Courtesy Photo | Hunter Issac Dammen is shown with a harvested deer Nov. 18, 2023, during the 2023...... read more read more
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Heading into the 2023 Fort McCoy gun-deer season, the goal was to have a similar harvest as 2022 or better, said Wildlife Program Manager and Biologist Kevin Luepke with the Fort McCoy Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division Natural Resources Branch. And that goal was close.
“Overall, I think the season went great,” Luepke said. “It was a slower start than most hunters, including myself, wanted to see with the warmer temperatures and breezy conditions on opening weekend. In total, the nine-day gun-deer season harvest was 426 deer, an 8 percent decrease from last year’s harvest of 464, but an 18 percent increase from the five-year average of 360 deer.”
Luepke said once again hunters were able to harvest some big bucks and do quite well.
“We had some really nice mature bucks that were harvested and some first deer harvests from hunters who are just starting to get into hunting,” Luepke said.
He also sees the Fort McCoy deer herd doing well going into the upcoming winter.
“Overall, the deer herd looks to be in great condition going into winter, thanks to a bumper acorn crop this fall,” Luepke said. “We saw some really good fat measurements and heavier weights in the adult does and fawns. High fat measurements are not typically seen in bucks this time of year due to the rutting activity that has taken place over the past month and a half, but the bucks have more body mass and are able to withstand the cold winter temperatures a bit easier.”
Luepke said many hunters also volunteered to have their harvested deer tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD).
“We ended up taking 252 CWD samples — a 59 percent sampling rate and many more hunters taking advantage of the deer carcass dumpster this year,” Luepke said. “The hunters support of the sampling, and the utilization of the dumpster is absolutely tremendous! It shows that the hunters have really taken a stake in helping protect and manage the natural resources that they use.”
Prior to the season, Luepke and others with his team with the Colorado State University Center for Environmental Management of Military Lands as well as staff with the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation and Directorate of Emergency Services held a Meet and Greet event with hunters similar to 2022. He said that was a great success for all involved, and he appreciates the cooperation he’s had with hunters.
“I would like to extend my thanks to all of the hunters,” Luepke said. “We had a very successful, and more importantly, safe hunt this year and look forward to them returning for future seasons.”
To participate in the gun-deer hunt at the installation in the future, hunters must apply for a Fort McCoy gun-deer permit through the Fort McCoy iSportsman site, https://ftmccoy.isportsman.net, and then also purchase their permits through iSportsman if selected, Luepke said. Applications for the gun-deer hunt generally become available in late June every year.
In addition, hunters coming to the installation must also have an annual Wisconsin gun-deer license. The Wisconsin licenses are sold through the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) GoWild system at https://gowild.wi.gov or a designated WDNR GoWild agent.
The cost of a Fort McCoy gun-deer permit is $21, and a Wisconsin gun-deer license for an adult resident is $24. Wisconsin offers some reduced pricing for gun-deer or combination permits based on categories such as first-time permit purchasers, for minors, for Purple Heart recipients, etc. See the Go Wild system for additional details.
For more information about Wisconsin deer hunting regulations and safety, go to https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/hunt/regulations.
Learn more about deer hunting at Fort McCoy by visiting the installation iSportsman page at https://ftmccoy.isportsman.net. Learn more about Fort McCoy online at https://home.army.mil/mccoy, on the Defense Visual Information Distribution System at https://www.dvidshub.net/fmpao, on Facebook by searching “ftmccoy,” and on Twitter by searching “usagmccoy.”
Also try downloading the Digital Garrison app to your smartphone and set “Fort McCoy” or another installation as your preferred base. Fort McCoy is also part of Army’s Installation Management Command where “We Are The Army’s Home.”
(The Directorate of Public Works Environmental Division Natural Resources Branch contributed to this article.)
| Date Taken: | 12.05.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 12.05.2023 12:15 |
| Story ID: | 459151 |
| Location: | FORT MCCOY, WISCONSIN, US |
| Web Views: | 211 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Fort McCoy’s 2023 gun-deer season harvest exceeds 420 deer, by Scott Sturkol, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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