Wisconsin 'Deer Czar' and crew release report

For many years , Wisconsin deer hunters have complained about whitetail management in their state. This doesn't make them unique: Deer hunters always want more and bigger animals in their sights — like the two Wisconsin bucks above, killed during a recent November season.

Oddly, a politician turned the complaints into a political issue, promising that, should he be elected, he'd have the state's DNR studied, or investigated, or reviewed, to determine whether the agency was competent, and if so, whether it was pursuing deer management correctly in the Badger State.

Gov. Scott Walker's campaign promise came true today, Tuesday, with a report issued by Dr. James Kroll ("Dr. Deer") that Wisconsin DNR Commissioner Cathy Stepp says will take time to digest.

So it will — it's fairly exhaustive.

Meanwhile, here's the report's Executive Summary.

The full report can be found here.

FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS
Population Management
1.Limit the use of SAK/accounting style models to monitoring deer population size and trends at the state and regional levels.
2.Do away with population goals and population estimates at the DMU level. 3. Replace the current DMU population goal definition of comparing the deer population estimate with the desired population goal for the DMU with a simplified goal statement of increase, stabilize or decrease population
density. 4. Develop a set of metrics to monitor progress towards the DMU goal of
increasing, stabilizing, or decreasing population density. 5.Reduce the number of DMUs and combine the Farmland regions. 6.Revise the Wisconsin Deer Management Plan.
Hunting Regulations, Seasons and Bag Limits
1. Simplify the regulatory process by setting antlerless harvest goals, harvest regulations and antlerless permit quotas on a 3-5 year cycle.
2.Base Antlerless Permit Quotas on DMU historical demand. 3.Increase the cost of all antlerless tags for Regular and Herd Control Units to
$12. 4.Consider charging a fee for antlerless tags in the CWD Zone. 5.Establish a public lands antlerless permit system. 6.Limit antlerless deer harvest in Regular and Herd Control Zones. 7.Establish a Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP) antlerless permit
system.
8.Re-evaluate the effectiveness of the October antlerless seasons in the CWD Zone.
9. Maintain the current buck limit of one buck per Deer Gun License (may be used in muzzleloader season) and one buck per Archery Deer License.
10. Maintain the Bonus Buck Regulation in CWD Zone. 11.Resolve the cross-bow season issue through the public involvement
process. 12. Resolve the baiting and feeding issue outside CWD affected areas. 13. Put the fun back into hunting by simplifying seasons, bag limits and youth
qualifications!

Harvest Data, Herd Health and Productivity
1. Involving the public in data collection produces many benefits, including buy-in on management and harvest strategies and cost-efficiencies of data collection.
2.Each field biologist should be required to organize and conduct at least one field necropsy study each year, conducted along with cooperators and volunteers during late winter.
3. Training should be provided to biologists and technicians to standardize methodologies and educate them on deer anatomy and basic physiology. 4.An annual report should be prepared for each DMU and Region summarizing
these studies and a Powerpoint/video presentation developed for annual DMAP workshops and public presentations.
Habitat
1. As both part of DMAP activities and public lands management, local biologists/technicians should be required to conduct annual range evaluations to assess habitat health and condition. Foresters also should be involved in these activities, public and private.
2. Training programs should be developed for state and private resource managers to standardize habitat/range assessment methodologies.
3.There is a need for modernizing the GIS and GPS capabilities of Wisconsin's agencies.
4. A statewide geospatial information system, similar to that used in Texas, should be developed which provides seamless support to all state resource managers across agencies, which also supports economic development, emergency planning and response, and a host of citizen services.
5.Form a Young Forest Initiative Task Force.
6.Funding for these activities should arise from fees assessed by stakeholders and landowners using these data and services, as well as grants and contracts for various state agency activities.
7. The WDNR adopt an advocacy role in dealing with the National Forests of Wisconsin to encourage sustainable forest management, especially for early and mid-successional species (game and non-game).
People
1.Implement a Deer Management Assistance Program (DMAP). 2. Each DMAP cooperator should receive an annual report summarizing
current data and trend data over years to monitor progress toward goals. 3.Develop a public lands antlerless permit system. 4. In addition to providing hunting opportunities, the impacts of deer
depredation on agricultural crops, forest regeneration and biodiversity, deer/vehicle collisions, the special significance of deer to the Ojibwe people and other factors also must be considered in management of Wisconsin's white-tailed deer resources. This will include strict adherence to all agreements with the Voight Intertribal Task Force (GLIFWC), the tribes serving as "co-managers' where appropriate.
5. Expand public education/outreach efforts to serve landowners whose goals include management for white-tailed deer and other wildlife species.
DNR Research and Technical Publications
1. We strongly suggest establishment of a research steering committee, with representation from user groups, stakeholders and regional WDNR biologists, and Tribal representatives.
2. A significant effort should be developed in Human Dimensions research. Wisconsin is blessed with two excellent researchers (Holsman at UW-SP and Petchenik in house), and a plan for long-term monitoring of trends and issues should be developed between them.
3. We are concerned about long-term contracts for research services. There need to be milestones and project evaluations.
4.Projects should involve the public whenever practical.
5. There is a need for a long-term research plan (developed through 1), based on needs assessments, and prioritized for funding.
6. Synergies with other agencies and greater cooperative efforts, particularly with those in forestry and geospatial disciplines, would help leverage funding and strengthen projects.
7.Research projects should be of an applied nature, rather than basic research with clearly defined application to the needs for managing Wisconsin's deer and habitat resources.
8.Project results should be extended to the public through media, workshops and field days, as part of the DMAP program and regional stakeholder conferences.
9.In the long-term, we recommend developing a wildlife disease unit to: 1) respond quickly to CWD outbreaks; 2) monitor health and disease of other wildlife species; and, 2) train and support local biologists/technicians in conducting annual herd health surveys.
Conservation Congress
1. We feel the Conservation Congress must have a more active role in deer management decision-making at the local level.
Personnel
1. We strongly suggest addition of a Deer Management Assistance Coordinator, a highly qualified individual with the following characteristics: 1) considerable experience with DMAP or related programs; 2) well- respected in both the scientific and public communities; 3) highly skilled communicator; and, 4) highly motivated to work with the public.
2.We also recommend development of a "boots-on-the-ground" culture in the WDNR; and, job descriptions of field biologists be adjusted accordingly.