Antlerless deer seasons being eliminated in the NE for 2016 & 2017

[bobcat]

This proposal provide recreational deer hunting opportunity and protects deer from overharvest. The proposal continues general deer hunting season opportunities for 2016 in most Game Management Units, but reduces archery and muzzleloader antlerless deer hunting opportunity in several northeastern Game Management Units as a conservative management strategy due to population uncertainty created by a blue tongue disease outbreak in 2015. These changes were not proposed earlier, but ongoing information sharing necessitated additional proposed changes. 

http://wdfw.wa.gov/about/regulations/2016/wsr_16-10-120.pdf

[PolarBear]

Good, do what they need to do.  They have far too many antlerless and second deer tags to begin with,

[buckfvr]

There were more proposals than this on the table that all went unheard.  The pressure continues on this and other issues here in n.e.wa.   WDFW knows whats going on in these woods but ( supervisors in Spokane )  choose to either ignore reality, consider the source of info as a bunch of liars, or just plain dont care and its going in the direction they want it to anyway.

Between the wolves ( and other predators ) , blue tongue, and everyone wanting to shoot baby deer , one bad winter and we are in an extremely bad situation. 

[bearpaw]

A friend just saw three wolves this morning, we've also seen cougar this spring, and we've been 100% shooting opportunity on bear again this spring, no doubt there are plenty of predators!

The blue tongue really hit hard around agricultural areas where we had the highest numbers of deer. I'm glad to see WDFW is cutting back antlerless harvest until herds can begin to rebound.

[Duckslayer89]

A friend just saw three wolves this morning, we've also seen cougar this spring, and we've been 100% shooting opportunity on bear again this spring, no doubt there are plenty of predators!

The blue tongue really hit hard around agricultural areas where we had the highest numbers of deer. I'm glad to see WDFW is cutting back antlerless harvest until herds can begin to rebound.

Do you think black bears have much of an impact of fawns in the spring? I've always wondered if they really make a dent or not.

[bearpaw]

A friend just saw three wolves this morning, we've also seen cougar this spring, and we've been 100% shooting opportunity on bear again this spring, no doubt there are plenty of predators!

The blue tongue really hit hard around agricultural areas where we had the highest numbers of deer. I'm glad to see WDFW is cutting back antlerless harvest until herds can begin to rebound.

Do you think black bears have much of an impact of fawns in the spring? I've always wondered if they really make a dent or not.

Depends on the bears in an area. Studies in some areas have shown significant fawn and/or calf predation by bear, in other areas studies have shown other predators made a much larger impact. To my knowledge there are no studies in WA to show bear predation rates on fawns. So the correct answer is probably that it's an unknown amount of bear predation on fawns in WA, likely significant in some areas and not significant in other areas.

I'm reasonably certain that coyotes are the biggest predator of fawns under 4 months in most areas of WA and cougar are the biggest predator of deer older than 4 months in most areas of WA. But humans, automobiles, dogs running loose, etc may actually be the largest predator of deer in some areas.

[C-Money]

Looks like the youth whitetail doe hunt is getting scratched. My daughter will be sad...

[pianoman9701]

It's just the beginning of the tag cuts in the NE. Hunters will be systematically replaced by other predators. And, it'll happen fairly quickly now.

[superdown]

Are these changes actually going to happen or are they still just proposals at this point?

[Elmer Fletch]

Are these changes actually going to happen or are they still just proposals at this point?

Hearing location(s):
Natural Resource Building
1111 Washington St SE
Olympia, Washington 98501

Date: June 10-11, 2016 Time: 8:15 a.m.

[Gringo31]

It's just the beginning of the tag cuts in the NE. Hunters will be systematically replaced by other predators. And, it'll happen fairly quickly now.

 

There is only so much harvest allowed.  If the predators take more, in order to attempt to remain sustainable, we get less.....

[buglebrush]

It's just the beginning of the tag cuts in the NE. Hunters will be systematically replaced by other predators. And, it'll happen fairly quickly now.

Exactly.  That is the end result of WDFW's inexcusable refusal to manage predators.  The NE today the rest of the state tomorrow.   

[grundy53]

It's just the beginning of the tag cuts in the NE. Hunters will be systematically replaced by other predators. And, it'll happen fairly quickly now.

Exactly.  That is the end result of WDFW's inexcusable refusal to manage predators.  The NE today the rest of the state tomorrow.   

Exactly

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[jackmaster]

Bear love fawns! Are these changes do to the lack of actual predator control and wolves or are they giving a b.s reason? It should still be held open for youth, disabled and seniors IMO..

[bobcat]

Blue tongue disease.