very high and many back roads were impassable. Yet, by 

 the end of the month, nearly 500 moose had been examined 

 on the Red Lake Road, giving S/^/o success compared with 

 32% in 1968. An earlier comparison showed 385 moose 

 removed from the Red Lake Road in 1969 during a period 

 when only 343 were checked in 1968. 



Nearly a thousand moose were taken across the border 

 at International Falls and another 700 at Pigeon River by 

 non-resident hunters. This latter figure was below the num- 

 ber exported in 1968 but above that of 1967. Apparently 

 the poor weather discouraged many hunters who left early, 

 for 80 fewer moose were exported during the third week of 

 the season than in the same period of 1968. On the Black 

 Sturgeon Road, hunters were up to 2,014 in 1969 from 

 1,936 in the previous year, and moose were down to 197 

 in 1969 from 237 in 1968. 



Unlike northwestern Ontario, water was relatively low in 

 the northeast and weather was reasonably good during the 

 first week. 



In Ceraldton District, the harvest of moose was up 

 slightly, and the number of hunters up more. This was also 

 true in Kapuskasing, Chapleau and White River Districts. At 

 the Shabotik Road in the latter District, 59 moose were 

 checked compared with 45 in 1968. Hunters were also more 

 numerous, comprising 1,200 in 1969 as compared with 

 1,010 in 1968. 



This good hunting was also reported from Cochrane Dis- 

 trict and the Englehart area of Swastika District. But in the 

 remainder of Swastika District, southward toward North 

 Bay and across to Sault Ste. Marie, unfavourable weather 

 again interfered with the hunting. 



Many residents compensated for the slow start by re- 

 turning to the hunt after snow on the ground became a 

 helping factor. Conditions were good for power toboggans, 

 and the late season success was better than usual. 



Although reliable facts concerning hunting and numbers 

 of moose are of utmost importance in managing our moose 

 herds, the long term welfare of the moose depends largely 

 on the condition of their range, that is, the forest environ- 

 ment in which they live. Food is of prime importance. Some 

 years ago, plenty of food was provided by the forest regen- 

 eration following outbreaks of spruce budworm and num- 

 erous forest fires which destroyed the standing forest trees. 

 But recently, there have been few budworm infestations, 

 and numbers of forest fires are greatly reduced. The major 

 forest disturbance producing moose food has become pulp 

 cutting. 



What effects do forest practices have on the moose 

 range? To find out, a new program was launched during the 

 spring and summer in which crews of students were hired 

 to set out plots and count plants in areas where various 

 forest operations were being carried on. Plots were estab- 

 lished in large jack pine clear-cut areas. The results of aerial 

 herbicide applications were examined. The intensive treat- 

 ment known as scarifying, which consists of knocking over 

 brush and small trees with large machines and clearing 

 patches down to mineral soil, to provide better seed bed 

 for forest trees, was examined and plots were established in 

 treated areas with comparable control plots in untreated 

 areas. In addition, burned areas of varying ages were 

 examined to find information on how long they continued 

 to provide food for moose. 



This was merely the beginning of a long term program of 

 fact finding concerning changes in the forest and their 

 effects on moose. When adequate information is at hand, 

 it will be possible to integrate moose range management 

 into forest management plans and procedures, so that our 

 forests of the future will not only grow good trees but sup- 

 port optimum moose populations as well. 



BEAR HUNTING 

 AND MANAGEMENT 



The goal of black bear management is to provide oppor- 

 tunities for recreation and economic benefits to the people 

 of Ontario from this resource. The continued success of our 

 management program is indicated by the increasing sale of 

 spring bear hunting licences. Sales of licences to residents 

 have increased rapidly from 813 in 1966 to 1,359 in 1969. 

 Sales of non-resident licences have increased even more 

 rapidly from 3,960 in 1966 to 9,400 in 1969. Since most 

 non-resident bear hunters spend $80 to $90 on their hunt, 

 the exchange of money generated by spring bear hunting in 

 Ontario is fast approaching the million dollar mark. 



In addition, many people hunt bears along with deer or 

 moose in autumn. The report of 48 bears shot by organized 

 deer hunters in Tweed District alone during 1969 is about 

 average for the past ten years. The export of bears from 

 northwestern Ontario has been increasing from 124 in 1966 

 to 248 in 1969. It is evident that bears are increasingly im- 

 portant as a supplement to deer and moose hunting. 



Meanwhile the nuisance bear problem continues to fluc- 

 tuate. After a very high number of nuisance bears were shot 

 during the summer of 1968, there was a sharp drop in most 

 districts during 1969 with only a few districts reporting 

 bears still numerous. 



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