There were the usual variations in hunter success across 

 northern Ontario in response to local conditions. The best 

 hunting was in the northwest. Kenora District experienced 

 its most successful hunt in recent years with a very high 

 hunter success of 41.9%, compared with 33.1% in 1969. 

 An early leaf fall, and early snow suitable for tracking, 

 produced an extraordinary 48% success at the Red Lake 

 Road Checking Station, compared with 37% in 1969. Hunt- 

 ing was equally good in Sioux Lookout District where the 

 hunter success rose to 43.3% from 29.8% in 1969. The same 

 could not be said of Fort Frances District which reported a 

 decreased success of 35.5%, compared with 39.6% in 1969. 



Farther east, the increase in hunter success was less 

 spectacular. In the Districts of Thunder Bay (32.0%), Gerald- 

 ton (27.0%), Kapuskasing (23.1%) and White River (21.2%), 

 success was up by a few percentage points. These districts 

 recorded more rainfall than in the west but not so much as 

 they had during 1969. The total kill remained much the 

 same, but it was taken by fewer hunters, producing a higher 

 percent success. In Chapleau (16.7%), Cochrane (15.5%) 

 and Swastika (14.4%) hunter success was similar to that of 

 1969. 



Farther south, results of the hunt were not as favourable. 

 Sault Ste. Marie enjoyed good hunting conditions only in 

 the early part of the season. The warm weather persisted, so 

 there was little snow for tracking, and the over-all success 

 rate was down to 17.7% from 21.4% in 1969. Sudbury also 

 had a slightly lower success of 13.1%, compared with 

 14.3% in 1969. North Bay showed a slight improvement to 

 18.5% from 14.0% in 1969. 



The southern districts of Parry Sound, Pembroke, Lindsay 

 and Tweed (after a closed season in 1969) reported fairly 

 good hunting with reported success around 18 to 25%, but 

 this was not as good as in 1968. Hunter success figures in this 

 area are affected by the large numbers of deer hunters who 

 have also become moose hunters. Therefore, the best com- 

 parisons are among numbers of moose shot. In Parry Sound 

 District, 326 moose were reported in 1970, compared with 

 442 in 1968. In Pembroke and Lindsay, they reported shoot- 

 ing 102 and 78, respectively, in 1970, compared with 142 and 

 140 in 1968. An increased kill of 37 was reported in Tweed, 

 compared with 21 in 1968. 



The 1970 moose hunt showed more use of power tobog- 

 gans during the later part of the season. This was partly due 

 to their growing popularity in all outdoor winter sports and 

 partly to the relatively early snow which the northern dis- 

 tricts received. Yet, in Swastika District where power tobog- 

 gans are perhaps the most popular, only 13% of the hunters 

 reported using them. Although some people think the use 

 of power toboggans threatens the moose herd, this is obvi- 



ously not the case. Two-thirds of the moose are still shot 

 during the first two weeks of the season. Thus, the moose 

 shot during the late season by hunters using power tobog- 

 gans could not have a great effect on the herd. 



THE RANGE 



The mailed survey of hunters has produced figures useful 

 for managing our moose herds. A more difficult problem 

 concerns the forest land on which moose depend for food 

 and shelter. Surveys were conducted in five districts in the 

 summer of 1970 to assess the effects of factors influencing 

 the moose range. 



Preliminary figures from Swastika District indicate that 

 the practice of scarifying for timber regeneration is not 

 having the detrimental effect on moose food production 

 which had been feared. The disturbance caused by scarifying 

 resulted in increased regeneration of many species, and this 

 produced good moose food. However, the large size of the 

 scarified area raised questions about whether moose need 

 standing timber for escape cover and winter shelter. 

 Attempts to determine the optimum size of clear-cuts in 

 Geraldton and Port Arthur Districts were not successful. 

 Further surveys are planned to answer this question. 



The effect of aerial spraying with herbicides was also 

 investigated. In White River District, preliminary results 

 showed that alders and birch were almost entirely killed, 

 but most other species survived. It appeared that a single 

 aerial spraying in an area with diverse species would not 

 have an adverse effect on availability of moose food. 



Bljrk hcjr. 'Mi^civiiiin Vu n /m ul l\iik Photo by T. Jenkins. 





