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CHEYENNE -- If you are planning to hunt in Wyoming this fall, good for you. It’s shaping up to be the best season since the early 1990s.
“Antelope and deer are making comebacks near Douglas. Antelope fawn production near Douglas looks good. We’ve had continued improvement two years in a row,” says Bart Kroger, wildlife biologist for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department in Douglas. “We’ve had good recruitment of yearling bucks. We have good buck numbers.”
High fawn production, especially in hunt area 65, is jump-starting deer numbers. “Mule deer numbers are telling us that we should maybe be harvesting more does and fawns,” Kroger adds.
Elk populations continue to be high south of Douglas. “Last year, we had an exceptional harvest, and we believe we’ve stabilized the population. It’s hard to say,” Kroger says.
In the Black Hills, deer and antelope numbers are improving, says Newcastle Wildlife Biologist Greg Anderson. “North of I-90, we have a pretty decent deer population. Hunting will be improved over the last couple of years.”
“There should also be some great deer hunting along the Cheyenne River in hunt area 11,” he says.
Antelope production has been good south of Newcastle. “We’re running 80 fawns per 100 does, and there should be some pretty decent hunting except in hunt area 7.”
In the Bighorn Mountains, elk hunting should be exceptional, says Tim Thomas, Sheridan wildlife biologist. Elk hunting in the Bighorns isn’t as dependent on weather as in other areas of Wyoming. “If we get too much weather, the elk move on to private land and we have a hard time getting a harvest,” Thomas says.
Deer and antelope are on the comeback trail in the Sheridan area. “Mule deer hunting should be fair to good. If you drew an antelope license, the hunting will also be good,” he says.
Good numbers of grasshoppers and insects have really helped upland game bird numbers. “We’re seeing good broods of pheasants, sharptails and Huns. One turkey hen was spotted with 13 poults,” Thomas adds.
“We are running out of our ears with elk up here,” says Larry Roop, Cody wildlife biologist. Like most other areas, elk and deer hunting near Cody is dependent upon weather. “We need the storms and weather and movement of game to improve hunting. The last few years we have had hot, dry and windy falls. Hunters have killed some nice bucks and bulls,” he adds.
Some elk hunting seasons are running through the end of the year in the Cody country. “If we get any movement this year, we will have a good harvest,” Roop adds. “We badly need to reduce elk numbers on some of our winter ranges.”
“Big Horn Basin upland bird numbers are certainly as good as they’ve been in a decade,” Roop says. “Chukars and Hungarian partridge are doing really well. Pheasants are doing well, too.”
Antelope hunting should be excellent near Lander, says Joe Nemick, wildlife management coordinator in Lander. “We had a mild winter, and the antelope carried a lot of body fat into the summer,” he says. “Hunters will see a few more antelope, and they’ll see good heads because it’s been so mild.”
Hunters should see quite a few young buck deer this fall in central Wyoming, too. “Hunters will notice improved antler growth,” Nemick says. “They won’t see as many of deer as we had early this decade. But deer numbers are growing.”
Elk numbers are somewhat stabilized near Lander and Dubois. “Weather always helps us get a good harvest, and we’ve really liberalized most seasons,” Nemick says. Most elk seasons near Dubois stretch through the end of the year.
Nemick says sage grouse numbers are improving in his region. “We’re seeing improved numbers and improved sizes of broods. People should see more birds than last year.”
Near Jackson, elk, mule deer and bighorn sheep are pretty much where hunters should expect to find them. “We’ve got good deer distribution from the lower to the higher elevations. I suspect a lot of the buck groups are going to go up high, but I wouldn’t suggest overlooking the lower-elevation deer,” reports Joe Bohne, Jackson wildlife management coordinator.
“For deer, this fall has the potential to be the best year since 1992,” Bohne adds. “It’ll be a decent year for antelope.”
A persistent snowpack probably delayed production of the mountain grouse, Bohne believes. “We’ve seen late-hatched small-sized broods. The spring was wet and cold enough that initial nesting attempts were either delayed or there was significant renesting.”
In southwest Wyoming, elk numbers are booming. “We have liberalized seasons in the Baggs herd and west Green River herd near Cokeville,” says Wildlife Management Coordinator Bill Rudd of Green River. “Elk hunting success always depends on the weather.”
Deer numbers are slowly increasing. “The south Rock Springs and Baggs herds are growing and are close to their objectives. It certainly is going to be as good a season as it’s been in four years,” Rudd says.
Antelope numbers are improving, too. “We had a good winter and summer. There’s been excellent horn growth, and there will be a lot of bucks out there,” Rudd adds.
Elk continue to do well in southeast Wyoming, and antelope and deer numbers are slowly building, says Laramie Wildlife Management Coordinator Bob Lanka.
Antelope fawn ratios are somewhat disappointing in a lot of areas, except in the country around Cheyenne and Iron Mountain where there’s not much access, Lanka says.
In the Goshen Hole country, there are good deer numbers near agricultural areas. There are pretty fair pockets of deer on areas with lands enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program. Platte County is a bright spot for deer, Lanka says. Spectacular hunting exists for white-tailed deer, too, if you have access to the river bottoms.
Elk seasons are liberal, especially in the Snowy Range. Any-elk hunting on a general license is open from Oct. 9-24, and antlerless hunters will enjoy an extended season. “Were still trying to cut that herd down to our objective of 6,000 elk. It was tough hunting last year,” Lanka adds. “Elk hunting should be excellent near Laramie Peak, in the Sierra Madres and the Shirley Mountains.”
Bird hunters should enjoy the “Walk-In Areas” this fall. “There are some really, really good opportunities for hunting and harvesting birds (sharptails and pheasants) in Platte and Goshen counties,” Lanka says.
“We really are living in the good old days of elk, sharptail and goose hunting,” Lanka says.
Sage grouse numbers are heading in the right direction. Hunters ought to get out and take advantage, he adds.
Uploaded: 9/13/1999
Uploaded: 9/13/1999