Published: Nov. 24, 2015
Paperless registration has hunter worried
Invalid deer tags will give false info
By NICHOLAS DETTMANN
Daily News
When the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources announced
it was going to paperless registration for the gun deer season, the goal was to
enhance the hunting experience and convenience.
After the opening weekend, that goal appears to have been
achieved.
“I was pretty happy about it,” said hunter Dan Powell, 42,
of West Bend. “You don’t have to stand in line (at deer registration stations).
... It was pretty smooth. I could do it from my own house.”
However, Powell is concerned about the idea going forward.
“My concern was people were going to poach or they won’t be
honest,” Powell said.
He believes there are hunters who will glorify their deer
more than they should. Among other issues Powell is concerned about with the
paperless registration is a hunter may shoot a deer in a restricted area or
shoot an anterless deer in a buck-only zone, then lie about it. “It’s easier to
cover it up,” Powell said. “I don’t believe people are going to be fair.”
Powell wasn’t sure if any verification processes are in
place. If there aren’t, there should be, similar to a random drug test.
“If you have honest people, it’s going to work out great,”
Powell said. “I think we should give it a chance. But I don’t believe
everybody’s going to be honest.”
It’s unclear what penalties there might be for an invalid
deer tag.
The DNR couldn’t be reached for comment.
On the DNR’s website, four deer poachers were fined more
than $20,000 and lost their hunting, fishing and trapping licenses for a
combined 25 years in 2006.
Powell said if people are honest, the paperless route will
be great for hunting in Wisconsin going forward.
“The (benefit is) it increased convenience for hunters,”
said Bob Nack, big game section chief with the DNR, on Nov. 17. “They don’t
need to drive to town to register their deer. The efficiency and time savings
for the hunters is certainly a pro.”
Is it going to come at a cost? Powell hopes not.
“It’s going to have an impact,” he said. “You’re not going
to know the exact numbers. It can really screw up an area.”
❑
DNR reports deer registration numbers up in opening weekend
Weather didn’t appear to bother deer hunters statewide in
the opening weekend of the gun deer season.
The Wisconsin DNR released preliminary numbers Monday from
the first two-plus days of the gun-deer season, which started Saturday. Total
deer registered — antlered and antlerless — went up 15.5 percent from 2014.
The DNR reported 119,495 total deer were registered in the
opening weekend — 62,802 antlered and 56,693 antlerless. In 2014, there were
103,428 deer registered — 55,650 antlered and 47,305 antlerless.
In Washington County, 703 deer were registered, which was up
nearly 6 percent from 2014 (665).
Other surrounding counties saw an increase as well. Dodge
County was up more than 33 percent from 2014; so was Sheboygan. Waukesha was up
23 percent, Fond du Lac was up 20 percent and Ozaukee was up 9 percent.
The counties that saw the highest increases were Monroe
(106.1 percent), Jackson (75.5) and Wood (63.5).
The counties that saw the highest decreases were Kenosha
(26.2), Milwaukee (20) and Vilas (18.1).
Powell said weather wasn’t favorable in Saturday morning as
a winter storm passed through the region.
However, once the wind slowed and the snow stopped, the
conditions were favorable.
“There was a lot of deer moving,” Powell said, adding he saw
37 deer in the late morning and early afternoon. Last year, 191,550 deer were
registered, a decrease of 15.5 percent from 2013.
Total gun deer licenses went up 0.33 percent on opening day.
Going into the 2014 opener, 589,830 licenses were sold plus 18,881 sold after
the opener and closed when the nine-day season ended.
The DNR reported more than 591,000 licenses were sold when
the gun season started Saturday.
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