Thousands of deer hunters are expected to head into the woods Saturday for the nine-day gun deer hunt in Wisconsin. But there are concerns about a major regulation change, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
The hunt is steeped in tradition, but this season marks the first year in decades hunters won’t be required to wear a back tag with their license number. DNR Big Game Specialist Kevin Wallenfang said the department has gotten some resistance.
“I’ve heard a little bit from folks that they don’t like the idea that the back tag has gone away. I guess, to be honest, I’ve not heard from a lot of people that are happy that they’re gone,” Wallenfang said.
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One of the biggest concerns is property owners won’t be able to identify hunters who trespass on their land. The change is part of the new Go Wild registration where hunters can buy licenses and register their kill electronically.
License Sales Down
Fewer hunters have bought licenses for the deer season compared to last year. But the DNR expects a surge just before opening day Saturday. The DNR has sold 417,000 licenses so far, about 20,000 fewer than this time last year.
“These last couple of days we sell so many, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of licenses this last couple of days,” Wallenfang said. “So, when the dust settles at the end of it all, I would imagine that we’re going to be very, very similar to last year.”
In 2015, 600,000 hunters bought licenses.
Wallenfang urged hunters to be careful in tree stands this weekend as forecasters predict wind gusts up to 50 miles per hour.
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