White-tailed deer are now actively in their mating season, with reports from across the state of bucks actively pursuing does. Archery hunters have reported some very good success in the last week, with many large bucks registered. Some experienced archers report that they have never seen so much chasing activity by bucks looking for does. Law enforcement officials have also reported a significant increase in deer-vehicle collisions, with 20 reported last weekend in Dane County.
Wisconsin’s regular nine-day gun deer hunting season is now just over a week away. Hunters should be making sure all equipment is ready and that firearms are in proper working order and have been sighted in.
Leaf drop is now nearly complete statewide, except for some maples still holding leaves in the south, and oaks, which often continue to hold some leaves through the winter. Leaf drop has vastly improved hunting conditions for archery and small game hunters.
Duck hunters are having limited success due to the unseasonably nice weather so far this month not pushing birds down from Canada. Goose hunters on the other hand have been having better success with open field hunting as geese have not been pushed south yet.
Pheasant stocking is still taking place so hunters are having decent success finding birds on the public hunting grounds, but many birds are getting pushed into thicker cover, so hunters have to work a little harder to find them.
Trappers are having good success trapping raccoons and muskrats. Raccoon numbers are high in most areas and fur prices are good. Beaver, fox, and coyote trapping seasons also opened over the last couple weeks, and some trappers with fisher and otter tags have been calling in to register furs over the last week.
Fishing pressure has been generally light. In the Northwoods a few diehard musky and walleye anglers still trying their luck, but very little success has been reported. This is generally known as trophy time for musky, but there have been no recent reports of any exceptionally large fish. In the south, some walleye were being caught on Lake Koshkonong. Water levels on the Mississippi and Wisconsin rivers have been slowly rising and should be reaching the crest in the next few days. Many river islands are once again under water. Fishing has been slow with a few bluegills caught, but walleye and sauger fishing slowed due to the high water. Along Lake Michigan, anglers taken a mixed bag of chinook, coho, rainbows, and browns on the Sheboygan, Milwaukee and Root rivers and in the harbor at Port Washington.
The tundra swan migration is in full swing on the Mississippi River. As of Nov. 8 there were approximately 11,000 swans across the refuge. Tundra swans are also showing up in good numbers in the Horicon Marsh, along with large numbers of sandhill cranes.
A three-minute audio version of this report can be heard by calling (608) 266 2277.
A new report is put on the line each week.
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Statewide Birding Report
The tundra swan migration is in full swing on the Mississippi River. As of Nov. 8 there were approximately 11,000 swans across the refuge. Crossbills, redpolls and other winter finches are showing up in very good numbers in northern Wisconsin. This may turn out to be a good year to watch feeders in the north country! A red phalarope was spotted in Milwaukee this past weekend. This is a rare bird for Wisconsin.
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NORTHERN REGION
Park Falls DNR Service Center area
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) - Fishing pressure has been generally light on lakes across the Northwoods and most sportsmen seem to be keying in on the buck rut. There have been a few diehard musky and walleye anglers still trying their luck, but very little success has been reported. Most musky anglers continue to drag large suckers around, as the water has become almost too cold for artificials to be effective. This is generally known as trophy time for musky, but there have been no recent reports of any exceptionally large fish from the area. The few walleye anglers that have been out have had limited success using large fathead minnows and a slow presentation, but the bites have been light with a lot of drops. Nearly all waterfront property owners have removed their docks and stored them onshore in anticipation of ice-up in the next few weeks. Water temperatures have dropped into the low 40s and it will take an extended period of very cold temperatures to see any sort of ice cover form on northern lakes. The brook trout spawning season is just past its peak, which is typical for the mid-November period. The male brookies exhibit some spectacular spawning colors and they may still be viewed in their mating rituals on many native brook trout streams. Look for the spawning fish around gravel areas in riffles in the smaller tributary streams. Observers are reminded to watch from a distance and not disturb the fish or these fragile spawning areas - as this represents the future of that brook trout population.
