16-day gun deer season draws fire: Most local hunters seem against plan to drop 9-day hunt

By Tim Damos, Capital Newspapers

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources says opposition to a 16-day gun deer season has emerged during the first five hearings to find out what hunters think about the idea.

No Sauk County hearings are scheduled. But most local hunters seem to be against extending the traditional 9-day season as a new way to control the growth of the whitetail deer herd, said Ken Vertein of Baraboo, chairman of the Sauk County Conservation Congress Delegation.

The Natural Resources Board authorized hearings on the plan, which would be an alternative to the unpopular Earn-a-Buck program. If approved, the hunt would begin a week earlier than normal in 2010.

State wildlife experts say roughly the southern half of Wisconsin is populated with at least 20 percent more whitetail deer than desired by recommended goals.

But hunters in the field aren’t seeing them.

"Most of the hunters don’t feel the deer herd is as big as the DNR says it is," Vertein said. "This is personal opinion, but it appears that the DNR is set on their agenda to reduce the deer population across the state of Wisconsin."

In many places in the southern third of the state, including Sauk County, the DNR estimates deer populations are more than 40 percent above goal as the fall hunting seasons unfold.

DNR deer expert Keith Warnke says ample supplies of bonus tags are available in those areas to shoot antlerless deer.

Warnke says fawn production this spring was about the same as a year ago. He says 11 deer management units in northeast Wisconsin are below population goals for deer.

The DNR has an online color map on its Web site that compares estimated deer populations to recommended goals to give hunters a general idea of population trends.

Although the map lists Sauk County as a high deer population area, 72-year-old Bob McGann of Baraboo says many of his hunting friends haven’t seen much action in recent years, and they’re giving up.

"Most hunters go out two or three times and don’t see anything, they get disgusted, and they think they might as well do something else," said McGann, who has been bow and gun hunting for 55 years.

McGann said he only saw one buck and a few does during the 20 times he bow and gun hunted on three different pieces of property in the Baraboo area last season.

"We used to have way too many," he said.

McGann said a shorter gun season would preserve what he sees as a dwindling deer herd.

Warnke says nearly 650 people attended hearings in Crivitz, Onalaska, Madison, Rhinelander and Ashland, and bow hunters strongly oppose extending the gun hunt. Six hearings remain.

Warnke says hunting traditions, conflicts with other outdoor users and fears of diminished deer populations are among reasons for rejecting the longer hunt.

The final hearings are Monday in Appleton and Eau Claire, Tuesday in Racine, Wednesday in Pewaukee and Spooner and Nov. 3 in Stevens Point.

If hunters can’t attend the hearings, they can register their opinions on the DNR’s Web site.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.