion of migrating bucks in that herd. We also tried to decrease the potential of harvesting migrating doe deer in hunt area 105 after they potentially mix with resident deer by shortening the November general doe season and making it private valid on land only.
In the Upper Shoshone herd, there was a lot of discussion about the importance of opportunity in November but also using the Clark's Fork model as a way to decrease buck harvest over the short term and still allow some limited opportunity later into November. To achieve this we combined those two priorities and tried to take a piece of each and apply them to the proposed seasons. We are proposing to shorten the general season by 7 days, but also add a conservative LQ late season opportunity to both the North (110-111) and South (112-114) forks. The intent is to decrease overall buck harvest over the next several years to reduce the recovery time of undesirable buck numbers and hunt quality. Even with these proposed changes managers predict hunt quality to be low for the next several years because of the low fawn ratios and low yearling buck ratios we have observed . Again, the intent is to add days back once we reach a place with population, hunter satisfaction, and buck numbers everyone is comfortable with.
Please see attached proposals for each herd that show the changes we are proposing.
We can not thank you enough for your participation in this process and we look forward to working with you into the future to ensure the best long term management solutions for your deer herds. If you need any additional information please feel free to stop by the office or give me a call.
Have a great week,
Tony
--
Tony Mong
Wildlife Biologist
Cody District
Wyoming Game and Fish Dept.
(307) 527-7125 office
[email protected]
Hello,
I hope this email finds you well enjoying the warmer weather. I am writing to update you on the results from the two meetings we held in February for the mule deer in the Cody area. Both meetings were very well attended with over 40 at the Powell meeting and close to 90 at the Cody meeting. First and foremost we want to thank you for your participation and for your passion for the mule deer herds surrounding the Cody area. It is very encouraging to us to see so many show up to discuss future deer management in these areas.
We were able to summarize levels of support for each of the questions from both meetings into the graphs attached in this document. Briefly, a majority of people think there are issues with the number of bucks in each herd, a majority of people fully supported or supported with some reservation a reduction of days to the general season in both herds, a majority of people fully supported or supported with some reservation a reduction in the limited quota licenses in the Clark's Fork heard, a majority of people fully supported or supported with reservation a mix of general and late-season limited quota licenses in the Upper Shoshone heard, and a majority of people fully supported or supported with reservation the reduction of non-resident Region F general licenses.
An overwhelmingly large proportion of meeting participants supported a threshold system to return days to the general season if there was a decrease in those days. It was clear from our meetings there is a lack of trust with the department on gaining back days if days are removed from the general season. This weighs very heavily on all managers involved in the proposal we are bringing before you during this season setting process. We want to be very upfront and clear that our goal is to allow population levels and buck numbers to rebound and then allow the days to return as warranted. We are committed to revisiting these proposed seasons in two to three years to evaluating biological data and hunters perceptions of buck numbers and hunt quality to determine if returning days to the general seasons in both herds is warranted.
Our proposal tries to combine all the discussions and the support for each of the options presented. In the Clark's Fork, we reduced days by 7 in the general season and reduced the 105, 106 and 109 limited quota (LQ) licenses by half. The reduction in days in the Clark's Fork should reduce buck harvest and protect a portion of migrating bucks in that herd. We also tried to decrease the potential of harvesting migrating doe deer in hunt area 105 after they potentially mix with resident deer by shortening the November general doe season and making it private valid on land only.
In the Upper Shoshone herd, there was a lot of discussion about the importance of opportunity in November but also using the Clark's Fork model as a way to decrease buck harvest over the short term and still allow some limited opportunity later into November. To achieve this we combined those two priorities and tried to take a piece of each and apply them to the proposed seasons. We are proposing to shorten the general season by 7 days, but also add a conservative LQ late season opportunity to both the North (110-111) and South (112-114) forks. The intent is to decrease overall buck harvest over the next several years to reduce the recovery time of undesirable buck numbers and hunt quality. Even with these proposed changes managers predict hunt quality to be low for the next several years because of the low fawn ratios and low yearling buck ratios we have observed . Again, the intent is to add days back once we reach a place with population, hunter satisfaction, and buck numbers everyone is comfortable with.
Please see attached proposals for each herd that show the changes we are proposing.
We can not thank you enough for your participation in this process and we look forward to working with you into the future to ensure the best long term management solutions for your deer herds. If you need any additional information please feel free to stop by the office or give me a call.
Have a great week,
Tony
--
Tony Mong
Wildlife Biologist
Cody District
Wyoming Game and Fish Dept.
(307) 527-7125 office
[email protected]