Wow, that sure went by fast!
I’m referring, of course, to the summer of ’23. While the unofficial end doesn’t occur until the majority of out-of-state plates have crossed over the bridge in Portsmouth and the kids are back at school, we are already staring down the barrel of yet another Maine hunting season. Let’s take a look at what to expect.
First on the agenda is bear season, which kicks off Aug. 26 with Youth Day then Aug. 28 for the grown-ups. Maine had been struggling with how to control the burgeoning bear population, which was leading to more human-bear conflicts, and wildlife managers were seriously considering doubling the bag limit to two. A strong lobbying effort from certain special interest groups and a couple good harvest years have quelled that notion, at least for now.
This year could be tough to predict in terms of harvest. Beechnut crops alternate between high and low production, the lows occurring in odd-numbered years. When that happens bears start to den up early so the early season harvest is higher and the late, incidental take is lower, at least in northern Maine. It’s less predictable in the south where oak replaces beech as the predominant mast crop, and a couple killer frosts in late May severely impacted oaks so hard mast may be scarce. It could mean lots of skinny, hungry bears or a short season with a lighter take.
Predicting the deer kill might also be a bit more tricky this year. Last year’s take of over 40,000 was the highest in more than a generation. Whether that represents an over-harvest and bad news, or an indication of the size of the herd and good news, remains to be seen. Weather, particularly winter severity, also factors in – but it fluctuated so radically it’s difficult to say whether the deer did well or struggled. A relative lack of snow made things easier early on, but deep snow and cold during late winter – the toughest time for deer survival – might have balanced things out. Time, and trail cameras, will tell.
Deep snow means lots of melting and run-off in the spring. That and the exceptional spring rainfall in May and June prompted primarily by El Niño provided favorable breeding conditions for waterfowl over much of their nesting grounds in Canada and the northern U.S. That’s good news for waterfowl hunters.
Unfortunately, those same cold, wet conditions are bad news for upland birds and those who pursue them. Those conditions – which persisted over much of the critical early brood-rearing period – could depress grouse, woodcock and turkey numbers. Turkeys seem to be holding their own and grouse are resilient enough to bounce back given more favorable conditions in future years but woodcock numbers continue to decline and yet another bad year won’t help their cause.
That covers the big bases. Moose numbers remain strong and success rates depend more on weather conditions during the hunt, and whether hunters are in good enough condition to get out of their trucks and get back in the woods. Despite a crazy winter and a wet summer there will still be plenty of game out there this fall to chase, and the hunt starts soon.
Bob Humphrey is a freelance writer and Registered Maine Guide who lives in Pownal. He can be reached at: bhunt@maine.rr.com
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