More Big Game Permits Recommended for 2007

Utah*s hunters might have more elk, pronghorn and bison permits to draw for this year.

The Division of Wildlife Resources is recommending raising permit numbers for all of Utah*s big game animals. Permits for elk, pronghorn and bison would increase the most.

The DWR is also recommending adding an additional 1,000 general season buck deer permits to the Northeastern Region.

You can learn more about the recommendations and share your suggestions at a series of upcoming meetings. Citizens representing Utah*s public Regional Advisory Councils will take the input received to the Utah Wildlife Board when it meets April 5 in Salt Lake City to approve big game hunting permits for this fall*s hunts.

Meeting dates, times and locations are as follows:

Southern Region
March 13
7 p.m.
Beaver High School
195 E. Center St.
Beaver

Southeastern Region
March 14
6:30 p.m.
John Wesley Powell Museum
885 E. Main St.
Green River

Northeastern Region
March 15
6:30 p.m.
Western Park, Rm. #2
302 E. 200 S.
Vernal

Central Region
March 20
6:30 p.m.
Springville Junior High School
165 S. 700 E.
Springville

Northern Region
March 21
6 p.m.
Brigham City Community Center
24 N. 300 W.
Brigham City

More Elk Permits

Some record-sized bull elk have been taken in Utah over the past few years, but there are still plenty of big bulls out there for hunters to take.

Biologists manage each of Utah*s limited entry bull elk units so the average age of the bulls taken by hunters falls within a certain age category.

The bulls that hunters took on 24 of Utah*s 28 units was higher than the age objective for those units. That means the animals were older than what the objective for those units calls for.

The age of the bulls taken on four units was at the objective for those units. None of Utah*s limited entry units was under the age objective.

*This means we can allow more hunters in the field and still leave plenty of big bulls for hunters to take in years to come,* says Craig McLaughlin, Wildlife Section chief for the DWR.

With that in mind, the DWR is recommending 2,190 limited entry bull elk permits for this fall*s hunts. A total of 79 of those permits would be management bull elk permits. These permits allow hunters to take bull elk that have five or less antler points on at least one side.

Management permits are being offered for the first time to reduce the number of smaller bull elk on four of Utah*s best limited entry units.
All of these units have extremely high bull to cow ratios.

More Pronghorn Permits

Pronghorn antelope permits would also increase under DWR recommendations.

The agency is recommending 1,067 pronghorn permits for this fall*s hunts. A total of 855 were available in 2006.

Most of the permits would be issued for the Parker Mountains in southwestern Utah.

*The objective for the Parker Mountains is to maintain 40 bucks per 100 does,* McLaughlin says. *Right now, the unit has 78 bucks per 100 does. Hunters who draw a permit for the Parker Mountains should see plenty of bucks, and they should have a great hunt.*

More Bison Permits

Hunter*s choice and cow bison permits for the Henry Mountains in southeastern Utah would also increase under DWR proposals.

Under the proposals, permits would jump from 18 in 2006 to either 47 or
71 permits in 2007.

The final bison permit numbers will be determined later this spring, when the Henry Mountains Bison Working Group finishes revising a management plan for the bison on the Henry*s.

*In 2005, our biologists flew two aerial surveys of the Henry
Mountains,* McLaughlin says. *They didn*t see many bison during either survey.*

Even though bison are big animals, McLaughlin says they tend to gather in small groups and are effective at hiding under pinyon/juniper trees.

*Bison are strong animals, and we were pretty sure that the herd had not experienced a big die-off,* he says. *We guessed that the bison had probably moved into thicker cover where it was harder for us to spot
them.*

DWR biologists decided to be cautious, however, and hunting permits were cut in 2006.

*Our biologists flew another survey this past August, and this time they spotted the bison,* McLaughlin says. *They saw lots of bison.

*We*ve confirmed that the herd is doing really well, and that*s why we*re recommending more bison permits for this fall*s hunts.*

More Deer Permits

Under DWR recommendations, the number of general season buck deer permits would begin moving back to the 97,000 permit cap that began in Utah in 1994.

In 2005, general season buck deer permits in the Central and Northeastern regions were cut by 1,000 permits each. The permits were cut because the three-year buck-to-doe ratio in each region had fallen below the minimum of 15 bucks per 100 does called for in Utah*s Deer Management Plan.

As a result, the statewide permit cap was reduced from 97,000 permits to 95,000 permits.

Surveys conducted by DWR biologists after the 2005 and 2006 hunts found that the three-year buck-to-doe average in the Northeastern Region had increased to 15 bucks per 100 does. That number meets the objective called for in the state*s deer management plan.

In the Central Region, the three-year average has fallen slightly to 13 bucks per 100 does.

*Based on the findings, we*re recommending that 1,000 permits be added to the Northeastern Region for this fall*s hunt,* McLaughlin says. *Adding 1,000 permits would increase the total number of general season buck deer permits in Utah to 96,000.*

Permit Recommendations

Permit numbers for 2006, and the number of permits the DWR is recommending for 2007, are listed below:

2006 2007

General season buck deer 95,000 96,000

Limited entry deer 999 1,019

Limited entry bull elk 1,835 2,190

Pronghorn antelope 855 1,067

Moose 138 152

Bison 24 53 or 77

* (these bison totals include permits for the Henry Mountains and Antelope Island)

Rocky Mountain goat 79 91

Desert bighorn sheep 36 41

Rocky Mountain bighorn
sheep 15 18

Charts showing the total permits for each unit will be available at www.wildlife.utah.gov/public_meetings before the RAC meetings.

Once you*re on the site, go to the Meeting Agenda portion to find the permit numbers.

Get Extra Deer Hunting Opportunities - Join Dedicated Hunter Program

You can hunt all three general deer hunting seasons in your favorite region in Utah by joining the state's Dedicated Hunter program.

"Hunters who join the program are guaranteed a permit for the region of their choice. After what happened in 2006, that's a big incentive to join," says Jill West, coordinator of volunteers for the Division of Wildlife Resources.

In 2006, all of the permits for the Central, Northeastern, Southeastern and Southern regions were taken in the big game draw.

"Based on what happened last year, we anticipate that permits for all four of those regions will go again in the draw this year," West says. "Dedicated hunters don't have to worry that they won't get a permit, though, because they're guaranteed a permit for the region of their choice."

In addition to receiving a guaranteed permit, those who join the program get a chance to help Utah's wildlife by volunteering on wildlife conservation projects.

Must Join by Feb. 16

To join the three-year program, hunters must complete an online Wildlife Conservation course and submit an application no later than 5 p.m. on Feb. 16.

After paying their program registration fees and completing some additional requirements, hunters will receive a deer hunting permit for the region of their choice and a chance to hunt all three general seasons in that region.

The Wildlife Conservation course is available online at the Dedicated Hunter Web site (www.wildlife.utah.gov/dh/). The course takes about 45 minutes to complete.

Hunters who don't have access to the Internet should contact their nearest DWR regional office to make arrangements to take the course.

Additional Requirements

After completing the Wildlife Conservation course, hunters must pay their program fee ($195 for most residents and $1,032 for most nonresidents) by Feb. 16. The fee includes a participant's deer hunting permits, for the region of their choice, during the three years they're in the program.

More information about the program is available on page 26 of the 2007 Utah Big Game Proclamation and at wildlife.utah.gov/dh/ on the Web. Those with questions may also call the nearest Division of Wildlife Resources office or the DWR's Salt Lake City office at (801) 538-4700.

"The program provides hunters extra deer hunting opportunities in the region they want to hunt and helps them give back to Utah's wildlife by working on wildlife conservation projects," West said. "Hunters who have been in the program have really enjoyed it."

Utah Convention Tags Issue Comments

I received the below e-mail today from Dave Clemens of LaGrande, Oregon, concerning the upcoming Hunting Expo to be held in Utah and the allotted hunting tags that have been set aside for this event. Although I agree with some of the points in Dave's e-mail, I also see the benefits of this event and would welcome YOUR comments on the topic. Please read Dave's e-mail.

To Utah,

Utah residents should have equal claim to the wildlife that roam the public lands of their state. The opportunities to receive a tag should be equal and not stacked against money or accumulated preference points. Young hunters just reaching the age of application will most likely never receive a quality tag as the max pool is so heavily filled with their seniors. The only state that still offers a fair opportunity for all is Idaho. Hurray for them! No person or organized governing body has the right to sell our wildlife. It should be managed to provide a quality (not necessarily trophy opportunity) for the largest amount of hunters, at the most reasonable price possible, without exhausting the quality of the resource. I do not have a problem with limited tags to provide a mature animal harvest or even some trophy opportunities, but the chance to draw each year should be equal for all. Convention tags, governors tags, lottery tags, auction tags, or whatever you want to call them should be abolished and all tags then are brought to the public through an equal draw system. Non residents should be allowed to compete for a small portion of the tags but here again on an equal basis with no stacking the odds with money or points. All we hear about is "how government mismanages money." The lame idea that wildlife programs have to be funded through high priced tag sales is just another admittance that they still can't manage. Utah evaluate your morals, pull your heads out, place a value on people not money, and bring back what made hunting one of the most wholesome activities we have.

Sincerely, Dave Clemens

LaGrande, Oregon

Utah faces some very difficult challenges on managing the wildlife that I do not personally feel the impact has been felt in other States such as urban sprawl eating up winter range and habitat faster than animals can adjust, heavy winter kills in past years and devastation of sagebrush habitat that traditionally the deer and other wildlife thrived on, among many others. I feel the Utah DWR has done a good job of managing the wildlife in Utah and although I hate to see these tags going out through this event in some ways, I hope the promises that have been made by the Utah DWR on what will be done with this money prove to be true, as they have in the past on similar tags raised funds.

This event will hopefully be a spring board to groups like the RMEF and MDF, Duck Unlimited, NTF and others to bind together and work towards more common goals, and the fund generated will hit the ground running for the wildlife in Utah.

I welcome your comments.

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School archery programs expanding In Minnesota

Based on the growing number of bowhunters and recreational archers in Minnesota, the popularity of bow and arrow shooting is on the rise. Nowhere is this trend more evident than in Minnesota schools where in the coming year more than 60,000 students will target shoot as part of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Archery in the Schools Program.

Recently 43 new school programs were awarded equipment grants and enrolled in the budding three-year-old program. As part of the National Archery in Schools Program, schools purchase a standard set of equipment, and teachers attend a training session to learn how to safely and effectively teach archery to new archers. Support materials that include a curriculum based on National Physical Education Standards and a draft lesson planner make the program very easy to implement.

According to Kraig Kiger, National Archery in Schools Program coordinator for the DNR, the turnkey nature of the program has been key to its growth. "Teachers who have never picked up a bow themselves prior to enrolling in the program come out of the training with the confidence to teach archery like a seasoned pro," Kiger said. "This confidence gets passed on to the kids, who quickly learn that archery is something that they can excel at even if they are not the best athlete in the class."

Kiger said school archery programs are attractive because archery is a lifetime sport that engages kids who otherwise might not do well in physical education class, and this gives archery a universal appeal. "Archery in the Schools participants are as economically, culturally and geographically diverse as you can find in Minnesota," Kiger said.

"We have participating schools in the inner city of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, throughout the suburbs, and in rural towns in every corner of the state.

"Despite using state-of-the-art archery gear, the cost of starting a program is relatively low. Schools that applied for and received grants from the DNR are required to pay $1,500.

Schools that do not receive financial aid can purchase the equipment for just under $3,000. Some schools have paid this from their regular equipment budget, but most receive financial support from hunting, conservation and fraternal organizations in their communities.

The DNR provides the Basic Archery Instructor training to schools, youth organizations, parks and recreation departments, and others at no cost.Establishing physical-education-based archery classes are only a beginning.

The DNR encourages schools to establish after school archery programs and clubs to provide an outlet for aspiring archers. Programs such as the Junior Olympic Archery Development are springing up in communities where school archery is taking hold.

One such program that started in conjunction with an Archery in the Schools Program was the Central Minnesota Junior Olympic Archery Development in Sartell. That club has put Minnesota archery on the map by sending two young shooters and a coach to the Junior World Championships last October. Adam Wruck of Rice and Corey Muellenbach of Sartell anchored the gold medal winning USA Cadet team under the careful tutelage of coach Linda Beck of Maple Lake.

A Minnesota Archery in the Schools State Tournament is scheduled for April 14. State champions will receive an automatic berth in the National Archery in the Schools Tournament to be held in Louisville, Ky. in June.

For more information about the Minnesota Archery in Schools Program, contact the Minnesota Shooting Sports Education Center at (218) 327-0583, or visit the DNR Web site at www.dnr.state.mn.us.

2006 MINNESOTA ARCHERY IN THE SCHOOLS GRANT WINNERS
Adrian Public School
Alexandria Discovery Middle School
Anoka Sandburg Middle School
Balton Public School
Barnesville High School
Battle Lake Public School
Bemidji Northern Elementary
Brainerd /Baxter/ Nisswa Elementary Schools
Buffalo Lake/ Hector School
Bugonaygeshig School (Bena-Cass Lake)
Duluth Merritt Creek Academy
Duluth Ordean Middle School
Elk River Salk Middle School
Elk River Vanbdenberg Middle School
Ely Memorial High School
Fertile-Beltrami School
Forest Lake High School
Gibbon Fairfax Winthrop High School
Greenway High School
Grygla Public School
Hastings Middle School
Moose Lake Public School
Mora High School
Nashwauk-Keewatin School
New Prague Public Schools
Northfield High School
Osakis High School
Ponemah School
Red Lake Elementary
River Bend Academy (Mankato)
River Bend ALC (New Ulm)
Shakopee Area Catholic Schools
Shakopee High School
Southland High School (Mower County)
St Paul Museum Magnet School
St. Francis High School
St. Paul Highland Park High School
St. Paul Johnson High School
Stephen/Argyle School
United South Central (Wells)
Willmar Community Christian School
Willmar Public Schools
Zimmerman Middle School