Proposed Changes in General-Season Deer Hunting

1
Proposed Changes in General-Season Deer Hunting
2
Proposed Changes in General Season Deer Hunting

• Will present three options
• The first 2 options
• Will help increase buckdoe ratios
• Will reduce hunting opportunity
• The third option is a slightly modified version
  of the current system
• None of these options will increase deer
  populations

3
Option 1 - DWR Preferred Option

• Unit-by-unit deer management, but will allow
  regional hunting
• Manage all units for a 3-year average of 1525
  bucks/100 does with a regional management target
  of 18 bucks/100 does
• If regional 3-year average buckdoe ratio falls
  below 18, the regional cap will be reduced
  proportionally
• When regional average meets or exceeds 18
  bucks/100 does, permit numbers will return to
  the baseline
• If a units 3-year average buckdoe ratio falls
  below 12, that unit will be removed from the
  regional hunt and will be managed as a recovery
  unit until it returns to a 3-year average
  buckdoe ratio of 15

4
Pros of Option 1

• Allows biological management on a unit level
• Hunters have more flexibility in where to hunt
  (Region vs. Unit)
• Easier for families or groups to hunt together
• Minimizes law enforcement problems
• Dedicated Hunter Program will not have to change

5
Cons of Option 1

• Does not allow us to distribute hunting pressure
  evenly
• Relies on hunters to evenly distribute themselves
• Some management units will have lt18 bucks/100
  does

6
Option 2

• Hunt and manage on a unit-by-unit basis
• 29 general-season units
• All units will be managed for 18-25 bucks/100
  does
• Permits for a unit will be decreased if the
  buckdoe ratio falls below 18 and increased if
  the buckdoe ratio exceeds 25
• Cannot be implemented until 2012

7
Pros of Option 2

• Allows for more precise management of general
  season units
• Allows us to distribute hunting pressure more
  evenly
• All units will have at least 18 bucks/100 does
• Improves harvest data collection

8
Cons of Option 2

• Limits hunters to 1 general-season unit
• Makes it harder to draw popular units
• Dedicated hunters will have to draw their unit,
  and the program will become a one-year program
• Law enforcement issues
• Will make it harder to hunt as a family or group

9
Units
Unit Unit Name 3 year average Bucks/100 does
1 Box Elder 19
2 Cache 15
3 Ogden 17
4/5/6 Morgan Rich/East Canyon/ Chalk Creek 33
7 Kamas 19
8 North Slope 19
9A South Slope Yellowstone 15
9B/9D South Slope Vernal/Bonanza 12
11 Nine Mile 25
13 La Sal 17
14 San Juan 22
16A Central Mountains Nebo 18
16B/12 Central Mountains Manti/San Rafael 16
17A Wasatch Mountains West 18
10
Units
Unit Unit Name 3-year average Bucks/100 does
17B/17C Wasatch Mountains Currant Creek/Avintaquin 15
18 Oquirrh Stansbury 10
19 West Desert 19
20 Southwest Desert 29
21A Fillmore Oak Creek 27
21B Fillmore Pahvant 21
22 Beaver 17
23 Monroe 11
24 Mt Dutton 20
25A Plateau Fishlake 16
25B Plateau Thousand Lakes 18
25C/26 Plateau Boulder/Kaiparowits 14
28 Panguitch Lake 20
29 Zion 24
30 Pine Valley 21
11
Unit-by-Unit Considerations

• Two subunits that need consideration
• Plateau Thousand Lakes
• Fillmore Oak Creek subunit
• Both subunits currently are Limited Entry on
  public land and General Season on private land

12
Unit-by-Unit Considerations

• Plateau Thousand Lakes
• Unit is not meeting the buckdoe ratio objective
  for a limited-entry unit
• Recommend making it a general-season unit
• Fillmore Oak Creek
• This unit is meeting the buckdoe ratio objective
  for a limited-entry unit
• Recommend maintaining this unit as limited entry
  on public land and general season on private land

13
Option 3

• Unit-by-unit deer management, but will allow
  regional hunting
• Manage all units for a 3-year average of 1525
  bucks/100 does with a regional management target
  of 15 bucks/100 does
• Maintain current regional permit allocations
• If a units 3-year average buckdoe ratio falls
  below 12, that unit will be removed from the
  regional hunt and will be managed as a recovery
  unit until it returns to a 3-year average
  buckdoe ratio of 15

14
Comparing the 3 Options
Option 1 Option 2 Option 3
Objective All Units 15-25 All Units 18-25 All Units 15-25
Regional 18-25 NA 15-25
Drawing Region Unit Region
Dedicated Hunters No change Draw unit and 1 year program No change
Archery Statewide Statewide/Unit Statewide
Lifetime Region choice Unit choice Region choice
Landowner Easier to draw Harder to draw Easier to draw
Popular unit Easier to draw Harder to draw Easier to draw
Permit cuts 7,000 13,000 3,000
Permit Cost May increase Likely increase No increase
15
Current Statewide Plan

• Manage general season units for a 3-year average
  of 1525 bucks/100 does and a 9-day long any
  weapon season
• If a unit/subunit in a given region falls below a
  3-year average of 15 bucks/100 does, the season
  length for all hunting seasons on that
  unit/subunit will be shortened by 45 in the
  following hunting season. The season length will
  remain shortened until the 3-year average
  buckdoe ratio increases to gt15/100
• If a unit/subunit in a given region falls below a
  3-year average of 10 bucks/100 does, that
  unit/subunit will be managed on a limited entry
  basis in the following hunting season. The
  unit/subunit will continue under limited entry
  management until the 3-year average buckdoe
  ratio gt15/100

16
Statewide Plan Amendment for Option 1

• Manage general season units for a 3-year average
  of 1525 bucks/100 does with a regional
  management objective of 18 bucks/100 does
• If regional 3 year average buckdoe ratio falls
  below 18, regional permit numbers will be reduced
  to increase it back to or above 18
• When regional 3 year average gt 18, permit numbers
  will return to the baseline
• If a unit/subunit in a given region falls below a
  3-year average of 12 bucks/100 does, that
  unit/subunit will be removed from the regional
  hunt and managed as recovery unit for 3 years.
  The unit/subunit will remain a recovery unit
  until the 3-year average buckdoe ratio gt15/100

17
Statewide Plan Amendment for Option 2

• Manage 29 general season units for a postseason
  3-year average of 1825 bucks/100 does
• Permit numbers for a unit will be decreased if
  the buckdoe ratio falls below 18 and increased
  if it exceeds 25

18
Statewide Plan Amendment for Option 3

• Manage general season units for a 3-year average
  of 1525 bucks/100 does with a regional
  management objective of 15 bucks/100 does
• If a unit/subunit in a given region falls below a
  3-year average of 12 bucks/100 does, that
  unit/subunit will be removed from the regional
  hunt and managed as recovery unit for a minimum
  of 3 years. The unit/subunit will remain a
  recovery unit until the 3-year average buckdoe
  ratio gt15/100

19
Rule changes needed to hold the permit drawing
for all these options

• The following rules will require changes to make
  the permit drawing possible
• In those rules that refer to regions, wording
  will be changed to Region or Unit
• R657-5-Taking Big Game
• R657-17-Lifetime Hunting and Fishing Licenses
• R657-38-Dedicated Hunter Program
• R657-43-Landowner Permits
• R657-62-Drawing Application Procedures

20
Thank You