Minnesota hunters' success during the first nine days of Minnesota's firearms deer season was down compared to last year, especially in the northeastern part of the state. The hunt ends today in Northeastern Minnesota.
As reported in the News Tribune last week, hunters shot 128,814 deer through last Sunday, the second weekend of the firearms season, down 6 percent from last year, according to preliminary data released Wednesday by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
The harvest was down 25 percent in the zone that includes Northeastern Minnesota. Windy, rainy hunting weather on weekends contributed to the decline. The DNR said the northeastern harvest is down for several other reasons, including a moderate-to-severe previous winter, which probably led to deer succumbing to the weather and to fewer fawns born last spring. That spurred the DNR to offer far fewer doe permits, which cut into this year's harvest.
Statewide, the buck harvest was down 7 percent, with doe harvest down 5 percent from 2012, which was a low harvest year compared to the average over the past decade.
The firearms deer season ended across much of the state Nov. 17. Deer hunters still have the statewide muzzleloader season, which runs from Nov. 30 to Dec. 15. The archery season closes Dec. 31.
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Wolf hunting closed in NE Minnesota
Wolf hunting is now closed for the early season in Minnesota's Northeast Wolf Zone, where 31 wolves have been taken. The zone's target harvest was 33, and a zone is closed when that target is reached or is expected to be reached in the next day. The zone was closed Sunday.
Wolf hunting continues in Northwest Wolf Zone, where the target harvest is 73. As of Friday, 50 wolves had been taken.
A late hunting and trapping season for wolves will begin Nov. 30 and run through Jan. 31 or until target harvest quotas are reached. Any leftover licenses for the late hunting and trapping season will go on sale at license agents on Wednesday. The number of leftover licenses won't be known until Monday.
The overall target harvest quota for wolves in Minnesota this fall is 220, down from 400 last year, when 413 wolves were harvested.
No change for Mille Lacs walleye limits
Walleye anglers who fish Mille Lacs Lake this winter will do so under the same bag and slot limit that has been in effect since May, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
Following fish population assessments this fall, the DNR determined that maintaining the existing regulation was appropriate. That regulation allows anglers to harvest walleyes between 18 and 20 inches, except one over 28 inches may be harvested. The possession limit is two.
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The walleye fishing season runs through Feb. 23 and reopens May 10. Walleye regulations for the 2014 open water season will be announced in
late winter following an evaluation of harvest data.
More walleye fingerlings in Wisconsin lakes
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has completed stocking more than 440,000 6-to-8-inch walleye in 100 lakes during September, October and November, according to a DNR news release. That's more than four times as many larger walleyes than are typically stocked in the state. The effort was accomplished with $870,700 in special funding this year aimed at improving walleye fishing in the state.
The initiative provides $500,000 in each of the next two years to buy fish from private, municipal and tribal hatcheries for stocking. Still, DNR hatcheries raised most of the fish, 416,506 large fingerlings.
Typically, the DNR stocks most walleyes when they are 1½-to-2 inches long because raising them to a larger size becomes much more expensive. With the initiative, the DNR was able to keep four times as many of the larger fingerlings in the hatcheries compared to other years.
