reported the most non-resident hunters with 1,008. Sioux Lookout had the high- 

 est non-resident hunter success at 85.6%. 



In southern Ontario, the reported high hunter success was not a true indica- 

 tion of the hunting quality. The experimental moose-deer licence which had been 

 previously in force was regarded as a party licence. With several hunters to flU 

 each licence, the reported success was very high. The change this year to indi- 

 vidual licences was not completely understood by all hunters. Some continued 

 to use the moose licence as a camp licence. There was a decrease from a reported 

 success of 47.4% in 1960 to 28.5% in 1961, but even this lower figure was 

 an inflated one since it was higher than the reported success in many parts of 

 northern Ontario. 



The total harvest of moose in southern Ontario rose by nearly 25%, from 

 711 in 1960 to 883 in 1961. Despite the increased kill, reports from Department 

 of Lands and Forests staff members who were flying during the past winter, 

 indicated that they were seeing more moose than ever before. In some cases 

 the numbers of moose seen were likened to those found in northern Ontario. 

 There seems to be little cause for concern about over-hunting moose in the south 

 at the present time. 



Weather exerted a much greater influence on moose hunter success in 1961 

 than it normally does. While the favourable weather in north-western Ontario led 

 to a high hunter success, the less favourable conditions throughout the remainder 

 of northern Ontario resulted in a lower overall resident hunter success than in 

 1960. In Sioux Lookout District, the hunter success increased from 53.0% in 

 1960 to 67.0% in 1961. Kenora District reported nearly identical hunter suc- 

 cess for both years, 60.5% in 1960 and 60.8% in 1961. Hunter success in the 

 Fort Frances District rose from 35.4% in 1960 to 43.5% in 1961. 



To the east of these districts the story was different. In Port Arthur Dis- 

 trict, hunter success dropped from 32.0% in 1960 to 25.1% in 1961. There 

 was only a slight decrease in Geraldton District, from 36.8% in 1960 to 36.2% 

 in 1961, but all other districts in northern Ontario showed substantial declines 

 in hunter success. For example, Cochrane reported a resident hunter success 

 of 28.8% in 1960, but only 16.5% in 1961. The only exception to this gen- 

 eralization was Sault Ste. Marie District, where hunter success was a very low 

 18.0% in 1960 and this year increased to 23.2%, which is approximately the 

 same as surrounding districts. The weather affected non-resident hunters in a 

 similar manner. Non-residents reported high success in Sioux Lookout and 

 Kenora Districts, but lower hunter success than in 1960 in all other districts of 

 northern Ontario except Gogama and Sudbury. 



Adverse hunting conditions during the first week of the hunting season can 

 be particularly effective in reducing the kill of moose. It is in the first week 

 that the most hunters are afield and that most moose are killed. Over 34% of 

 all resident hunting effort was spent in the first week of the 1961 hunting season. 

 These hunters accounted for 38.8% of the total kill of moose by residents in 

 northern Ontario. Non-residents favour the first week of hunting even more 

 than do resident hunters. Over 60% of the non-resident hunting was concentrated 

 in the first week, accounting for 63.1% of the total kill of moose by non- 

 residents. With this amount of hunting in the first week, unfavourable hunting 

 conditions during that period may cause a significant reduction in the total kill. 



The numbers of moose shot in each district, classified as to sex and age, 

 are summarized in Table No. 4. Most districts in northern Ontario reported that 

 resident hunters killed a greater number of bulls than cows. In the few districts 

 reporting higher numbers of cows than bulls, the differences were not great 



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