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NORTHEAST REGION
Sturgeon Bay DNR Service Center area
Potawatomi State Park - Although the leaves have fallen, mild temperatures have continued into early November. Anglers continue having luck fishing for perch in Sawyer Harbor. The launching piers will be pulled from the water by mid November. The park will be open to gun deer hunting during the 9-day gun deer season from Nov. 20 through 28. The park is not open to hunting during any other times. All hunters should be aware of other recreational users in the park. Not all people will be wearing blaze orange, so be sure of your target and beyond.
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SOUTHEAST REGION
Lake Michigan fisheries team report
Sheboygan County - – In Sheboygan anglers on the Sheboygan River have taken a mixed bag of chinook, coho, rainbows, and browns between Esslingen Park and the Kohler dam. A few northern pike have been taken as well. Most anglers have been fly fishing, but a few fish have been taken on spawn sacs as well.
Ozaukee County - In Port Washington, shore anglers have been catching a mix of chinook, rainbows, and browns on skein in the north slip and near the power plant. Fishing on Sauk Creek has been slow, and water levels are very low.
Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee shore fishing has been relatively slow along the lakefront. Salmon numbers have increased in the Milwaukee River, and anglers have been catching fish in Kletzsch and Estabrook Parks. Decent numbers of browns and steelhead have also been seen downstream of Capitol Drive, and egg sucking leeches and yarn have both been effective for fly anglers. Water levels are low on area tributaries again, and fishing has been slow on the Menomonee River and Oak Creek.
Racine County - On the Root River in Racine fishing has been decent. Water temperatures are in the mid-40s, water clarity is good, but water levels are low. Most anglers have been picking up coho salmon and brown trout, however some chinook are still being caught. Catches of steelhead have been limited, and most have been taken downstream from the weir. Fish have been caught on both spawn sacs under a bobber and on medium sized, brightly colored flies. Fish were processed at the Root River Steelhead Facility on Monday, Nov. 8, and an additional 34 chinook, 262 coho, 50 rainbows, and 2 browns were passed upstream. So far this season, DNR crews have spawned 756 coho at the Root and collected over 850,000 eggs.
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SOUTH CENTRAL REGION
Dodgeville DNR Service Center area
Iowa County - Deer hunters report that bucks are definitely well into the seeking phase of the rut and the chase phase is beginning. A number of very large bucks are being shot in the Arena area of Iowa County. Waterfowl hunters have been disappointed lately with the few number of ducks in the area, but happy with the larger numbers of geese around yet. Experienced archers in Iowa County are saying that they have never seen so much chasing activity by bucks looking for does.
Grant County - Water levels on the Mississippi and Wisconsin rivers continue to slowly rise and should be reaching the crest in the next few days. Many of the Wisconsin and Mississippi river islands are once again under water. Bluegill and crappie fishing have been slow with a few bluegills caught near Far Nuff landing in 6-10 feet of water. Walleye and sauger fishing due to the high water has also slowed. Waterfowl hunters have reported seeing more divers in flight in lower pool #11, but not within range of the hunters. Mallards, widgeon and gadwall remain scattered with fair concentrations of mallards in the Hay Meadow closed area refuge south of Cassville. The trumpeter swans remain feeding in Bode's pond just up river from the Potosi public boat landing along Highway 133. The rut is underway as bucks can be seen wandering about mid morning. Caution is advised while driving as increased numbers of deer are being hit by vehicles.
Horicon DNR Service Center area
Dodge County - Shore fishers around Beaver Dam Lake continue to have success. A variety of fish are being caught but the most active remains the yellow bass. Tundra swans are showing up in good numbers in the Horicon Marsh. Large numbers of sandhill cranes are flying through the Horicon and Theresa marshes. Skim ice has begun to form on many of the smaller bays and ponds pushing ducks to the bigger waters of Green Lake, Beaver Dam, Fox Lake, Lake Maria. Thousands of ducks were observed field feeding toward the evening in the northern portions of the county. Hunters had good success on Saturday night hunting the fields, but success was short lived and things were slower come Sunday morning. Sunday evening ducks were back to the fields but the hunters were not. Period 2 of the Horicon Goose Season opened last weekend. Plenty of birds and open fields, hunters had mix success. Hunters are reminded that there are many swans and sandhill cranes still in the area visiting many of the same areas as the geese.
