August 16, 2017 at 3:59 p.m.
Antlerless tag sales reminiscent of Black Friday sales
Antlerless tag sales reminiscent of Black Friday sales
Citing an improving deer herd, the County Deer Advisory Committee (CDAC), last spring recommended some antlerless tags be distributed in Oneida County. At the group's April meeting, the CDAC voted to recommend the harvest of 850 antlerless deer. With a likely success rate of 35 percent, 2,400 tags would be issued for the county. Those hunting on public lands would have a shot at one of 700 tags, while those on private lands could grab one of the 1,700 available in the county.
Those visiting the Go Wild website from their home or work computers found themselves in a queue, waiting for their turn to snatch up an antlerless tag. DNR Service Centers in Rhinelander and Minocqua were inundated with hunters early in the morning, but crowds had thinned out considerably by 11 a.m.
Warden supervisor Dave Walz said approximately 65 people were waiting in line before tags went on sale at 10 a.m. The estimate for the Rhinelander office was approximately 100 people. Wildlife biologist Michele Woodford said she was told about 30 people were at the DNR service station in Iron County when tags went on sale as well.
As of this writing, the DNR website shows 128 private land tags still left for Oneida County. Those tags were to go on sale at 10 a.m. Thursday and likely did not last long. Antlerless tags for public lands went quickly for Oneida County, as most hunters expected.
Some hunters who don't believe the herd has sufficiently rebounded, at least in their hunting area, are not in favor of an antlerless harvest.
The next CDAC meeting, to be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Aug. 29 at James Williams Middle School from 6-8 p.m., is expected to include discussion on concerns raised regarding varying densities of deer populations within the county.
Deer Management Unit (DMU) boundaries will be discussed at that meeting, with a possibility of splitting the county into two separate DMUs, much like the old system. The public is encouraged to attend the CDAC meeting in their county and to take part in the public comment portion of the meeting. Meeting dates and times can be found on the DNR website, dnr.wi.gov, by searching keyword "CDAC."
Whether online or in-person, the Go Wild system seemed to work well for most looking to get in on the county's first antlerless hunt in the past few years. Some with slower internet connections reported some glitches and freeze-ups from the website, but overall the system performed well.
Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.