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May 7, 2007
Game and Fish Proposes More Deer Licenses for 2007
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department will continue an aggressive approach to deer management by proposing to increase the number of deer hunting licenses available in 2007, according to Randy Kreil, wildlife division chief.
The figure submitted to Gov. John Hoeven’s office for approval is 148,550 licenses, an increase of 5,050 from last year. This year’s number includes an additional 4,350 whitetail and 700 mule deer licenses.
“Progress toward reducing deer numbers was evident this past year in northwest and southeast North Dakota,” Kreil said. “As a result these areas will see stable to lower license numbers, due to a significant decline in deer numbers resulting from several years of high harvest on does.”
Mild winters and a corresponding increase in reproductive success have maintained white-tailed deer populations above management objectives in many units in northeastern, north central, and southwestern North Dakota. In response, Kreil said, the department will continue an aggressive approach to deer management until deer numbers are reduced to unit goals.
The mule deer population in the badlands remains at or above management goals. “The 2007 population and reproductive surveys in the badlands indicate a stable to increasing number of mule deer,” Kreil said. “As a result, the number of mule deer licenses available in 2007 will be slightly higher than in 2006.”
The number of licenses available for 2007 includes 8,350 for mule deer, an increase of 700 from last year; 2,804 for muzzleloader, up 88 from last year; and 340 restricted youth antlered mule deer, the same as last year.
The boundary between units 2K2 and 2L is the recently realigned U.S. Highway 281. The highway was moved west approximately three miles from the original highway because of the rising waters of Devils Lake.
North Dakota residents who are on active duty with the National Guard or Reserve and are stationed outside of the state during the 2007 deer gun lottery process, and miss the initial lottery, are eligible to purchase one gun license for a white-tailed deer of either sex, in a unit of their choice.
Likewise, North Dakota residents who were unable to participate in the 2006 deer gun season because they were on active duty with the U.S. Armed Forces and were stationed outside the state, are also eligible to purchase one deer gun license in a unit of their choice.
North Dakota’s 2007 deer gun season is set to open Nov. 9 at noon and continue through Nov. 25. Online applications for the regular deer gun, youth and muzzleloader seasons will be available May 9 through the Game and Fish Department’s internet website, gf.nd.gov, while paper applications will be available at vendors throughout the state by mid-May. The deadline for applying is June 6.
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