Courting has slowed for bucks and does, and deer hunting success has followed.
That’s not surprising as opening day of firearms deer season has been set for decades on Nov. 15, which gives the deer herd an opportunity to breed before what was once a larger orangeclad army hits the woods.
“I have had very little activity since Nov. 14 on camera, driving or through conversations with friends,” said Jeremy Tobin, who tagged his two bucks just prior to the firearms opener. “I took a long walk (Friday), three miles, through the national park and didn’t see anyone. It seemed like a slow (firearms) opener.”
Tobin’s observations are borne out in statistics provided by Steve Griffith, district MDNR wildlife biologist stationed in Traverse City. He closely follows postings on a mandatory deer harvest reporting site.
As of Monday, some 378 deer had been harvested by firearms since Friday, which was opening Day. That’s about even with the 372 deer reported during the same period one year earlier.
Both numbers, however, pale in comparison to the 435 deer reported killed from Nov. 15-18 in 2022.
But archers like Tobin had a banner year in the county, reporting 437 kills during the Oct. 1-Nov. 14 season. The takes were 372 and 336 deer tagged in the early archery seasons of 2023 and 2022, respectfully.
“Crossbows have become efficient,” Griffith said. “I think that’s a part of (fewer deer being shot during rifle season). And whether COVID, gas prices or there being so many deer downstate, a lot of people don’t come north anymore. We think there are a lot of deer up here. I come from Van Buren County and a lot of that area is loaded with deer.”
Which helps explain the lack of orange hats in the woods. Biology helps account for fewer gunshots.
“Most of the people I talked to around Grand Traverse County were seeing pretty good rut activity in early November. My gut says the rut was early, even with the mild fall. For most animals, their endocrine system is based on the length of day first and then adjusted by weather and food supply. This year (breeding) seemed to wrap up before the firearms season started,” Griffith said.
Elmwood Township resident Peter Furman, who hunts in Leland Township, saw a few does on opening day, then connected with an eight-point on Nov. 16 with his son Finn cheering him on.
“(Finn) was all excited. He said, ‘Dad, deer!’ It was early and we waited for him to come out farther (into a field.) It was a great morning, with Finn and I just hanging out,” Furman said. He heard just a handful of shots over his shortened twoday hunt.
“Last year the bucks were really rutting hard. I feel that the early rut is over, and now they are waiting for the second rut (in early December),” Furman said.
George Preston and three family members hunt on their 100-acre farm in Elmwood Township, where the take so far has been a couple does and one six-point. Preston had the experience, though, of observing two smaller bucks fighting to the point of knocking off most of their racks.
That might be beneficial to their life expectancy as legal bucks in Leelanau must have at least three points on one antler.
“There are plenty of deer. However, I think we’re into the post rut, and that’s when they go nocturnal. Guys are getting some nice bucks on camera, and we do have some dandy deer on the farm. But we have not seen them during the day,” said Preston, a retired Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s deputy.
That makes Tobin’s timing perfect. He grunted in and downed an eight-point on Nov. 9, then a few days later figured that he blew his chance for a bigger buck.
“He was a buck I had on camera who came through my stand 15 minutes after I had come down to remove a tree from a driveway,” said Tobin, owner of Tobin Tree Service near Maple City.
Tobin returned to the stand on evening of Nov. 14 and connected with the same buck.
Ashley Macksey, who helps with deer processing at Bunting’s Cedar Market, offered a more positive opinion on the firearms deer harvest. She said some 25 to 30 animals had been accepted as of early Saturday afternoon including some bigracked bucks.
“It seems cooler this year so people are seeing more deer. Hunters are doing an excellent job,” she said.
The firearms season has been lackluster throughout the state, MDNR statistics show. As of Nov. 18 only 71,627 deer had been reported to the MDNR, with just 26,051 taken in the northern Lower Peninsula. During the same period in 2023, hunters tagged 84,272 and 31,160 animals in the same areas, respectfully.
Firearms deer season ends on Nov. 30. However, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission voted to allow rifles during the traditional muzzle loader season, set for Dec. 6-15.
