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Snowy, windy, wet weather kept many hunters home for the opening weekend.

To test for chronic wasting disease lymph nodes are removed from the animal's neck for testing. 

BILLINGS – A total of 1,212 big game hunters visited check stations across south-central Montana over the opening weekend.

Lavina was the busiest check station in the region on Sunday, with a record 551 hunters.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks wildlife staff members also ran biological check stations in Big Timber, Columbus and Billings. 

Overall, hunter success rates were lower than long-term averages across the region. Other hunters cut excursions short due to the cold, wet weather and hazardous road conditions.

“Many hunters complained of mud, snow, poor visibility, and winds hampering their success,” said FWP wildlife biologist Justin Paugh.

Total harvested whitetail and mule deer were below long-term averages across the region, but elk harvest was up at every check station except Billings. New regulations and hunting district boundaries impacted elk hunting opportunities in districts 575, 580 and new district 515. These districts now allow the taking of either-sex elk.

Big Timber totaled 250 hunters checked with a 37% success rate. Twenty-two whitetails, 20 mule deer, 23 antelope and 28 elk were counted.

At Columbus, 129 hunters passed through the check station with a 26% success rate. Twelve whitetails, 12 mule deer and 10 elk were harvested.

At Lavina, the 551 hunters checked 15 whitetails, 21 mule deer, two pronghorns and 21 elk for an 11% success rate.

Billings checked 282 hunters, five of which tagged whitetails, 20 got a mule deer, 10 a pronghorn and eight an elk for a 16% success rate.

Hunters had to dig out warm layers and rain jackets in a hurry, as the opening weekend of the big game general season was met with the first round of cold, wet weather this fall in south-central Montana.

Just days before, youth hunters enjoyed unseasonably warm weather for the two-day youth-only deer hunt Oct. 20 and 21. The chilly weather, however, did not stop the hunt for many, but did affect success rates.

License sales to apprentice and first-time youth hunters were up at the regional office in Billings prior to the opener.

“We had several youth hunters with their first deer or antelope, all eager to share their success stories,” Paugh said.

Check stations will only be open on Sundays in Big Timber, Lavina and Billings until the final weekend of the general season, when the stations will operate on both Saturday and Sunday. The Columbus check station will be open Saturdays and Sundays. The final day of the general season is Nov. 27.

Hunters are reminded they must stop at any check station they pass while hunting, regardless of their success in harvesting game. Check stations provide valuable information on animals and hunters for FWP biologists.

FWP staff will also be available at each check station to sample harvested deer and elk for chronic wasting disease (CWD). Animals can also be tested at the regional office in Billings, Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Testing for CWD is voluntary and free for the public. More information on CWD in Montana is available here: https://fwp.mt.gov/conservation/chronic-wasting-disease.

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Hunter numbers were below average and hunter success was mixed in southwestern Montana over the opening weekend of the general deer and elk hunting season.

Rifle season opened on Saturday for Montana elk and deer hunters and runs through Nov. 27.

Two men were injured by a grizzly bear while recreating south of Cody on Saturday, Oct. 15, according to a Wyoming Game and Fish news release.

Bear specialists and game wardens with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks have responded recently to several separate conflicts involving grizzly bears in southwestern Montana.

This year’s general rifle season opener in the Augusta area was met with wet, snowy, foggy and windy conditions, leading to below-average hunter participation and harvest success.

Cold, wet weather settled into southeast Montana on Saturday and Sunday, lowering harvest success rates for the opening weekend of the general hunting season.

Snowy, windy, wet weather kept many hunters home for the opening weekend.

To test for chronic wasting disease lymph nodes are removed from the animal's neck for testing. 

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