Possible Deer Hunting Changes

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Numbers show most Louisiana hunters don't report their deer
deer tags
Louisiana's deer hunters are getting less compliant with deer-tagging regulations that were first implemented in 2008. (Photo by Todd Masson, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune) (Todd Masson)
Todd Masson, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune By Todd Masson, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
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on August 17, 2015 at 10:32 AM, updated August 17, 2015 at 10:38 AM
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Since the 2008-09 season, Louisiana hunters have been required to tag the deer they shoot and report the harvest to the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries via telephone or Internet. The tagging requirement was designed to give wildlife managers a clearer picture of the health of the state's herd and the number of deer that end up in freezers every year.

But the program has been a complete flop.

The reason is that the majority of Louisiana hunters simply refuse to report their deer, and the number of hunters who comply declines with each hunting season.

During the program's first year of implementation, 116,571 deer were reported as harvested by hunters. Nearly every subsequent year, however, the number of reported deer has fallen. During the most-recent deer season, only 65,081 deer were reported by hunters, which is fewer than half the department's estimated statewide harvest of 139,900.

The department issued more than 273,000 sets of deer tags for the 2014-15 season.

Due in part to the dwindling harvest estimate, the management agency is considering shortening the deer season or cutting seasonal bag limits.

Scott Durham, deer study leader for the department, said tagging-program compliance has certainly not gone the way the agency had hoped. He and his team must still rely on antiquated mail-survey data with low participation rates to make estimates about the health of the state's herd.

"It's very clear that we still have a big problem with that," he said. "It makes my job much more difficult to try to extrapolate what the real numbers are. We're eight years into (the tagging program) now, and my confidence in the numbers has certainly not increased."

According to the structure of the penalties for failing to comply with the law, failure to tag a deer is a bigger deal than forgetting to report it. If an agent catches a hunter with an untagged deer and cites that hunter, the potential fine ranges from $250 to $500, and the maximum amount of jail time is 90 days.

If, however, a hunter is caught with a tag missing from his or her license string and there's no confirmation number for having reported the deer, the potential fine for that offense is $100 to $350 and up to 60 days in jail.

Last season, enforcement agents statewide wrote 344 citations and 160 warnings to hunters who had failed to report deer they had previously harvested, but agents issued only 12 citations and two warnings to hunters who had failed to tag their deer, according to Adam Einck, media relations director for the department's enforcement division.

He said he's not sure there's any more department personnel can do.

"Enforcement agents have a wide number of responsibilities during hunting season, and making sure people are following the deer-tagging requirements is one of them," he said. "They are constantly checking hunters for compliance of all hunting regulations, and will issue tickets where there are regulations being broken, including deer-tagging requirements."

Louisiana's next deer season begins with the opening of archery season in Areas 3, 8 and 10 on Sept. 19.

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Todd Masson can be reached at tmasson@nola.com or 504.232.3054.