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A survey of turkey hunters was conducted following the 2005 fall hunting season to determine turkey harvest and hunter participation.
A sample of small game license buyers was contacted after the 2003 hunting seasons to estimate the number of people hunting upland game and waterfowl, their days afield, and harvest. Grouse and squirrel hunting seasons were expanded in 2003; thus, additional estimates were calculated for both the expanded and entire seasons. The survey also was used to check whether migratory bird hunters registered with the Harvest Information Program (HIP) and to determine the preferred date for the opening of the 2004 duck hunting season in Michigan.
A survey of turkey hunters was conducted following the 2015 fall hunting season to determine turkey harvest and hunter participation.
A report on the results of a survey where nearly 6,000 Michigan waterfowl hunting license buyers were contacted by mail after the 2002-03 waterfowl hunting season to determine hunter activity and opinions about waterfowl management in Michigan.
A survey of furtakers was conducted following the 1997-2000 hunting and trapping seasons to determine the number of participants, days afield, and furbearer harvests.
A survey of bear hunters was conducted following the 2001 hunting season to determine hunter participation, hunting methods, bear harvest, and hunter satisfaction.
A survey of deer hunters was conducted following the 2006 hunting seasons to estimate hunter participation, harvest, and hunting effort. In 2006, an estimated 671,000 hunters spent 10.0 million days afield. Statewide, the number of people hunting deer increased about 3%, but hunting effort was virtually unchanged between 2005 and 2006. Hunters harvested nearly 456,000 deer, an increase of nearly 9% from the number taken in 2005. Statewide, 46% of hunters harvested a deer. About 22% of the hunters took an antlerless deer and 34% took an antlered buck. About 15% of deer hunters harvested two or more deer.
Results of a survey turkey hunters conducted following the 2003 spring hunting season to determine turkey harvest and hunter participation.
Results of a survey completed to determine the number of furtakers who set traps for martens, the number of martens that they caught, the types of equipment they used, and the number of days they trapped.
Result of a survey done to investigate the relationship between hunterâs age and deer harvest in Michigan and to use this relationship to predict the number of deer harvested in Michigan during 2005-2020.
A survey of bear hunters was conducted following the 1999 hunting season to determine hunter participation, hunting methods, bear harvest, and hunter satisfaction.
A survey was completed to determine whether hunters and landowners supported mandatory QDM regulations in Deer Management Unit (DMU) 045. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) supports the voluntary implementation of QDM practices on private land in Michigan. However, mandatory regulations should be imposed in a DMU only when it can be shown that a clear majority (>66%) of hunters and landowners support implementation. Questionnaires were sent to a random sample of landowners and hunters; 74% of the landowners and 86% of hunters returned their questionnaire. About 66% of landowners owning land in DMU 045 and 64% of people hunting deer in DMU 045 supported implementing mandatory QDM regulations. The margins of error associated with the estimates of support for the QDM regulations were plus or minus 3-5%. Thus, these estimates were too close to 66% to determine whether the levels of support were sufficient or insufficient recommend implementation. After the Natural Resources Commission (NRC) had reviewed the results of this surveys, they requested that the Wildlife Division prepare a Wildlife Conservation Order recommending implementation of the proposed QDM regulations in DMU 045. Before implementing QDM regulations, however, the existing sex and age structure of the deer herd must be assessed so that the effects of QDM regulations can be evaluated. Currently, insufficient data has been collected to describe the existing conditions of the deer herd; thus, the Wildlife Division will recommend that the QDM regulations be delayed until 2003, or until sufficient data has been collected.
Results of a survey of turkey hunters conducted following the 2005 spring hunting season to determine turkey harvest and hunter participation.
A survey of deer hunters was conducted following the 2000 hunting seasons to estimate hunter participation, harvest, and hunting effort.
A random sample of bear hunters was contacted after the 2005 hunting season to determine hunter participation, hunting methods, bear harvest, and hunter satisfaction. In 2005, an estimated 8,900 hunters spent nearly 62,000 days afield and harvested about 2,200 bears; nearly unchanged from 2004. Statewide, 25% of hunters harvested a bear. Baiting was the most common hunting method used to harvest bears. Statewide, about 50% of hunters rated their hunting experience as very good or good. Also, most hunters (71%) approved of the preference-point system for the distribution of hunting licenses.
A survey of deer hunters was conducted following the 2002 hunting seasons to estimate hunter participation, harvest, and hunting effort. In 2002, an estimated 740,529 hunters spent 10,449,426 days afield. Statewide, the number of people hunting deer declined by nearly 2%, and hunting effort declined by 1% between 2001 and 2002. Hunters harvested 476,215 deer, an increase of 3% from the number taken in 2001. Harvest of both antlerless deer and antlered bucks increased by 3%. Statewide, 43% of hunters harvested a deer. About 23% of the hunters took an antlerless deer and 28% took an antlered buck. About 14% of deer hunters harvested two or more deer.
A survey was completed to determine whether hunters and landowners supported proposed mandatory QDM regulations in losco County (Deer Management Units [DMU] 035 and 135). A key element of the proposed mandatory regulations was changing the definition of a buck to a deer with three or more points on one antler. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) supports the voluntary implementation of QDM practices on private land in Michigan. However, mandatory regulations should be imposed in a DMU only when it can be shown that a clear majority (66%) of hunters and landowners support implementation. Questionnaires were sent to a random sample of landowners and hunters; 73% of the landowners and 78% of hunters returned their questionnaire. About 59% of landowners owning land in losco County, and 57% of people hunting deer in losco County supported implementing mandatory QDM regulations. Support from both landowners and hunters was insufficient to recommend implementation of mandatory QDM regulations.
