Printer-friendlyEnvironment DEC
From the April 2008 issue
DEC Releases 2007 Deer and Bear Harvest Figures
DEC recently announced the results of the 2007 deer and bear seasons in New York. In both cases, harvest numbers were up from last year. To follow are highlights of the big game take for these two popular species.
Deer Harvest Highlights
Hunters harvested approximately 220,000 deer in the 2007 season, a 16 percent increase over the previous season. Harvest numbers increased in every deer hunting category tracked by DEC: bucks, antlerless deer (females and young males), and takes by muzzleloader and bow. At the same time, the number of hunting-related shooting incidents hit a new record low of 14, although there were 5 fatalities. No cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) were detected during the season, despite testing nearly 7,500 deer.
The deer take has increased significantly over the past several years
The 2007 take included 104,451 bucks and 114,690 antlerless deer. Buck takes grew by 8 percent over 2006 (96,569) and 17 percent over 2005 (89,015), suggesting that deer populations in many portions of New York are continuing to grow slowly. With the population increase, DEC has increased the number of deer management permits (DMPs) issued in the last two years. DMPs are issued for harvest of antlerless deer only, and their availability varies among the 92 wildlife management units (WMUs) across the state, depending on the status of the deer population in each unit. As a result of the increase in DMPs issued, the 2007 antlerless take increased 24 percent from 2006 (92,539) and 26 percent over 2005 (91,199).
The full press release on which this story is based contains additional details and deer harvest tables with complete data on deer season take throughout the state.
Bear Harvest Highlights
In 2007, hunters took 1,117 black bears statewide, a significant increase over the 796 taken in 2006. In the Allegany range, hunters took a record 120 bears, reflecting a slight increase over the 113 taken in 2006. In the Catskill range, hunters took 453 bears, a significant increase over the 365 taken in 2006, although slightly less than the record 494 taken in 2005. In the Adirondack range, harvest numbers returned to normal after two consecutive down years. In 2007, 544 bears were taken in the Adirondack range compared to 318 in 2006. Overall, bear harvest statewide has steadily increased over the last two decades in correlation with a continuous rise in the bear population.
As the bear population rises, DEC management actions in the Allegany and Catskill ranges have included changing season dates and opening additional areas for bear hunting. These changes have been intended to limit bear-population growth and migration into new areas. The impact of these changes will likely take several years to become fully evident. However, approximately 70 bears were taken this season in the portions of the Allegany and Catskill ranges that have been opened since 2005.
After two successive years of below-average take in the Adirondacks, 2007 marked a return to average. The early season was once again a strong contributor to overall take and included 56 percent of all bears taken in the Adirondacks.
The full press release on which this story is based contains additional details and bear harvest tables with complete data on bear season take throughout the state.
