genes either short-term or long-term. 



Take more elk from Yellowstone Park and plant them where they 

 won't starve to death. Also there are more elk wounded with a 

 rifle than with a bow. 



The elk herd in my favorite area has been decimated (N and W of 

 Rollins, west shore Flathead Lake) during rifle season. How 

 about archery only areas like fly fishing only rivers. Must be 

 good habitat in some portion of area. 



I feel that bow hunters receive out of proportion preference in 

 the setting of season lengths and other regulations. Many times 

 these preferences are at the expense of the general public who 

 hunt with rifles. I feel that I or any other good bow hunter 

 could hunt just a successfully during the general season as 

 during a special archery season. 



I think that archery only seasons, should only be implemented 

 when other type seasons (rifle) are not practical. I feel that 

 archery and use of primitive weapons are a matter of personal 

 choice and should not be, either, regulated for or against. 



Crossbow hunting should be legalized in area 260 from the 

 Buckhouse Bridge near Missoula to the West Fork Bridge south of 

 Darby. Archery hunting alone is not yielding a satisfactory 

 harvest of the whitetail deer. 



Cross bows should be allowed - let animals last. A lot of areas 

 the hunting area is too open and the success ratio is about 50 to 

 1 of getting close enough to shoot. 



If elk season is altered for archery to the extent that we either 

 can't hunt then or else have to compete with rifle hunters, it 

 would be ruined for me. Bugling season is the only time archers 

 have a fair chance to take a bull elk. If push came to shove I 

 would be willing to be limited to bull's only during bow season 

 so the rifle hunters could have more cow tags. 



I think if it were legal to use a crossbow in the archery only 

 areas like the Bitterroot River bottom, more hunters would try 

 for them. it's so bushy that its' almost impossible to use the 

 bow. None of the guys I know will go out for these whitetails 

 anymore. I guess we'll just let the cars kill them. It's a 

 waste. 



In reference to page 5 questions 12 and 13, our hunting for meat 

 as well as sport. The options to hunt with a bow and later on a 

 rifle enables a serious hunter to prescout the hunting districts 

 while bow hunting. 



Rifle season should be shortened by at least three weeks. 



5 



