Terry Steinwand, Director North Dakota Game and Fish Department 100 N. Bismarck Expressway Bismarck, ND 58501 NORTH DAKOTA STATE REPORT June 2016 2016 Deer Season Set North Dakota s 2016 deer season is set with 49,000 licenses available to hunters this fall, 5,725 more than last year. Jeb Williams, wildlife chief for the State Game and Fish Department, said population and harvest data indicate the state s deer population is stable to increasing, primarily due to seven years of reduced gun licenses combined with mild winters. Consequently, a small increase in deer licenses will provide increased hunting opportunities while continuing to encourage population growth, Williams said. Most of the additional licenses are for antlered deer. The mule deer population in the badlands increased for the fourth consecutive year, with numbers showing the spring mule deer index is up 21 percent from last year. Williams said a conservative management approach will remain in the badlands, and for the fifth consecutive year, Game and Fish will not issue any antlerless mule deer licenses in units 4A, 4B and 4C. However, for the first time since 2011 mule deer doe licenses are available in units 3B1, 3B2, 4D, 4E and 4F. Mule deer numbers are above the population objective and long-term average in certain areas, therefore a limited number of antlerless mule deer licenses are available in these units, Williams said. The number of licenses available for 2016 includes 2,550 for antlered mule deer, an increase of 675 from last year; 928 for muzzleloader, an increase of 100 from last year; and 225 restricted youth antlered mule deer, an increase of 38 from last year. New this year is an option that allows unsuccessful applicants to donate their refund to the Game and Fish Department Private Land Open to Sportsmen or PLOTS program. The donation is not tax deductible. Proceeds from this donation fund would be focused on deer habitat and hunting access to deer habitat. The North Dakota State Legislature created this option in 2015 with nearly unanimous support.
Total deer licenses are determined by harvest rates, aerial surveys, depredation reports, hunter observations, input at advisory board meetings, and comments from the public, landowners and department field staff. Spring Mule Deer Survey Complete The North Dakota Game and Fish Department completed its annual spring mule deer survey in April, and results indicate western North Dakota s mule deer population has increased 21 percent from last year. Bruce Stillings, big game supervisor, said the increase is a result of higher adult doe survival in 2015, three consecutive years of good fawn production, and overwinter survival combined with milder winter weather conditions. These factors, along with no harvest of antlerless mule deer during the past four deer hunting seasons, have resulted in mule deer numbers doubling since we experienced our low in 2012, Stillings said. Biologists counted 2,880 mule deer in 306.3 square miles during this year s survey. Overall mule deer density in the badlands was 9.4 deer per square mile, which is up from 7.8 deer per square mile in 2015. The spring mule deer survey is used to assess mule deer abundance in the badlands. It is conducted after the snow has melted and before the trees begin to leaf out, providing the best conditions for aerial observation of deer. Biologists have completed aerial surveys of the same 24 study areas since the 1950s. Deer Samples Negative for CWD Samples taken from North Dakota deer during the 2015 hunting season have all tested negative for chronic wasting disease, according to Dr. Dan Grove, wildlife veterinarian for the State Game and Fish Department. Last fall, samples for CWD testing were taken from more than 1,300 deer harvested by hunters in the western third of the state. Since the Game and Fish Department s sampling efforts began in 2002, more than 26,000 deer, elk and moose have tested negative for CWD. A total of seven deer have tested positive for CWD, all since 2009 and all were from the same general area within unit 3F2 in southwestern North Dakota. The hunter-harvested surveillance program annually collects samples taken from hunterharvested deer in specific regions of the state. In 2016, deer will be tested from the eastern third of the state. The Game and Fish Department also has a targeted surveillance program that is an ongoing, year-round effort to test animals found dead or sick.
