MADISON — More Wisconsin hunters took to the field this fall, and they brought home more deer during the just-completed gun season.
The state Department of Natural Resources said Tuesday that deer licenses of all kinds were up 3.5% from the same time last year, with female hunters remaining the fastest-growing demographic — up 12% from last year.
The state said hunters registered 188,712 deer during the nine-day gun deer hunt. That was up almost 16% statewide.
The DNR said hunters fared better in southern farmland zones compared to some northern forest zones.
The state reported nine gun-related injuries and one death during the gun season.
Cherish Wisconsin Outdoors Fund reaches $1 million
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reached a major milestone of a $1 million endowment fund that provides permanent funding for habitat management projects on land owned or managed by the agency.
Created in 2012 by an act of the Wisconsin State Legislature, the Cherish Wisconsin Outdoors Fund is an endowment that provides a permanent source of funding to care for Wisconsin’s public lands for generations to come. The Legislature established the fund to protect, restore, and improve habitat for Wisconsin’s plants and animals.
The Cherish Fund is an opportunity for people to invest in the public lands and waters where they recreate. The fund is held by the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, a private nonprofit 501c3 organization. In addition to major donations from individuals and businesses, the fund is also supported by donations made when people purchase a hunting or fishing license through the DNR’s GoWild! system, or through donations made on CherishWisconsin.org. Of the 4 million annual license purchasers, approximately 1% choose to donate, with an average donation of $5.
Wisconsin has 1.5 million acres of publicly owned forests, prairies, parks, streams and lakes. Over the past two decades, the increased demand for conservation lands to recreate on has outpaced the growth in the state’s capacity to manage these lands, according to Keith Warnke, DNR Fish, Wildlife and Parks Division Administrator.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to a recent surge of interest in spending time outdoors. Wisconsin state parks, trails and forests have seen a 15% increase in attendance with more than 19.5 million visitors from January to October in 2020.
For every $1 million in the endowment, approximately $50,000 or about 5% per year will be distributed for land stewardship. Previously funded sites include the Lawrence Creek Fish and Wildlife Area, the Tyrone Tract of the Lower Chippewa River State Natural Area, Bluff Creek and Clover Valley Fen State Natural Areas in the Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest.
