WILDLIFE BRANCH 



DEER MANAGEMENT 



At present we are attempting to improve deer habitat in the 

 deer range of the southern Shield with several long-term 

 and short-term approaches. These include (a) creating and 

 maintaining an early stage of forest succession to provide 

 for the needs of the deer population year-round, (b) 

 improving and providing winter shelter by preserving and 

 releasing conifers, (c) providing winter food by cutting 

 non-merchantable hardwoods in and around existing cover 

 areas, (d) providing immediate food along deer trails, and 

 (e) creating trails with skidders and bulldozers to improve 

 the mobility of deer during emergency conditions in 

 mid-winter. A combination of all of these methods was 

 used in 1971-2. Provincial and Federal employment 

 programs have allowed us to increase the amount of work 

 done over the past two winters. 



We can attempt to create favourable plant communities 

 but we cannot control winter weather. The trend since 

 1958 has been toward lower temperatures and more snow 

 in eastern North America. This has been particularly 

 evident the last three years, and our deer populations in 

 southern Ontario have suffered as a consequence. 



Despite the environmental limitations and a declining 

 deer herd, hunting success in 1971 was as high as it has 



DEER HUNTING, 1971 



been during the past decade, and the harvest increased from 

 16,300 deer in 1970 to 19,400 in 1971. The number of 

 hunters declined by about 2,000 which means a significant 

 increase in hunting success from 19 to 24 percent. This 

 increase was probably due in part to the favourable weather 

 during the November hunt on the southern part of the 

 Canadian Shield. 



The first large-scale survey to estimate the size of the 

 deer herd in the southern part of the Canadian Shield was 

 conducted in 1971. About 21,000 square miles were 

 surveyed between Sault Ste. Marie and North Bay to the 

 north, and Ottawa, Peterborough, and Parry Sound to the 

 south. The results indicated an average of slightly over five 

 deer per square mile in the fall of 1970. Densities varied 

 from about 10 to one deer per square mile. 



MOOSE MANAGEMENT 



The purpose of moose management, like that of deer 

 management, is to provide a variety of outdoor recreation. 

 In line with this purpose, the first season for hunting moose 

 with bows in Ontario was introduced in 1971 . Although no 

 one was successful in bagging a moose, the opportunity to 

 try proved a thrilling experience and a welcome addition to 

 outdoor recreation. 



Moose hunting continues to grow in popularity as a form 

 of outdoor recreation in Ontario. In 1971, 68,600 hunters 

 bought licences, but as usual not all managed to get out, 

 and about 63,000 actually hunted, a record for Ontario. 

 They harvested 13,900 moose, the highest return since 

 1966 when 57,000 hunters bagged 14,500 moose. The 

 number of moose taken is increasing annually, and will 

 soon be as high as that of deer. 



Obviously, with more hunters taking fewer moose than 

 in 1966, hunter success must be lower also. In 1971 we had 

 one successful hunter in about five, whereas in 1966, it was 

 one in four. Unfortunately this trend will probably also 

 continue as the competition for available moose increases. 

 Meanwhile, back in the woods many miles from points of 

 access, moose are abundant. 



Range surveys during the summer revealed correlations 

 of the occurrence of moose with evergreen cover and with 

 food. Perhaps moose require a certain combination of 

 evergreen shelter and available food plants; we need further 

 studies to find their relative importance. Meanwhile, the 

 forest continues to change; disturbances tend to be 

 favourable to moose, and virgin forests tend to be 

 unfavourable. 



BEAR MANAGEMENT 



The importance of black bear to recreational activities 

 increases yearly. Approximately 15,000 non-resident 

 hunters were licensed, and permits were issued for the 

 export of approximately 1,000 bears from Ontario in 1971. 

 Approximately 1 ,400 residents of the Province took out 

 special bear hunting licences in 1971. 



There were relatively few nuisance bear problems during 

 1971. In most instances. Department staff were able to 

 cope with these situations by live-trapping the bears and 

 releasing them in remote areas where their presence would 

 not interfere with human activities. 