Fitchburg DNR Service Center area
Jefferson County - Trappers are having good success trapping raccoons and muskrats. Raccoon numbers are high in most areas and fur prices are good. Water levels in area marshes are higher this year than in some past years so trappers are finding more areas to set. Duck hunters are having limited success due to too nice of weather not pushing birds down from Canada. Goose hunters are having better success with open field hunting. Deer hunters are reporting observing bucks with does as well as bucks moving around more during the daytime all indicators the peak of the rut is here. Archery hunters are therefore hitting the woods hard. Pheasant stocking is still taking place so hunters are having decent success finding birds on the public hunting grounds. Many birds get pushed back into the thicker cover so hunters have to work a little harder to find them.
Rock County - Fishing activity has picked up on Lake Koshkonong with bluegills biting near Charley Bluff. Walleye are also being caught near Blackhawk Island. The rut is on in Rock County and bucks are making themselves less scarce. With the additional deer activity, car-killed deer numbers have gone up significantly over the last week. Archery hunters have been having good success harvesting bucks and does over the last week. Hunters are reminded that it is illegal to bait or feed in Rock County and surrounding CWD areas. Hunters should refer to the regulations for specifics on where baiting and feeding is legal and what exceptions there are. Trapping activity has picked up around the county with the muskrat, beaver, fox, and coyote trapping seasons opening over the last couple weeks. Some trappers with fisher and otter tags have been calling in to register their furs over the last week.
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WEST CENTRAL REGION
Baldwin DNR Service Center area
Willow River State Park - With the really great weather, reports of large white-tailed deer have dropped off. It’s best to look for them on overcast days. Construction equipment arrived in the 300 campground on Nov. 10. Several campsites need work which will be in progress on weekdays. Visitors might want to hold off on weekday camping until the work ends due to the noise. There will be no work on weekends. There may be some short notice closings of campsites or loops. The work is expected to take about a week. Then, the construction machinery moves to other parts of the park so there will still be the sounds of machinery operating. The Willow River Nordic skiers will be doing trail work Saturday, Nov. 13. Meet at the service building at 8:30 a.m. The trails are already in great shape for the coming winter. One trail has to freeze before the mower can get in there and out again. Most trails are mowed low which will help the early and late season skiing. Dry land training for Nordic skiers continues Tuesdays and Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. Meet at the purple trail head. Headlamps are required. Shoes with good ankle support are suggested. Deer hunting maps are available. Next week we’ll do a hunting issue for hunters and non hunters. We want all visitors to make informed choices during the hunting season.
La Crosse DNR Service Center area
Raccoon hunters have reported successful harvests over the last several weeks. Raccoon trapping activity is also increasing with the advent of cooler weather. About 200,000 raccoons were harvested by trappers and hunters during the 2009-10 open seasons.
Eau Claire DNR Service Center area
Brunet Island State Park – Species of birds seen or heard include: great blue herons, ravens, a variety of wrens, phoebes, turkey vultures, northern juncos, piliated woodpeckers, great horned and barred owls, osprey, bald eagles, and Canada geese. An area to the north and east of the main office, including part of the Nordic Trail system, will be open to a limited antlerless shotgun deer hunting season beginning Saturday, Nov. 20 through 28. A Zone 23A access permit and the unit specific antlerless tag are both required. The park’s islands are not open to hunting. Please refer to the special regulation sheet for DMU 23A for full park specific regulations. Park admission passes are required on all vehicles stopped or parked within the park property. Hikers are strongly cautioned to wear blaze orange if they will be using the areas open to hunting. The main island is not open to hunting and we would encourage hikers to use the trails and roadways available there. Please contact the office at 715-239-6888 if you have questions regarding the hunt.
Last Revised: Thursday November 11 2010
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