tJiat the reports coming to us relative to game conditions are not 
exaggerated. Last spring we had an exceptionally favorable hatch¬ 
ing and rearing season for our game birds in practically all parts of 
the State, and conditions were also quite favorable for a marked 
increase in our rabbits. In addition to favorable weather conditions, 
the sportsmen have taken an interest in destroying vermin, killing 
stray house cats, and assisting in securing a proper observance of the 
law relative to dogs running at large chasing and destroying game 
during the breeding season. The Department of Agriculture has 
also made a special effort to enforce the dog license law, which among 
other things means keeping even licensed dogs from running at large, 
in many cases destroying game and wild birds. 
While fi gures are not yet available on the results of the open sea¬ 
son, I am afraid that weather conditions have been against the sports¬ 
men so far, this being true especially for the grouse and rabbit hunt¬ 
ers, although such unfavorable weather conditions will undoubtedly 
save a great deal of breeding stock that would otherwise be killed. 
In order that you may more fully understand conditions as they 
apply to game of various species, I beg to report as follows: 
DEER: Reports from all sections of the State indicate that 
deer have increased very rapidly. Sections of the State, not looked 
upon as deer territory for a number of years, are again furnishing 
good deer hunting. In most instances such sections have been pro¬ 
tected by refuges or stocked by the Game Commission. A limited 
number of complaints have been received during the year from land 
owners who felt that deer had unnecssarily destroyed property for 
them. Under the new law relative to the killing of game when de¬ 
stroying property, land owners know definitely their rights when deer 
are materially injuring their property, and less complaints are antici¬ 
pated in the future. I regret to say that we know of three different 
instances where deer were killed by property owners because material 
damage was being done, and upon investigation it was found that 
such action was justifiable. I am reasonably sure that the kill of 
legal deer during the 1921 season will be twenty-five to thirty per 
cent, higher than last year, even though, from present indications, 
a great majority of the sportsmen will refrain from killing “spike” 
bucks. Last year the kill of illegal deer was materially reduced and 
during the present open season the kill of illegal deer in many sec¬ 
tions will again be reduced by approximately fifty per cent., this 
being made possible through better co-operation on the part of the 
sportsmen brought about by the unusually large amount of news¬ 
paper publicity, educational work among -sportsmen’s organizations 
and individuals, and a rather strict enforcement of the law, including 
the resident hunter’s license law. A large supply of new posters 
warning deer hunters has been printed and distributed throughout 
the State which will also help materially in correcting conditions. 
A record deer for the 1920 season, probably for the State, weigh¬ 
ing 267 pounds actual weight, hog dressed, was killed on Ross Run, 
Forest County. This was evidently one of the large Michigan deer 
stocked in that section a few years ago. 
ELK: While these animals seem to be increasing nicely in several 
sections ot the State, we are still receiving complaints from various 
directions about their depredations, and it may be necessary to re¬ 
move some of these animals in order to relieve the situation. Several 
elk have been killed during the past year by property owners under 
the provisions of law, and upon investigation it develops that such 
action was justified. 
REAR: Bears have appearentiy increased quite rapidly in many 
sections of the State, and in some instances outlaw bears have com 
mitted depredations, resulting in some sentiment in the last session 
of the Legislature to take all protection from bears in counties in 
which they become objectionable upon petition of 200 residents. 
While your action in 1919 increasing the bag limit of bears in Potter 
county to two per man caused an influx of bear hunters to that sec¬ 
tion, your action this year in taking the limit off bears entirely in 
that county and again permitting the use of bear pens, offering $25.00 
for each live bear trapped and turned over to the Game Commission 
between July 1st and January 1st, also making arrangements to trap 
bears through our own organization for stocking purposes in sections 
where these animals were formerly found, will undoubtedly help in 
a very material way to reduce the number and relieve conditions in 
that county. 
Early reports reaching the Department are that thousands of 
sportsmen swarmed to Potter County to hunt bears, taxing boarding, 
camping, railroad and all other facilities to the limit, and that most 
of the bears remaining in that county on November 1st were literally 
driven to surrounding territory. Food conditions were reported un¬ 
favorable during September and October in Potter County, causing 
some bears to drift out of that section in search of food. Early re¬ 
ports indicate that notwithstanding the large army of sportsmen 
hunting bears in Potter County, more bears are being killed in sur¬ 
rounding territory. 
Regardless of the fact that during the late summer months there 
was an unusually bountiful supply of berries of all sorts and trap¬ 
ping was difficult, nine (9) of these animals were trapped by our rep¬ 
resentatives and removed to the southwestern part of the State 
for stocking purposes. The residents of that county, however, seemed 
to take but little interest in building pens in order to catch bears for 
the Game Commission unless our representatives assisted in build¬ 
ing the pens. With such assistance a few pens were built and operated 
by residents of the county. 
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