A friend of mine in Meadow Lake told me that he heard something on the radio about the province is considering closing 3 areas for deer this year in SK because of the bad winter(s). Just curious if and guys on here heard anything about this.
Sk Closed areas for 2014 deer season?
- Thread starter Varmit
- Start date
My thoughts too. We could stand to close the province to deer hunting altogether for two years minumum if you ask me.
There are no deer left. South of the frenchman river was head counted last year and the wardens figured the numbers were down 90%. We sti;; have hungry coyotes so that should take care of the fawn population too. We should shut down for a couple years for sure.
driftpounder
Member
- Location
- Martensville, SK
Closing the season may not be the answer as it will make it very difficult to reopen it after. I have experienced this with resident moose licences in zone 49, was supposed to close for a few years and reopen, still not open and there are noticably more moose there now then I can ever remember. Might be better off to have reduced licences or even change licences type from over the counter to a draw system vs closing the hunting altogether.
I do a lot of my hunting in Northeastern part of the province which has been hit the hardest the last few winters as well as the increased predation from a larger wolf population. There are still deer out there, the populations are down, but with a slight change in management might be a better option in the long run to protect hunting rights as well as deer populations. That is if there is indeed a need to change management to protect the existing populations.
There is a similar thread about the deer in Manitoba, it was a good read on the opinions and potential management strategies to get the population recovering.
I do a lot of my hunting in Northeastern part of the province which has been hit the hardest the last few winters as well as the increased predation from a larger wolf population. There are still deer out there, the populations are down, but with a slight change in management might be a better option in the long run to protect hunting rights as well as deer populations. That is if there is indeed a need to change management to protect the existing populations.
There is a similar thread about the deer in Manitoba, it was a good read on the opinions and potential management strategies to get the population recovering.
the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
Not a deer in the yard here all winter, not even a track and last winter there were 15-25 mule deer in and around the house every day according to the landlady. As for the coyotes, I think the neighbours kid and I wiped them out within a 5 min radius of the house. Have not seen or heard one, or even so much as a track since the last one I shot over six weeks ago. Both the landlady and her neighbour says it is the first year he can ever remember not seeing or hearing them around during spring calving.
That being said I saw lots of deer all through the winter. They really stuck to the Coulees this winter around here.
That being said I saw lots of deer all through the winter. They really stuck to the Coulees this winter around here.
Last edited:
Muskyhunter1
CGN Regular
- Location
- Near the tree with the crooked limb.
Closing is not good. Too easy for people to keep it closed. Good example is the Ontario Spring Bear Hunt. Got closed for BS political reasons no problem. Now we are having a bear problem and the anti movements are fighting hard to keep it closed. Just restrict the deer hunt, cut back tags, shorten seasons, etc. Do what you have to do to help the deer. Just don't close the season that is all I am saying. Good luck
I agree, people whine there are no deer, Weill in south saskatchewan I see huge herds. 14-20 animals at a time from carievale to Minton. It has not been as bad a year as last year so almostn none will hunker into areas around farmyards. But around dawn or dusk you see them moving all through the fields.
I take regular drives in the country in a 20 mile radius of Saskatoon. Every evening I am out I see a minimum of 50 deer, a mixture of whitetail and mule. However I hunt in NE Saskatchewan and deer populations have dropped there. I don't think it's low enough to warrant closing the season altogether. There are fewer deer, sure, but the last ten years have seen deer in unprecidented numbers in that area. In fact, I never used to see mule deer around there at all, but now they are moving that way. Winters have been long and tough and predator population high, but reduced tags or a draw system would be better than closing the season. I have an uncle with a cabin back in the Wildcat Hills. Wolf populations in there are dropping the numbers more than the winter conditions. A fellow with a cabin nearby had trapped over 50 wolves before the end of February.
- Location
- Lac Pelletier Sask
I'm south of Swift Current, seems to be about the same as other years down here. But defiantly more Coyotes around
driftpounder
Member
- Location
- Martensville, SK
X3, it will maybe keep a few people from hunting my areas.
Last season numbers were down in the areas I hunt around PA but still my son and still managed to tag out but it took a pile of effort. This spring numbers seem to be about the same so no real change hopefully there will be no closures but perhaps the lower numbers may keep a few road warriors home.
My son and I decided not to apply for a Canadian resident whitetail draw. We saw the light a long time that winter had been hard again on them, therefore; our conservation contribution is not to hunt Saskatchewan. This will be the first year I missed since 1988. Best of luck to Saskatchewan wildlife management and the survival of the whitetail!
I think closing the deer season is the wrong thing to do. Yes the numbers could increase next year but another bad winter could put us back where we are today, so do we close it for two years or three? We have seen provincial numbers increase for the most part which has aloud us to be more selective than years past. I believe the weather has more influence on game numbers than anything. We will have good hunting years and not so good hunting years. Once we go down that road,( closing a season) well you know what can happen!!
duncansuds
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Weyburn, SK
X3.
Didn't even tag out last year, was hunting for a gnarly looking old 120, couldn't close the gap, so I didn't bother tagging out. I seen way fewer deer this past season than the two before, so I felt like I did my part by trying for a ghost, and letting the young 3x3 and 4x4 live another season to grow and breed. Lots of guys around here said the same things. Too many guys just go out and kill the first one they see, which isn't bad of they are only out for meat hunting I guess, just wouldn't hurt to close for a season or have everyone collectively be more selective this year, or voluntarily take the year off, hunt old, hunt old does, do something to contribute.
In our area, the deer had an easier winter then the two before it anyways, hopefully the numbers reflect it. There was opportunity for them to eat all winter around us, it was cold, but at least they could get to more food then the years past.
