Outdoors in Maine: Moose season in the state is on

Maine’s fabled “hunt of a lifetime,” the forty second annual moose season, is in full swing.

V. Paul Reynolds, Outdoor Columnist

It kicked off a half hour earlier than dawn on Sept. 26. Earlier than it’s over, greater than 4,000 hunters and their respective subpermittees will probably be glassing the wetland edges, fir thickets and clear cuts in the hunt for a trophy bull or cow.

As with every hunt, luck performs an enormous half — not solely in drawing a tag out of a discipline of 70,000 hopeful hunters, however find the fitting critter within the allotted time interval.

Success charges? Previous will not be prologue relating to hunter success percentages. When the hunt began 42 years in the past, the harvest charge hovered about 80%. Attributable to altering habitat, smarter moose and different elements, specialists are on the lookout for a harvest charge within the mid-60 percentile.

Right here’s the lowdown from the Maine Division of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife:

The moose season is comprised of a number of week-long seasons and one month-long season. There are 1050 permits for the opening week within the far northern and jap areas of the state September 26 by way of October 1. An extra 1,580 permits are for moose looking October 10 by way of 15. There are 860 permits for moose looking October 24 by way of 29, and 40 permits for moose looking in west-central Maine October 29 by way of November 26. In Zone 4 in northern Somerset and Piscataquis counties, there is also an adaptive moose hunt designed to decrease the moose inhabitants to see if decrease moose densities will decrease winter tick densities. Winters ticks are the first killer of moose calves. The weeks and variety of permits for this hunt is as follows: October 17-22, 200 cow permits; October 24-29, 150 cow permits; and October 31-November 5, 200 cow permits.

Final yr, 65% of all moose hunters had been profitable. The success charge for moose hunters is in stark distinction to bear, turkey or deer looking, the place success charges vary traditionally from 18 to 30 p.c.

All profitable moose hunters are required to register their moose on the nearest tagging station. At these stations, IFW wildlife biologists gather information that gives perception into moose inhabitants well being. A tooth is eliminated so as to decide the age of the moose. Antler unfold (width) is measured on bulls. Ticks are counted on 4 totally different areas of the moose to check numbers to years previous. In later weeks, moose hunters who shoot a feminine moose are required to deliver the ovaries, that are later examined to find out reproductive success.

This organic information is mixed with information from the moose GPS collar research, in addition to the aerial moose inhabitants and composition surveys to offer biologists a clearer image of the well being and standing of Maine’s moose herd. Over the previous 9 years, the division has captured, collared and tracked over 750 moose, offering distinctive perception into moose survival and replica.

Listed below are a few suggestions, particularly relevant to these moose hunters new to the endeavor:

1) Get out of the truck and again within the woods. Moose are typically wiser now than they had been 40 years in the past.

2) For those who bag a moose, significantly take into account dry dressing the critter and dividing it into 4 quarters, plus backstrap. (On its web site, MDIF&W has a really helpful video on dry dressing, or gutless dressing, and quartering). Not solely does quartering make transportation simpler, it’s one of the best ways to quick cool the meat and shield that treasured cache of scrumptious wild meat.

Put on orange and hunt safely.

V. Paul Reynolds is editor of the Northwoods Sporting Journal, an writer, a Maine information and host of a weekly radio program, “Maine Outdoor,” heard at 7 p.m. Sundays on The Voice of Maine Information-Discuss Community. Contact him at [email protected]

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