Doe Qualifier before Buck

[chasmo54]

I heard that Wisconsin has a doe first Qualifier before you can harvest a buck. This Qualifier applies to even out of state hunters coming into their state with the purpose of killing a trophy. It seems to me that with doe’s as the common denominator in balancing herds, meaning I have never heard or read of too many bucks in Michigan. Does this make sense? How has this worked in Wisconsin?

[Whit1]

WI tried the "earn a buck" program in the season of '04. Enmass, hunters were NOT at all happy with it and said so in no uncertain terms. This past year they had the "earn a buck" system intact only in the CWD zones. The rest of the state was back to "normal".

[hunting man]

waste of time.

Hunters would just keep taking the same doe in to register it over and over till it spoils. Road kills found on the opener or day before would be used too. Waste of time and no way to police it.

[chasmo54]

WI tried the "earn a buck" program in the season of '04. Enmass, hunters were NOT at all happy with it and said so in no uncertain terms. This past year they had the "earn a buck" system intact only in the CWD zones. The rest of the state was back to "normal".
Thanks for the input Whit but don't you think that the majority of unhappy hunters are the same "Traditional" only take a buck, spike or not, masses responsible for not taking does and causing herd imbalances to start with. This group is always going to resist change because it's not the way they have always done it! This is strictly speculation on my part as I don't know.
Have you heard or do you know how QDMA people in the state felt about it?

[Munsterlndr]

I personally would not have a problem with it since I mostly shoot does anyway.

A couple of logistical questions, though. How are the buck and doe licenses structured?

Do you have to buy seperate buck & doe licenses or is the doe license a "bonus" that is included with the purchase of a buck license?

Are there additional doe licenses available for purchase without having to buy a buck license?

Are there any management areas in Wisconsin that are closed to antlerless hunting? If so, how do you "earn a buck" in those areas?

Did the program result in an increased antlerless harvest and if so what percentage did the harvest increase?

With the answers to these questions it would be a lot easier to decide if the program had any merit or not. I believe a couple of other states have tried this, as well. I wonder how it worked for them?

[farmlegend]

I'd be happy to see an earn-a-buck system, but I'd regard it as one of the least likely "reforms" to become reality.

In the Peyton-Bull 2001 study, earn-a-buck was found to be far less popular than mandatory antler restrictions were.

[November Sunrise]

I'm not advocating for mandatory registration, but it seems like earn-a-buck would only be viable in those states where there's mandatory deer registration.

[Whit1]

Thanks for the input Whit but don't you think that the majority of unhappy hunters are the same "Traditional" only take a buck, spike or not, masses responsible for not taking does and causing herd imbalances to start with. This group is always going to resist change because it's not the way they have always done it! This is strictly speculation on my part as I don't know.
Have you heard or do you know how QDMA people in the state felt about it?


I don't know how the QDMA people felt about "earn a buck".

As for the "who" resisted it I do have a good friend and hunter who lives just south of Milwaukee. He keeps up on these things and I asked him how the "earn a buck" was received. Without a shred of doubt it was opposed and actively resisted by the vast majority of WI deer hunters. There was no doubt about it. Because of this the WI DNR felt it had no choice, but to eliminate the EAB (another acronym!). There was simply FAR too much opposition to it.

With this experience in mind I think there'll be a snowball's chance in hell that we'll ever see it here in MI.

[Gilbey]

I like the idea in SOME areas. But this goes back over and over again to the different terrains of Michigan. We don't really have a pop problem to have to control the does, more so balancing the herd a little better where it's strong, and bringing the herd back in certain areas.

Zone T, as Whit said, did not go over well with hunters. I have a dozen friends that live in that area. Out of that, only one supported it, I guess I never asked why.

[Adam Waszak]

I'd take it and run with it too. I shoot doe's anyway make it part of the combo lic. One doe first then buck that way yer shootin a lot of the doe's before they breed too

AW

[flinch]

What about most of the upper 2 thirds of the state where the herd is at or below carrying capacity? Do we really want everyone to target does in these areas?

[Munsterlndr]

What about most of the upper 2 thirds of the state where the herd is at or below carrying capacity? Do we really want everyone to target does in these areas?

Not saying whether we should or not but let's remember that under the current license set up that 250,000+ bow hunters can already target does with both halves of the combo license.

[flinch]

Not saying whether we should or not but let's remember that under the current license set up that 250,000+ bow hunters can already target does with both halves of the combo license.

Yea I know how the combo tag works but I hunt in a low population area in one of the tb counties and I hardly see any bowhunters anymore. I was thinking about the additional pressure from gun hunters which is about all we see anymore. If they are all trying to kill a doe, that could really do some damage to what little population is there in the low deer density areas.

[Swamper]

Sounds like it might be a viable option in some parts of the state....something else to include in the tool kit offering besides education and one buck license. Great idea that might fly here.

Swamper

[One Eye]

Not saying whether we should or not but let's remember that under the current license set up that 250,000+ bow hunters can already target does with both halves of the combo license.

Simple solution. Address that is the low population areas. Make everyone draw for anterless permits. We sure make this thing a lot harder than it needs to be :rolleyes:

Dan