just spent a week in the woods. althought the wolves/coyotes may be a factor, some of you are blowing it way out of proportion. i saw fewer deer, but it was also 50 degrees and sunny all week. deer don't move as much when its so warm. People I talked to said the same thing. Its not that there is a drastic reduction, its just they aren't moving as much.

and once again, since everyone is crying about the wolves - the state has a management plan ready to put into action, but can NOT until wolves are under state control. remember the tree huggers that petitioned them to be put back on the protected list a few months back? blame them, not the DNR.

If there came a time when there were so many wolves and coyotes do you think they could ever cross breed?I am not an animal biologist but this would produce a 70 pound animal that would not be afraid of humans.I believe it is the insurance companies who are supporting legilation to get the numbers down.Now that the numbers are down how about some down in our collision rates!

Wow...They honestly do not need much of "your" deer to survive and let us appreciate them.

Just wondering how many the Indians are allowed to kill a year, maybe they should be limited like the rest of us AMERICANS, maybe stifle that number too!

If so many wolves are being seen and caught on camera, why not post the pictures here. I'd like to see them. The last wolf I saw was in '85 when there were no wolves in the U.P.

The main reason the coytes may look healthy while the deer suffered over the last few winters is because deer don't disappear in a puff of smoke when they die. Coyotes (and Wolves) while hunters are avid scavengers, especially in winter. If we have another bad winter I would suspect it would start to effect predators since now there's less deer to die.

If you take a look at the last attempt to force all the hunters in our area to be trophy hunters, and the declining deer herd during that time, and the repeat of that on a larger scale this second year of forcing everyone to be trophy hunters, while also allowing the does to be slaughtered you should see that this doesnt work here.

If the DNR trully wants to manage the herd to get a better buck to doe ratio and a larger age class buck out there, then why are they forcing us to shoot pregnant/ inheat does and the breed stock of larger bucks? this does not, and will not work. if they trully wish to reduce the number of does, and increase the buck population, then have an antlerless deer season BEFORE the rut, say in September, and have 2 tags, 1 for primative weapons, and one for firearem, allowing one buck of a hunters choice for each tag. this way the pregnant does, and in heat does will be allowed to breed and increase next years fawn crop. the hunters that hunt bucks for meat will get their smaller buck, and get out of the woods, allowing the trophy hunters a better success rate for their chosen age class. This will allow the larger brood stock bucks to survive and breed, while allowing the meat hunters to cull the herd of lesser genetic quality inferior bucks.

If the QDM tactics trully worked, then we are doing our fisheries management wrong. We need to open walleye season during the spawning time, and only allow large fish to be caught, the small ones need to be thrown back so they can grow.

True, the wolves and other predators have a significant impact, but they dont only target the brood stock like us hunters do.

Also those of you that are proponents of the "one buck rule" how many of you buy the individual tags for bow season and gun season? do you buy that way so you are limited to 1 buck, or do you buy combe tags so you can shoot 2 because you can.

The hunters who constantly rehash the same old, baseless myths about wolf predation are like the story of "Chickenlittle" who ran about saying the sky was falling. These are the same people who have conspiracy theories regarding the motives of any government agency, especially the DNR. The FACT that winter weather has been harsh and has led to a high deer mortality rate is totally ignored! That coupled with the fact that some hunters would rather not venture far from deer camp, beer, or their ATV and then wonder why they aren't successful. I hunt and have done so for 52 years. Some years are good other years not so good. To blame coyotes or wolf predation is foolish and shows that many either have little experience or are just choosing ignorance as an excuse for their lack of hunting success!

I have seen more wolves and coyotes than i have deer this year. I have seen 2-3 wolves and saw probably 6 coyotes. I have yet to see a single deer.

Maybe next year i can buy a combo license that will be good for (1) wolf and (1) coyote instead of (2) bucks. My chances would be better with the first option!

I think the article is refering to the bagged deer at check stations, not that the herd as a whole. If you're sitting by a bait pile and not seeing anything, it might be because the deer have more natural food then usual and that they can get to with no snow on the ground. I know four other guys that track and hunt, and they've got their deer. If you stick by the pile you might not have your deer this year. As for the hide your kids poster, I don't buy the collie story, it's too far fetched. A collie is no match at all for a wolf. The dog would have been gone in a flash, and even if it did get a bite in on the wolf it wouldn't have been bad enough to trigger the pack to eliminate it. I've been bitten by a collie and it wasn't that bad. Sorry, but I call exaggeration.

if last winter was so hard on deer, why do the coyotes look so healthy?

The situation is much worse for the deer population then officials care to elaborate on. I believe there are many factors that contribute, however the wolves are are the number one issue. It is my understanding the there was many problem wolves in the Yellowstone National Park that were attacking tourists. The U.S. Game and Wildlife trapped them, and released them in Northern Wisconsin and the U.P., of Michigan. Now they have reproduced to great numbers and without having their own natural predator, the wolf population is clearly out of control. Almost everyone I talk to that has still cameras that snap a picture when motion has been detected at their bait piles have seen many wolves, how ever very little deer. Recently, a friend told me that a wolf pack on his property have entered his yard and hauled off their cat. Furthermore, the pack have become more brazen by trying to lure their dog into the woods, in which they finally succeeded. Their collie attacked one of the wolves, bit the wolf injuring it, the pack sensed the wolf was injured and consumed it within minutes. My message is quite clear to everyone do NOT allow your children to play alone near the woods, as they will haul off a child. Like many situations, it will take a tragic situation for authorities to react, however meanwhile these wolves are becoming more brazen, ever increasingly larger packs, and extremely cunning. There are eliminating their natural food supply, and they will become more aggressive with anything or anyone in their sights. Here in Manistique, they have been spotted at our north city limits area (5th Street & M-94). Please remember to watch your children and pets when near the woods, and never enter the woods unarmed.

Not to mention we have to protect those "precious" wolves.....

Drop it down to 1 buck -- takes two to tango. lol Also I think everyone should only be allowed 1 doe -- 1 buck, none of this 5 deer limit - say you have 2 people in your household who hunt - that's 10 deer! What impact is this having on the herd do you think?

So the number of deer are down again this year, theres a shocker, maybe we should keep selling doe permits until the entire deer herd is gone.