UPDATE: The controversial proposal to ban hunting bucks in Waupaca County failed tonight by a vote of 4 to 1. Hundreds of people packed a meeting at Waupaca High School to speak out against the idea.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A proposal to ban buck hunting for the 2016 hunting season is sparking up a debate in Waupaca county. The Waupaca County Deer Advisory Council says it's about the health of the overall deer population, but the potential change has hunters concerned.
In 2015 only six thousand does were registered in Waupaca County. Deer management officials were hoping for double that.
"The reason why Waupaca County is a successful county for hunting is because we don't shoot all our does if we don't have too," says Jered Wilson of Weyauwega. He’s been hunting Waupaca County for nearly 30 years with family and has issues with the potential change.
And because that portion of the herd reproduces, hard decisions have to be made by those in charge of managing the herd’s numbers.
"In order to maintain the population, 14 thousand antlerless deer need to be harvested this year," says David Lindensteruth the Waupaca County Deer Management Assistance Program Representative. Lindensteruth is also an avid hunter in Waupaca County.
Waupaca County was the number two producer of harvested deer in the state last hunting season and in 2016 it’s considering letting hunters only take does.
"Right now the county has about 85 deer per square mile and when you get above 20 or 30 deer per square mile, you start to have major impacts on forest regeneration," says Lindensteruth who is worried about the health of the woods and deer if the numbers aren’t managed.
But for many other hunters in Waupaca County, the numbers don’t register considering they have noticed for years, the herd’s population going down.
"The doe population is down no matter what they say,” adds Wilson.
Wilson claims his hunting party and that of friends and family, no longer see the numbers they used too. They worry that this potential move will take away their past time.
"Hunting is about the trophy deer and now you want to say that we can't do that? It's wrong in all aspects," adds Wilson.
The DNR would have to approve any recommendation made from the Waupaca County Deer Advisory before any new changes would be made to the 2016 deer hunt. The DNR will likely take up Waupaca County’s recommendation for decision, at a meeting in May.
