Earn-A-Buck Regulations Are Put On Hold

[Skunk]

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/outdoors/42779902.html

Earn-A-Buck Regulations Are Put On Hold

DNR listened to hunters' concerns

By Paul A. Smith of the Journal Sentinel

Posted: Apr. 9, 2009

Madison - Responding to mounting criticism and unprecedented input from hunters, the Department of Natural Resources announced Thursday a moratorium on Earn-A-Buck deer hunting regulations for most of the state in 2009.

According to DNR Secretary Matt Frank, the department will recommend a regular deer hunting framework, without even an October antlerless gun hunt, for the fall seasons in most of the state. Earn-A-Buck regulations will be offered only in Chronic Wasting Disease management zones.

"Deer hunting is a rich tradition in Wisconsin, and the DNR takes our role in protecting this important part of our heritage very seriously," Frank said. "In light of the recommendation from the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, and the concerns of hunters expressed at meetings across the state, the DNR is recommending a break from Earn-a-Buck this year."

According to the plan, the DNR will recommend a regular season framework for 62 deer management units, a herd control framework for 50 units and Earn-A-Buck for the CWD units.

The move is a departure from a DNR proposal drafted in March that would have put 25 deer management units outside of the CWD zone in Earn-A-Buck regulations.

Earn-A-Buck requires a hunter to shoot an antlerless deer before taking a buck. The regulation is the most effective tool used by wildlife mangers to reduce deer numbers in areas with significantly high populations, said Tom Hauge, DNR chief of wildlife management.

The DNR has been working for years to reduce the deer herd in Wisconsin. The department estimates the herd at 1 million animals after the 2008 hunting seasons; the population goal is 739,000.

Though successful at reducing deer numbers, Earn-A-Buck has proved onerous to many hunters. It has, for instance, required some hunters to pass a shot at a buck because they hadn't fulfilled the antlerless harvest requirement.

Opposition to the regulation mounted after the 2008 hunting seasons when hunters killed 13% fewer deer than in 2007 and many reported seeing fewer deer on the landscape. Hunter dissatisfaction led some to talk of boycotting the 2009 hunting seasons or prohibiting hunting on their land.

The DNR has been collecting comments from hunters in recent months. More than 6,000 responded via an on-line survey; the department also held more than 40 meetings.

The Wisconsin Conservation Congress' Big Game Study Committee last month recommended a season framework similar to the one presented Thursday by the DNR.

The announcement Thursday shows the department is listening, said Rob Bohmann, vice chairman of the congress.

"I think this will be very well received by many hunters," said Bohmann, of Racine. "This addresses the single biggest complaint out there. You have to give the department credit."

Retaining Earn-a-Buck within the CWD zone maintains the department's commitment to controlling the spread of CWD by reducing local deer populations, Frank said.

Hauge, the DNR wildlife chief, said the department would continue work with hunters as it attempts to bring the state's deer herd to goal.

The DNR's recommendations will be presented to the Natural Resources Board at its April 22 meeting in West Bend.

[wipartimer]

 

[GRIMJIM]

Not that I saw a doe either last year but that does make things a little easier.

[Skunk]

Not that I saw a doe either last year but that does make things a little easier.

Yeah, after last season, I find it pretty spectacular that the DNR estimates the deer herd to be 1 million animals. They must all be living down South or West of me.

[GRIMJIM]

I hunted in Waushara county last year and didn't see a single deer, until after dark anyway driving back to my freind's house.

[EsoxLucius]

They could get rid of feeding and baiting while they are at it.

[Cheesehead]

Have they laid out the "herd control" plan yet?

Cheese