CWD affects the nervous system of members of the deer family and is always fatal. Scientists have found no evidence that CWD can be transmitted naturally to humans or livestock. 2015 Deer Gun Season Stats A total of 39,470 North Dakota deer hunters took approximately 26,700 deer during the 2015 deer gun hunting season, according to a post-season survey conducted by the State Game and Fish Department. Game and Fish made available 43,275 deer gun licenses last year. Overall hunter success was 68 percent, with each hunter spending an average of 4.3 days in the field. Hunter success for antlered white-tailed deer was 70 percent, and antlerless whitetail was 64 percent. Mule deer buck success was 86 percent. No mule deer doe licenses were issued in 2015. Hunters with any-antlered or any-antlerless licenses generally harvest white-tailed deer, as these licenses are predominantly in units with mostly whitetails. Buck hunters had a success rate of 75 percent, while doe hunters had a success rate of 67 percent. A total of 826 muzzleloader licenses were issued in 2015, and 745 hunters that participated harvested 348 white-tailed deer (194 antlered, 154 antlerless). Hunter success was 47 percent, with each hunter spending an average of 5.9 days in the field. A record 25,703 archery licenses (23,710 resident, 1,993 nonresident) were issued in 2015. In total, 21,680 bow hunters harvested 7,527 deer (6,777 whitetails, 750 mule deer), for a success rate of 35 percent. Bucks accounted for 75 percent of the deer harvested with a bow. Archers spent an average of 10.7 days afield. In addition, 4,004 youth licenses were issued in 2015. During the youth season, 3,487 hunters harvested 1,832 deer (393 bucks, 1,439 does). Hunter success was 52 percent, and each hunter spent an average of 2.9 days in the field. Youth hunters in the regular deer gun season harvested an additional 240 deer (196 bucks, 44 does) for an overall success rate of 59 percent. Electronic Licenses Hunting, fishing and furbearer licenses for the 2016-17 licensing year will be available starting March 15. This year for the first time, paper license booklets are no longer available at license vendors since participating vendors will need to sell licenses electronically. Not all vendors that sold licenses in the past will still sell licenses. New fishing, hunting and furbearer licenses are required April 1. The 2016-17 licenses are effective April 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017. Hunting and fishing licenses can be purchased using a computer or smartphone by logging into the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov, or at license vendors that are linked to the department s online licensing system.
In addition, licenses may also be purchased at the department s instant licensing telephone number at 800-406-6409 any time day or night. A service charge is added for licenses purchased through the instant licensing telephone number. More than 70 percent of hunters and anglers already buy their licenses electronically. Benefits of purchasing a license through an electronic licensing system include having the ability to reprint multiple copies of a license, or to replace lost or damaged licenses, from any license vendor or personal computer, without having to pay a fee for a duplicate license. Game and Fish will continue to use paper applications for lottery licenses. These will be available at license vendors and other locations throughout the state. MRS Walleye Tagging Study Continues North Dakota Game and Fish Department fisheries biologists are on the final leg of a four-year walleye tagging study on the Missouri River and Lake Oahe. South central district fisheries biologist Paul Bailey said this spring s goal in North Dakota is to tag 4,000 adult walleye, which would bring the four-year total covering the entire reach to more than 36,000 fish. The study area extends from the Garrison Dam in central North Dakota downstream to Oahe Dam in South Dakota, and involves a major collaboration of biologists and researchers from North Dakota Game and Fish, South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks, and South Dakota State University. The study is designed to assess walleye movements, mortality and what proportion of the walleye population is harvested annually by anglers, Bailey said. The study targets adult walleye, each fitted with a metal jaw tag stamped with a unique number to identify the fish, and a phone number to report the tag. Anglers can either keep or release the fish. Anglers practicing catch-and-release can write the tag number down and report it, leaving the tag on the fish when released. Bailey said the study has provided biologists with some valuable information. The angling mortality rate that we ve seen in the first three years of the study has been about 17-27 percent, depending on the region of Lake Oahe and the Missouri River that we are in, Bailey said. Those are all acceptably low rates of mortality that basically says that anglers are not having a negative impact on the fishery at the present time. In addition, Bailey believes a lot of anglers assume there is a walleye migration that occurs every spring, similar to a spawning run. The information that we are getting suggests that this really isn t the case, he added. What anglers are seeing is really an illusion, based on water temperatures.
