Region 7 mule doe tags

[Schism]

How much is MT F&G budget $75MM? How much do doe tags go for? $10? If you think this is about "money" you'd likely be mistaken. Without getting into the details of the budget, I really doubt that an extra $100,000+/- is really about the "money." They wouldn't even notice it was gone. If they need to sell doe tags to keep afloat, they're fugged.

You are likely correct in that it is not about the money specifically raised from these tags. I believe it is somewhat based on human perception of overall herd health should they declare mule deer does to be off limits to boost struggling populations. The ripple down from the that could be significant.

The largest factor IMO is that the management area is far to large. I am born and raised in region 7 and spend a significant amount of time there each year. Mule deer populations vary significantly when one travels from Broadus to Miles City to Jordan, back east to Wibaux then north to Sidney. The allotted tags can be used through that entire area and then some. What is to stop 8000 does from being shot in the Custer, or Prairie County, Richland County, etc? Nothing as far as I can tell.

When I've asked biologists that question, it was stated that they manage under the assumption that hunters will naturally distribute to areas with higher population densities of the game animal of choice. Limited hunter access doesn't allow for that theory to be feasible.

 

[SteveE]

I purchased 7 tags today and will be promptly throwing them away when I get them in the mail.

Just read you are allowed 7 tags. Hard to swallow if you were alive and hunting Montana in the 70's and 80's.

You are my new hero Schaaf.

Keep kicking that horse antler radar!

Duck - problem being western montana use to have thousands of muley deer through most valleys also. Didnt even need to leave pavement to see thousands. They have been over hunted to the point western MT mule deer hunting is plain crap. With these tags your ranch in NE MT will soon be devoid of deer also.

I never believed you could clean them out of western MT. I have slowly watched it take place.
Coming to your eastern Montana ranches soon if they dont change course.

Wanna guess why I hunt Idaho.....

 

[0hndycp]

Bambistew, it certainly isn't based off of science as to why they would give 8000 doe tags for the region!

I also have purchased my doe permits and will also shred them promptly when I receive them!

 

[antlerradar]

The loss of 100 thousand is not going to break FWP, but it is also not insignificant. When I sat on the licensing and funding advisory council we worked on items that generated less revenue than doe tags.
Schism, when I was on the Region 7 CAC I remember the same talk of how hunters would self distribute. FWP called that management philosophy the Law of Diminishing Returns. You are right. The law of Diminishing Returns only works when there is good access to everything. Not exactly the current situation in region seven. Once you start to reduce access the accessible land gets constantly over hunted and loss of access snowballs. The Law of Diminishing Returns is a horse that needs one between the eyes and let the coyotes get rid of the rest.

 

[teamhoyt]

Seems ridiculous if you actually spend time out there, which FWP apparently does not. Such great country out in region 7 so it's a shame to see FWP taking a giant crap on their deer herd.

I spoke with our local biologist and she said the commission set these tag quotas before they even completed their surveys. Apparently the commission don't give a s about science. Of course we all know that by the elk season structure.

 

[timmy]

So if I'm looking at things correctly you can shoot 7 mule deer does and 2 whitetail does?? And a general tag? that is ugly.

 

[8andcounting]

So if I'm looking at things correctly you can shoot 7 mule deer does and 2 whitetail does?? And a general tag? that is ugly.

No . 7 b tags total is what I understood . And gen tag so u could kill 8

 

[ShootsManyBullets]

No . 7 b tags total is what I understood . And gen tag so u could kill 8

Now that's a real problem b/c I only carry 6 bullets with me.

MT FWP never fails to disappoint

 

[HUNT-TRAP-FISH]

I bought one. Made tag soup with it before the season opened. Yall should try it!!

 

[Schaaf]

I bought one. Made tag soup with it before the season opened. Yall should try it!!

6 more servings at my table.

 

[whiskeydog]

Sure be nice if guys didn't buy them. mtmuley

better yet to buy them and not use them...

 

[BuzzH]

I say keep hammering the deer and elk in Montana...pretty soon even the dimmest of dim bulbs on the Christmas tree will realize that there's nothing left.

