Tribes Could Soon Begin Nighttime Deer Hunts In Northern Wisconsin

Officials with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources said Lake Superior Chippewa tribes might soon start hunting deer at night on off-reservation land in roughly the northern third of the state.

DNR officials said U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb has signed off on regulations allowing the Chippewa to conduct night hunts for deer on public hunting land in the Ceded Territory of the North.

Paul DeMain, editor of News From Indian Country, said the Chippewa have long hunted on reservation land and have been getting ready to expand where they can harvest deer.

“There’s been classes for night hunting. I think the regulatory scheme is in place for them to regulate individual members who have been given permits based on their training,” Demain said.

DNR officials said they will work to protect public safety when the nighttime hunt starts on Nov. 1.

Chippewa leaders first asked for the authority to hunt nocturnally three years ago, when Republican state lawmakers tried to allow registered hunters to kill wolves at night.