Details

Published: 08 November 2024

MDNR Report

The 2024 bear management cooperator patch is a great way to commemorate the recent bear season. Adult hunters, patch collectors and others can buy a patch for $7. Young hunters, 10-17 years old, who have a valid bear hunting license can get a free patch.

The Michigan Bear Hunters Association, in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, coordinates Michigan’s bear cooperator patch program. Proceeds from patch sales will be used for black bear education and outreach.

You can order patches online or by sending your name, complete address, and a check or money order payable to the Michigan Bear Hunters Association. If the patch is for a youth bear hunter, please send a legible copy of a youth’s valid bear hunting license. Mailed patch orders should be sent to:

MBHA - Bear Patch Program
10510 Fairgrieve Road
Johannesburg, MI 49751

Young artists can enter 2025 patch design contest

The Michigan Bear Hunters Associations holds a design contest annually to create the bear patch. K-12 students attending public, private or home school in Michigan are eligible to enter. To learn more about the patch design contest, visit the bear management cooperator patch webpage. The contest entry deadline is Dec. 31.

Details

Published: 30 October 2024

MDNR Report

Whitetail Doe

Deer populations across Michigan present a diverse range of challenges and opportunities for wildlife management. From the overabundance in the Lower Peninsula to the varying dynamics in the Upper Peninsula, managing deer numbers effectively is crucial for ecosystem health, agricultural interests and the balance of natural predators. Recent regulatory changes highlight the state’s efforts to address these issues through strategic antlerless deer harvest policies.

Overabundance in the Lower Peninsula

Many locations in Michigan's Lower Peninsula, including many urban and suburban areas, are experiencing high deer population densities. This overabundance can lead to various problems, including increased vehicle collisions, damage to crops and gardens, and the spread of diseases such as chronic wasting disease and bovine tuberculosis where they exist. To mitigate these issues, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources have implemented several regulatory changes, hoping to increase antlerless deer harvest.

Read more …

Details

Published: 29 October 2024

MDNR Report

Michigan Whitetails

This year, chronic wasting disease testing will still be focused in some areas of the northern Lower Peninsula as well as the Upper Peninsula. The counties for CWD testing in 2024 include Antrim, Arenac, Baraga, Benzie, Cheboygan, Chippewa, Clare, Dickinson, Gladwin, Grand Traverse, Houghton, Iosco, Kalkaska, Keweenaw, Leelanau, Luce, Mackinac, Manistee, Ogemaw, Ontonagon, Otsego and Schoolcraft.

In these counties, a variety of sites will be popping up, with at least one of the following depending on the county: drop boxes, staffed submission sites, and partner processors and taxidermists to assist with collection efforts. To find out about available sites near where you hunt, see the CWD testing page.

Historically, testing occurred in and around areas where CWD has been detected to date.

Starting in 2021, the DNR began a rotational approach to testing for CWD around the state. With this approach, a group of counties is selected each year, with a desire to eventually test sufficient numbers of deer in every county across the state. This has led to detection of CWD in 13 of Michigan’s 83 counties, with Ogemaw being the latest in the fall of 2023.

The goal of this approach is early disease detection, as management has the potential to be most effective when the disease is caught early. Most of these areas have not had a CWD detection or have not previously been part of intensive testing efforts, so little is known about disease status in these locations. To date, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has collected enough baseline information in 61 of the state's 83 counties and is conducting surveillance in the remaining 22 counites to meet the baseline information needs in these areas.

For more on where CWD has been found, see the County-level CWD detection information page.

CWD testing overview

CWD is a serious neurological disease affecting deer, and testing your harvested deer is crucial for monitoring and managing its spread. Testing options currently available in 2024 include:

• Testing locations: The DNR offers various submission sites in the northern Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula counties that are part of the 2024 rotational testing. Hunters can find a list of submission locations on the DNR website.
• Self-sample kits: For your convenience, self- sample submission kits are available for hunters in certain counties where DNR submission is not available. The kits come with instructions and supplies to collect samples and free overnight shipping to the diagnostic testing laboratory. Results are emailed directly to the submitter. Kits are available in the following counties: Clinton, Eaton, Gogebic, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Ingham, Ionia, Iron, Isabella, Jackson, Kent, Menominee, Midland and Montcalm. Kits can be picked up from the locations listed on the CWD testing page. Hunters should call the office prior to arriving to ensure someone will be available to assist. 
• Sample testing for a fee: Deer harvested in counties that are not eligible for free CWD testing can be submitted through one of the following participating USDA-approved laboratories for a fee. Results from deer submitted to an approved USDA laboratory using testing for a fee will be sent directly to the hunter from the laboratory.
• Instructions to submit samples to the Michigan State University Diagnostic Laboratory.
• Instructions to submit samples to the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.

Whichever testing option is right for you, make sure to follow the submission guidelines carefully to ensure your sample is processed correctly. For detailed information on testing procedures and locations, please visit the DNR CWD testing page.

CWD regulations and best practices

Carcass transportation: Deer harvested outside of Michigan and deer harvested in Montcalm County in its entirety; Otisco, Orleans, Ronald or North Plains townships in Ionia County; or Nelson, Spencer, Courtland, Oakfield, Grattan or Cannon townships in Kent County cannot be possessed or transported outside of those listed areas, unless:

Read more …