A sample of waterfowl hunters was contacted after the 2006 hunting seasons to estimate hunting activity and determine opinions and satisfaction with hunting regulations. In 2006, about 50,200 people hunted waterfowl. The number of people hunting ducks and geese was unchanged between 2005 and 2006, although license sales increased by 1%. Compared to 2005, an increased proportion of duck and goose hunters in 2006 were satisfied with their overall hunting experience (57 versus 50% satisfaction among duck hunters and 55 versus 49% satisfaction among goose hunters). Goose hunters were asked their opinion on the use of various methods to control goose numbers in areas where human-goose conflict was a problem and hunting was not possible. The method receiving the highest level of support was relocating geese from problem areas to areas where hunting is more likely (67% approval). The next most popular methods were killing the geese and processing them for human consumption (50% approval) and flushing geese from problem areas to eliminate reproduction (46% approval). The least preferred methods were feeding geese a dietary supplement to reduce reproduction (3% approval) or killing problem geese and burying their carcasses (2% approval). Duck and goose hunters spent an average of $421 for waterfowl hunting trips in Michigan during 2006. Collectively, waterfowl hunters spent $21.7 million on waterfowl hunting trips in Michigan.
A survey of deer hunters was conducted following the 2016 hunting seasons to estimate hunter participation, harvest, and hunting effort.
A survey was completed to estimate the number of people hunting small game, their days afield, and harvest during the 2013 hunting seasons.
A random sample of archers was contacted prior to the 2003 archery deer hunting season and asked to record numbers and types of furbearers observed while deer hunting during the early archery season (October 1-November 14). The most frequently observed furbearers were raccoon and coyote. Indices for the muskrat populations were highest in the southern Lower Peninsula (SLP), and indices for wolves, fisher, and moose were highest in the western Upper Peninsula (WUP). Confidence limits associated with statewide indices usually were >30% of the estimate for most species. Consequently, comparisons made using these indices must be viewed cautiously. Increasing the sample size from 400 to 3,000 would be expected to reduce the confidence limits of the indices to about 20% of the statewide index for the common species.
Prior to the implementation of the preference-point system in 2000, 54-57% of the people applying for a bear hunting license had applied during consecutive years. Since the preference point system was initiated, 62-67% of the applicants applied for a bear hunting license during consecutive years. In 2002, 57% of the resident applicants with 2 preference points received a bear hunting license, 29% of the resident applicants with 1 preference point obtained a license, and 8% of the resident applicants with zero preference points were issued a license. The earliest hunts available for each management unit generally had more applicants than later hunt periods. Because more people applied for the earliest hunt periods, a greater number of preference points were needed for these hunt periods. Applicants can improve their chances of being issued a license if they choose a hunt requiring fewer preference points (e.g., the latest hunt period in each management unit).
A survey was completed to determine the number of people hunting and trapping bobcats in Michigan, the number of days spent afield (effort), and the number of bobcats registered. In 2004, 3,725 people obtained a bobcat harvest permit valid for the hunting and trapping seasons. About 73% of these permit-holders attempted to hunt or trap bobcats (2,726 furtakers), and 30% of these furtakers registered at least one bobcat. An estimated 1,816 people attempted to hunt bobcats. Hunters spent 20,768 days hunting and registered 369 bobcats. Nearly 1,249 people attempted to trap bobcats. Trappers spent nearly 29,567 days trapping and registered 630 bobcats.
A survey was completed to determine the number of people trapping bobcats, the number of days trapping, the number of bobcats captured, and the number of bobcats released alive in the northern Lower Peninsula (NLP) of Michigan.
A sample of furtakers was contacted after the 2005 hunting and trapping seasons to estimate the number of participants, days afield (effort), and furbearer harvests. In 2005, about 13,200 furtakers pursued furbearers; a decrease of 3% from 2004. About 33% of the license buyers trapped (6,959 trappers), 44% hunted (9,333 hunters) and 14% both trapped and hunted (3,058 furtakers) during 2005. The species most frequently pursued by trappers were raccoons, coyotes, and muskrats. Hunters most commonly sought coyotes, raccoons, and red fox. Harvest levels of most furbearers in 2005 were within historical ranges, except for coyotes. The number of coyotes taken by hunters was the highest recorded since 1980. Trends in harvest are affected by both changes in furtaker and furbearer numbers; thus, harvest per furtaker was also examined for trends. The mean number of raccoon and opossum taken per furtaker has increased since the 1980s. The mean harvest of coyotes per hunter has increased since the mid-1980s, while the mean harvest of red fox by both hunters and trappers has declined during this same period. These trends suggest raccoon, opossum, and coyote may have been increasing in abundance during the last 20 years, while red fox numbers may have been declining. An estimated 770 trappers caught 4,468 beaver through the ice during the 2005 season. Furthermore, about 894 trappers caught 2,746 beaver during April 2006. An estimated 91% of trappers that tried to catch coyote or fox used foothold traps. About 29% of coyote and fox trappers used snares in their attempt to catch coyote or fox.
