# ND Game and Fish to Hold Special Deer Season



## nodakoutdoors.com (Feb 27, 2002)

Game and Fish to Hold Special Deer Season

In an effort to encourage more white-tailed deer harvest in the state, the
North Dakota Game and Fish Department will recommend to Governor John Hoeven
that a special deer season be held in late December. This season will be for
antlerless white-tailed deer only, and will be held statewide with the
exception of several badlands units where whitetail deer populations are
struggling to rebound from recent EHD disease outbreaks and remain below
unit objectives.

So far this fall, the game and fish department has issued a record 139,000
deer licenses, already about 13,000 more than last year. However, as of
November 15, more than 6,000 antlerless deer licenses were still available.

The supplemental season is scheduled for December 17 - 31, in all units
except 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D and 4E. The season is open to those who purchase
remaining licenses, and to hunters who have unfilled antlerless whitetail,
or "any-antlerless" licenses from the regular deer gun season.

Hunters who have unfilled antlered (buck) deer licenses may not hunt in the
supplemental season. As in the regular deer gun season, hunters must hunt
only in the unit designated on their license.

"Some of these units have licenses remaining and others may be experiencing
a lesser harvest due to a variety of reasons," said Randy Kreil, chief of
the department's wildlife division. "We know we still might not issue all
the remaining licenses and not everyone with a license will get a deer
during the December season, but we needed to make an extra effort to provide
additional opportunities for harvest."

The special season will also give landowners who may have experienced deer
depredation problems in past winters, a chance to allow hunters to reduce
deer numbers in localized areas, Kreil added.

The 2004 supplemental season marks only the third time in recent history
that game and fish has added to the regular deer gun season. The last time
was in 1996, primarily in the eastern part of the state, when a severe
snowstorm during the second weekend of the season significantly limited
travel and hunting activity. Prior to that, a supplemental season was held
in 1986, also due to a significant snowstorm on opening weekend.

"This is a different set of circumstances, "Kreil said, "and hopefully we
may never have to do it again. Deer numbers are above our management goals
in some units. This supplemental season will help us get closer to those
goals this year."

Following are additional supplemental season details.

* Game and fish will issue remaining licenses to interested resident
and nonresident hunters continuously through Dec. 31. These licenses can
also be used by bow hunters during the bow season, and muzzle-loader hunters
during the muzzle-loader season, but only in the unit assigned on the
license. Licenses can be purchased at the game and fish department's
website, at discovernd.com/gnf; in person at the game and fish Bismarck
office; or by mail at the game and fish Bismarck office. People interested
in these licenses should allow at least two days for processing and mailing.
* Hunters who have unfilled licenses for antlerless whitetails, or
any-antlerless deer, in the open units simply need to keep their unfilled
license until the supplemental season.
* Supplemental season licenses are the same price as regular season
licenses -- $20 for residents and $55 for nonresidents.
* Unsuccessful youth deer hunters and unsuccessful gratis license
holders can participate in the special deer season, but may only harvest
antlerless white-tailed deer.
* Bow hunters are reminded that orange clothing requirement are in
effect for the open units during the special deer season.
* All other regular deer gun season rules and regulations apply to the
special deer season.


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