Just found out I'm now in the "Deer Reduction Zone", what just changed for me?

[teddy12b]

I live around Fort Wayne and was showing a guy at work some trail camera footage and he mentioned to me that they changed the boundaries of the deer reduction zone. It never occurred to me to even look at that since it's never covered my backyard anyway. Well... now it does and there's a whole new set of rules I get to play by I suppose.

So, from what I've read now it looks like I have to take a doe before I can get a buck. I'm familiar with the "earn a buck" type program from years ago hunting in Wisconsin, but the doe are few and far between in my neck of the woods and the bucks aren't. This may have just hosed me.

As I understand it, the deer reduction season is going on right now, so if I wanted to, I could be out in a stand right now. Are there any other details or issues I need to be aware of for deer hunting in the deer reduction zones? I think I still have to follow the seasons about using guns during gun season, and bows during bow seasons it's just that my seasons just got a lot longer. Can anyone expand on this?

 

[Cameramonkey]

Not to advocate fraud, but do deer have GPS onboard? Sure you didnt harvest that buck in the woods away from the exclusion zone?

But barring fraud, It sounds like you are hosed if you are without does in your AO.

 

[teddy12b]

There's no way I could get to non-deer reduction zone land and just drag it back. I'm an ugly guy, but still way too handsome to go to jail and I'd have to cross a river to make it happen. I could see why a guy would just call in a doe and write down the check in #, but I don't think the law looks at that kindly either. I might really be hosed on this deal if I don't bag a doe first. This sucks.

 

[jagee]

"Anterless" doesn't always mean doe...

 

[Tryin']

Zone rules like earn a buck only apply to hunters using the extra benefits of said zone: two total bucks, longer seasons, etc. if you are hunting during "normal" seasons, nothing changes.

 

[teddy12b]

Awesome. I'm going to call the DNR just so I can hear it straight from the horses mouth and ask all my questions there. Ideally, I'd just like to get a buck and a doe, but I don't like being restricted to getting one before the other.

 

[jy951]

I'm in an urban zone and thought it was good at first. However, now I really dislike it. The season is very long and I don't see a whole lot of deer.

 

[bocefus78]

I may be wrong but I think that only applies to the early portion of urban season...Sept 15 to Oct 1.

 

[1988-4551]

I'm in an urban zone and thought it was good at first. However, now I really dislike it. The season is very long and I don't see a whole lot of deer.

I'd be happy to have a place to hunt before October 1st. In the meantime we just run trail cams in our regular area, zero bows/crossbows/guns and try to make sure we're in relatively good shape.