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Outdoor Enthusiasts Reject Idea of Extended Gun Deer Season

Thursday, May 7th, 2020 -- 8:56 AM

(AP) -Outdoor enthusiasts overwhelmingly rejected Wisconsin wildlife officials’ proposals to dramatically reshape the state’s gun deer hunting structure to bolster the waning sport, a survey released Wednesday shows.

The state Department of Natural Resources has been working for years to rekindle interest in deer hunting as hunters age out of the sport and more young people ignore the outdoors. DNR records show that total gun deer license sales dropped nearly 16% between 1994 and last year. Sales to Wisconsin residents have dropped by nearly 20% over that span. The DNR planned to submit questions about reforming the gun deer season to attendees at the Wisconsin Conservation Congress’ statewide spring hearings April 13. The congress is an influential group of sportsmen who advise the DNR on policy decisions. The congress ultimately canceled the hearings due to the coronavirus pandemic and conducted an online survey instead. The DNR released results on Wednesday. The biggest change the DNR proposed was extending the nine-day gun season to 19 days.

The congress included a separate question asking if people would support replacing the nine-day with a 16-day season that would start in mid-November. The nine-day season currently begins the Saturday before Thanksgiving, and hunters have complained that the late start misses the rut and that the deer have stopped moving by then, leading to weak harvests. The proposal to extend the gun season to 19 days failed by nearly a three-to-one margin, 42,208 to 14,820, with 2,261 having no opinion. The 16-day idea failed by more than a two-to-one margin, 38,106 to 15,599. The DNR included a number of other questions centered on reducing competition from additional deer seasons. Board members fear those seasons are diluting excitement about the traditional nine-day gun season.

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