Movement patterns suggest over half of the tagged walleye reported by anglers were caught within 10 miles of where they were tagged and released. However, Bailey said the pattern shows fish tagged in North Dakota moved greater distances than those tagged farther downstream, and North Dakota fish moved both upstream and downstream after tagging. While the tagging portion of the project will be completed this year, anglers will be able to report tagged fish as they are caught in the future. Anglers can report tags by calling the phone number found on tags, which, anglers should note, is a South Dakota phone number. Tag information can also be reported on the Game and Fish Department s website, gf.nd.gov, or by calling 701-328-6300. Anglers should record the date and location of the catch, whether the fish was kept or released, tag number and length and weight (if the fish was measured). Anglers who report tagged fish can keep the tag, and will receive a letter providing some history on the fish. A small portion of the tags offer a reward to anglers to encourage returns, Bailey said, with these tags clearly marked Reward. Reward tags must be physically turned in to Game and Fish offices in Riverdale or Bismarck, or to a Game, Fish and Parks office in South Dakota. Pronghorn Hunters Successful in 2015 Hunter success during last fall s pronghorn hunting season was 81 percent, according to statistics provided by the North Dakota Game and Fish Department. The season was held in units 3-B, 4-A and 4-C. Game and Fish issued 409 licenses (266 lottery and 143 gratis), and 385 hunters took 312 pronghorn, consisting of 286 bucks, 15 does and 11 fawns. Each hunter spent an average of 2.4 days afield. The 2016 pronghorn hunting season will be determined in early July. 2015 Moose and Elk Harvests Harvest statistics released by the North Dakota Game and Fish Department show overall hunter success during the 2015 season was 96 percent for moose and 69 percent for elk. The bighorn sheep hunting season was closed due to significant sheep mortality in 2014 caused by bacterial pneumonia. The department issued 129 moose licenses last year. Of that total, hunters harvested 124 moose 106 bulls and 18 cows/calves. One additional license was raffled by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and the hunter was successful in harvesting a moose. The department issued 317 elk licenses last year. Of that total, 287 hunters harvested 197 elk 128 bulls and 69 cows/calves. One additional license was raffled by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and the hunter was successful in harvesting an elk.
Catchable Trout, Catfish, Pike Stocked North Dakota Game and Fish Department fisheries personnel recently stocked more than 40 local fisheries with catchable trout, catfish and pike. Approximately 23,000 11-inch rainbow trout, 800 adult catfish, 750 5-pound pike and 600 1- to 5-pound cutthroat trout were recently stocked in rural and city ponds and lakes. Fisheries production and development section leader Jerry Weigel said while the state s fisheries are at historic highs, many are not as easily accessible to youngsters, older adults and disabled anglers. These stockings put catchable fish in waters that are accessible, Weigel said. Many have fishing piers, and are a great opportunity for a first-time angler to catch fish. In addition, rainbow trout were stocked into larger waters. Anglers should refer to the fishing tab at the Game and Fish Department s website, gf.nd.gov, for a complete stocking report. NASP State Tournament Results A total of 530 archers competed in the North Dakota National Archery in the Schools Program state bull s-eye tournament March 18-19 in Minot. Hankinson students claimed top honors in the elementary (grades 4-6) and middle school (grades 7-8) divisions. North Sargent claimed first place in the high school (grades 9-12) division. Overall male and female winners were Spencer Brockman of North Sargent and Kate Loewen of Hankinson. Winning teams and the top 10 individuals qualify for the national tournament, scheduled for May in Louisville, Ky. The Game and Fish Department and North Dakota Youth Archery Advisory Council contribute a total of $3,000 in travel assistance to the first place team in each division, and $1,000 to the overall male and female individual winners. In addition, a total of $20,000 in college scholarships was awarded by the NDYAAC to the top five overall scorers in both boys and girls.