By Louie Stout
Will Hoosiers set another deer harvest record this season?
Probably not, says Indiana deer biologist Chad Stewart.
Thats not to say he doesnt expect a good hunting season, but the state is due for a dip.
Last year, Hoosiers harvested 136,248 deer, breaking the harvest record for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
It wouldnt surprise me if it was down a little this year, Stewart said in a press release. But I dont expect the harvest numbers to fall off a cliff. There will still be plenty of deer out there.
The 2013 overall deer hunting season began Sunday with the opening of the urban deer zone season. Archery season starts Oct. 1. Firearms season starts Nov. 16. For more information on seasons and regulations, visit www.Hunting.IN.gov.
The main reason Stewart thinks a dip in the harvest might happen is because hunters in 2012 harvested a record number of does. As a result, reproduction was likely down this year compared to previous years.
Stewart emphasized that reducing the deer population to a more balanced level has been the DNRs goal in recent years. Changes to hunting regulations that went into effect in 2012 were geared toward that goal. Changes included extending archery season, allowing crossbows for all archery hunters and creating a license bundle that saved hunters money.
A reduced deer harvest would mean we are making progress, Stewart said.
The 2013 license bundles give the additional option of harvesting either two antlerless deer and a buck or three antlerless deer.
Of course, EHD (epizootic hemorrhagic disease) could be the wild card for hunters. The disease struck 67 Indiana counties last year, including several in northern Indiana. This year 15 counties have reported EHD, including several on deer farms in Kosciusko County.
Elkhart County was hit fairly hard last season, especially on a couple of deer farms where deer are kept in pretty close quarters.
And what about southwest Michigan, where herds were hit very hard the past couple of years?
Crane Pond Game Area biologist Ken Kesson said hes only received three reports two from Berrien County and one from around Niles so far this year.
The area around Muskegon have been hit pretty hard, but so far, we seem to be less affected than weve been the last couple of years, he said. EHD usually peaks around Labor Day. I dont think it will be anywhere near as bad this year.
Because of how hard the herd was hit by EHD in previous years, deer numbers are expected to be low in southwest Michigan. However, escaping another major outbreak could lead to a rebound in the herd in the next few years.