Snow helps hunters in waning days of season

Frigid temperatures and heavy snows may have made driving treacherous but they were exactly what hunters needed in the last week of the season. The snow and cold drove deer and elk to lower elevations and also made for good tracking snow, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists noted.

All told, 17,564 hunters in Northwest Montana’s Region 1, which includes Flathead County, checked in 1,055 white-tailed deer, of which 888 were bucks. They also checked in 159 mule deer, and 158 elk for a 7.8 percent rate of hunters with game. Hunters checked in 253 whitetail bucks through game check stations on Saturday and Sunday alone. While it’s difficult to compare to other years because of sampling differences and a change in the opening day from Sunday to Saturday, overall totals are similar to previous years. Last year 797 bucks were reported and in 2008, 876 bucks were reported. In 2009 6.5 percent of hunters sampled had game; in 2008, 7.6 percent of hunters had game. In previous years, biologists sampled the first eight days of the season. This year they sampled on weekends only.

This year in the North Fork, 1,546 hunters checked in 71 whitetail deer of which 60 were bucks. They also reported 23 mule deer and seven elk. This season, most hunters could only legally shoot bucks. The regulations were changed in an effort to preserve deer numbers. The check stations were open on the weekends and represent a sampling of the overall harvest, noted Jim Williams, Region One Wildlife Manager.

Biologists believe the whitetail population has stabilized after declines over the past few years. But this winter could test the population again. It’s expected to be a cold, snowy winter and that’s already coming to fruition. Last week saw temperatures well below zero and a foot to several feet of snow, depending on the elevation. The weather forecast is promising even more snow this week, with lows in the teens and highs in the 20s.

Williams said biologists will be monitoring fawn survival closely this winter and into next spring because fawns are most susceptible to winter kill. Adult whitetail does typically survive well even in tough winters, based on years of following radio-collared whitetail does in northwest Montana. Both predators and hunting can have a significant impact on adult doe winter survival, however.

The winter of 1996-97 also saw a successful hunting season, but with heavy snowfall, deer mortality was significant and hunting seasons in years after that were restrictive until the deer population rebounded.