Then, maybe, just maybe some significant changes will happen. As in, firing the likes of Quentin Kujala, Mike Thompson, and the rest of the kill it all FWP leadership, adopting a decent deer and elk management plan, shorter seasons, etc.

Montana is the case study in exactly how to NOT manage wildlife. Hunters in Wyoming would be marching on the capitol if this kind of crap were to happen here.

 

[tjones]

Buying and not using tags is playing right into FWP's hand. Makes the money machine work even better.

\
Money generated from MD doe tags in R7 wouldn't even be a blip in the FWP budget.

 

[The Hedgehog]

I can find better things to do with a couple dollars that donate to the MT FWP mismanagement of animals fund.

 

[8andcounting]

If I sold everyone 7 doe tags and they flushed them down the toilet, the next year I would be more likely to sell them 8 than 6.

Agreed. Good news is not a ton have sold so far I think there's 5k left . But I'm sure by time season opens for rifle more will sell

 

[onpoint]

I say keep hammering the deer and elk in Montana...pretty soon even the dimmest of dim bulbs on the Christmas tree will realize that there's nothing left.

Then, maybe, just maybe some significant changes will happen. As in, firing the likes of Quentin Kujala, Mike Thompson, and the rest of the kill it all FWP leadership, adopting a decent deer and elk management plan, shorter seasons, etc.

Montana is the case study in exactly how to NOT manage wildlife. Hunters in Wyoming would be marching on the capitol if this kind of crap were to happen here.

maybe................................................

 

[0hndycp]

I've given up all hope of MT FWP ever managing mule deer properly! Hunting mule deer for 6 weeks, through the entire rut, with rifles and unlimited permits is not management.....it's extermination!

 

[Irish52084]

Not being a Montana resident I feel a little strange commenting on this issue, but I'm going to do it anyway.

As it has been explained to me the increase in mule deer doe tags is done to help plateau the mule deer population while allowing more hunting opportunity. I know the winters did a number on the mule deer, but the population numbers suggest they are recovering well overall in region 7. The concern that was brought to my attention was that the population is reaching an apex for sustainability. Basically there are lots of deer and without solid winter kill the numbers will continue to grow and they will eat themselves out of available habitat. Then a hard winter shows up and decimates the population much worse than if we manage them ahead of time and try to keep the population within a sustainable range. Trying to find a balance that pleases everyone is impossible, too many deer and landowners get pissed because they eat/destroy crops, not enough deer and hunters are pissed.

It could always be worse, you could be a resident hunter in Washington.

 

[MTGomer]

If we have a second hard winter after this summers drought, combined with the killing of that many does, it'll be right back in the shitter where it was after 2011
I'm surprised they're selling tags instead of paying a bounty.

 

[MTGomer]

Not being a Montana resident I feel a little strange commenting on this issue, but I'm going to do it anyway.

As it has been explained to me the increase in mule deer doe tags is done to help plateau the mule deer population while allowing more hunting opportunity. I know the winters did a number on the mule deer, but the population numbers suggest they are recovering well overall in region 7. The concern that was brought to my attention was that the population is reaching an apex for sustainability. Basically there are lots of deer and without solid winter kill the numbers will continue to grow and they will eat themselves out of available habitat. Then a hard winter shows up and decimates the population much worse than if we manage them ahead of time and try to keep the population within a sustainable range. Trying to find a balance that pleases everyone is impossible, too many deer and landowners get pissed because they eat/destroy crops, not enough deer and hunters are pissed.

It could always be worse, you could be a resident hunter in Washington.

In Montana 'opportunity' is a cop out for ' we didn't study and don't know shit, but here is a bunch of tags'
Certainly there are better ways to achieve that goal than giving out thousands of tags for a region larger than a lot of states.
Deer numbers are not even very high.
There should be zero public land antlerless harvest of deer and very limited rifle rut hunting of bucks.

Not all, but many Montanans would like to see eastern Montana as something other than where Missoulians and Minnesotans come to drive around and shoot forked horns out their window.

This is the most ass backwards, incompetent wildlife management agency in the west.