- Joined
- Mar 11, 2001
- Messages
- 70,011
- Reaction score
- 1,003
Aug. 04, 2003
State boosts antelope hunting permits
Associated Press
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The population of pronghorn antelope has rebounded to the point that the state will issue 24 percent more hunting licenses this year.
The state Game, Fish and Parks Department will issue 5,555 resident licenses and 444 nonresident licenses.
After the devastating 1996-97 winter, the population has recovered to the point where more intense hunting is possible and even necessary, said GF&P game manager John Wrede.
"There are a couple of units where we tend to believe that our social carrying capacity is being exceeded, albeit in a very small way," he said.
But "range carrying capacity" - the maximum number that can find food on a given acreage - is nowhere near historical levels, Wrede said.
In 1984, for example, the herd was 67,000 and the state issued 15,000 licenses. Current estimates from aerial and field surveys put today's herd at about 14,000.
The main culprit for population declines is the combination of harsh winters and fences that prevent natural migration.
Even though the population is low now compared to the state's goal of about 40,000, it's time to issue more licenses to avoid another enormous winter kill.
"We allowed the growth essentially too rapidly," Wrede said. "Managed growth is best done when it's done slowly."
State boosts antelope hunting permits
Associated Press
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The population of pronghorn antelope has rebounded to the point that the state will issue 24 percent more hunting licenses this year.
The state Game, Fish and Parks Department will issue 5,555 resident licenses and 444 nonresident licenses.
After the devastating 1996-97 winter, the population has recovered to the point where more intense hunting is possible and even necessary, said GF&P game manager John Wrede.
"There are a couple of units where we tend to believe that our social carrying capacity is being exceeded, albeit in a very small way," he said.
But "range carrying capacity" - the maximum number that can find food on a given acreage - is nowhere near historical levels, Wrede said.
In 1984, for example, the herd was 67,000 and the state issued 15,000 licenses. Current estimates from aerial and field surveys put today's herd at about 14,000.
The main culprit for population declines is the combination of harsh winters and fences that prevent natural migration.
Even though the population is low now compared to the state's goal of about 40,000, it's time to issue more licenses to avoid another enormous winter kill.
"We allowed the growth essentially too rapidly," Wrede said. "Managed growth is best done when it's done slowly."
