Big changes to the moose hunt for Ontario

By Dylan O’Hagan

BELLEVILLE – Hunters and hunting outfitters say they are alarmed by proposed changes to cut the moose-hunting season, saying the changes go too far.

The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry announced proposals this week that would reduce the gun hunt for moose from three weeks to two, as of the 2016 season. The bow hunt for adult moose would remain 13 weeks long. The second part of the proposal recommends reducing the hunt for moose calves, whether with guns or bows, to two weeks as of this year’s season.

This comes after a reduction last year in the number of hunting tags, or permits, that were issued. The number of tags were cut by 18 per cent for Ontario residents and about eight per cent for non-residents. The tag identifies the hunted animal, and is usually attached to the ear.

Bill Chesher, owner of Chesher’s Outdoor Store in Belleville, says it is already pretty tough to get a moose tag.

“We apply every year or every other year for a moose tag. The fallback if you don’t draw an adult moose tag is a moose calf,” and most people would rather find other options, such as going outside Ontario to hunt adult moose, Chesher said.

With stiffer competition to get a moose tag and, under the new proposals, less time to hunt, some hunters may miss out. Mark Ryckman, senior wildlife biologist for the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters in Peterborough, says thousands of hunters in southern Ontario will be affected by the changes.

“We have thousands and thousands of moose hunters in southern Ontario that schedule their entire vacations around their moose hunt in northern Ontario. … They spend substantial dollars on gas and lodging to participate in the moose hunt. … They contribute significant dollars to the economy both directly and indirectly. So we also have to consider the potential impacts,” he said.

Jolanta Kowalski, senior media-relations officer for the natural-resources ministry, said the proposed changes are a result of a decline in the Ontario moose population. A ministry survey found 11 of the sites surveyed showed declines, six in the northeast and five in the northwest region, she said.

The tag reductions were also in the best interest of sustaining the moose population, Kowalski said in an email to QNet News.

“Changes to moose-tag quotas for tourist outfitters represent part of the collaborative effort to ensure Ontario’s moose population remains healthy and resilient. Owing to the importance of outfitters to the economy of the province and particularly northern Ontario, we carefully considered moose-tag allocations for outfitters. Overall allocations have been reduced but the ministry has taken steps wherever possible to lessen the impact on outfitters for 2015,” she said.

Ryckman said the hunters’ federation recognizes the decline in the population of moose and agrees with the ministry that something has to be done to sustain a viable moose population.

Chesher said that for local hunting stores like his, the impact won’t be too significant.

“Down here I wouldn’t classify (the proposed changes) as major. We’ll see a decrease in sales as we see a decrease in hunters. The main thing is the time we have to spend explaining the changes to people,” he said.

But Barry Brown, owner of Barry Brown’s Big Game Hunts in Atikokan, Ont., northwest of Thunder Bay, says resort owners will take the brunt of the changes. Brown has been the owner of his hunting resort for over 35 years and has seen generations of hunters come and go. He says the shortened hunting season could mean less interest among hunters in coming to his resort. It could also may result in clusters of hunters hunting the same area all at once, rather than being spread out over the season, he said.

“All these years we’ve been encouraging folks to postpone their arrival time to November or December to spread the pressure, rather than everyone following each other around on ATVs,” Brown said.

For Brown it’s more than just a business. He has a love for the sport and is an avid hunter himself, he said. For him and other hunters around Ontario, hunting moose is something special that has been passed down through generations.

“Really it’s not the harvest of the animal that matters anymore – it’s the event, the camaraderie, the chase. … It’s just something that grandpa did, and dad did, and something we hope to continue,” he said.

Brown remembers like it was yesterday the first time he bagged a moose of his life: