With rain, snow, hunters see success

Hungry Horse News

With some wet weather and snow in the higher terrain, hunters were finding more success in the second full week of hunting season.

At Montana, Fish Wildlife and Parks checks stations across Northwest Montana, a total of 5,599 hunters checked 328 white-tailed deer (243 of these were bucks), 38 mule deer, and  35 elk for a 7.2 percent rate of hunters with game so far this season.  This compares to a 6.3 percent rate of hunters with game last year.

FWP Region 1 Wildlife Manager Neil Anderson notes that the number of white-tail deer brought through the check stations is up about 42 percent from last year, the number of elk is almost double, but the number of mule deer is down about 30 percent.

The wolf harvest to date is at 16 overall and the quota in hunting district 110 — which is the North Fork to the Whitefish Divide, has been filled and it is now closed. District 110 has a quota of two wolves, due to its proximity to Glacier National Park.

In the North Fork, hunter numbers were down — just 369 went through check stations — but the deer take was way up. Last year, just three whitetail deer were reported. This year, the number is already up to 18.

Hunters are reminded that it is buck-only for white-tails in northwest Montana. Antlerless white-tails remain legal game for youth 12-15 years of age. The check station data is just an indication of how the season is going. FWP does more formal surveys later in the year.