Hunters, harvest down in 2023

Montana’s general deer and elk hunting season wrapped up and the harvest results at check stations in northwest Montana showed similar results to a year ago.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) tallied more than 10,000 hunters at its four regional check stations in northwest Montana. Hunters reported harvesting 761 white-tailed deer, including 567 bucks, and 97 mule deer. The number of mule deer harvested was slightly higher than last year’s tally of 69. There were also 44 elk reported this year, down from 61 a year ago. The total percentage of hunters with game was 9% compared to 9.7% last year.

The Thompson Falls check station recorded 1,050 hunters through the six weeks of hunting season, compared with 1,128 last year and 1,300 in 2021. However, the percentage of hunters harvesting game was nearly the same, with 11.6% this year and 11.7% in 2022.

Nearly all of the harvest numbers per species were down in 2023, including white-tailed deer (81 in 2023, 90 in 2022). Of those, 59 were bucks, compared with 66 in 2022. In 2021, 105 white-tailed deer were checked in at Thompson Falls. The check station recorded 17 elk (20 in 2022). The number of mule deer harvested was the only figure up this year, with 24 in 2023 and 22 recorded in 2022.

FWP operates a total of four check stations in Region 1, including at Thompson Falls. The Highway 2 check station recorded 4,878 hunters, there were 1,457 through the Swan check station, and Olney had 2,630 hunters. The Olney and Highway 2 check stations were the only stations in region one to see more hunters than 2022.

Hunters still have opportunities into winter. Certain areas have continued elk hunting opportunities, and there is also Montana’s muzzleloader heritage hunting season for deer and elk, Dec. 9-17, 2023.

Trapping season is underway for furbearers. For more information on quotas and season dates, visit fwp.mt.gov/hunt/seasons.

Wolf trapping and snaring in FWP administrative regions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, and in Hill, Blaine, and Phillips counties won’t start until Jan. 1 and will run through Feb. 15, according to a federal court injunction issued recently. The wolf hunting season, separate from trapping and snaring, remains in place and is open through March 15 as described in the 2023 wolf regulations. Wolf harvest quotas are still in place for FWP regions and can be tracked via the Wolf Harvest Dashboard online at fwp.mt.gov.