Deer hunters will get a bonus firearm hunting season in a few counties next month. The extra hunting season was added to help control Bovine Tuberculosis and Chronic Wasting Disease.
The bonus hunts will take place in Alpena, Montcalm, and Ionia counties. They’re scheduled for January 4th through the 7th, and January 11th through the 14th.
Chad Stewart is with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. He said the goals of the added season are to better align harvest ratios of antlered and antlerless deer, and to gauge deer diseases in the area.
“For the purpose of additional disease either management or disease surveillance, and we have two major deer diseases in Michigan, one is chronic wasting disease and the other one is bovine tuberculosis.”
Stewart said this is the first time the DNR has added days to the hunting season for disease management purposes.
He said hunters in Montcalm and Ionia are required to turn in deer heads at deer check stations, to have them tested for the diseases. That requirement doesn’t apply to Alpena County.
More information on the additional deer season in Alpena can be found here and info on Montcalm and Ionia is here.