It passed!

[SD51555]

Just got the call from Brooks, he was at the meeting today. The MN Deer Audit passed with the final group of topics for audit this year.

One more vote friday (expected to not be contested) and this thing is complete.

When that is done, hopefully we can provide input to help guide the audit to ensure the focus is in the right spot.

Big thank you to Brooks for carrying this from the beginning and never giving up. To everyone that went to the listening sessions, sat on goal setting committees, helped dig, sent email, made calls, posted here etc.

It's still too early to say it, so I wont. But for now, everyone should feel damn good about how far we've come!

 

[wiscwhip]

Start getting your ducks in a row, just in case!;) Congrats on getting to this point everyone!:cool:

 

[Freeborn]

Nice work everyone!

 

[tooln]

Congrats on getting as far as you have, god luck for the future.

 

[CuivreDog]

Congrats go out to all you guys and gals who stuck it out and fought for what you believe in!

Now - make sure the audit is conducted in a fair and impartial way.

 

[foggy]

Way to go MDDI - Good day :) .....who wudda thunk it about two years ago?

 

[Steve Bartylla]

Grats guys! That's a darn impressive accomplishment. I've been pulling for ya, but would be lying if I pretended I was overly optimistic that much more than venting would ever come from it. You've done way more than I'd have believed was practically possible....not the least disappointed to be wrong in this case.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

From a ways off - BEAUTIFUL !!! WTG guys !!!:)

 

[wiscwhip]

I love it MO! But all that aside, now it is time for everyone in MN to pool their resources so you get the changes and accountability you seek. If groups have access to independent wildlife managers, retired DNR wildlife guys, etc., have them help you determine what science(data) you would like your DNR to start tracking to best maintain your herd at a level acceptable to the hunters.

 

[bat man]

The problem I see going forward is, when the Audit is finished and all the botched management is exposed, who says anyone at the DNR's management program will make any changes. Who is going to force anyone from the DNR to do things different?

The group that started this gets the most influence on long term change. MDDI will form the scope of the audit and influence direction. Those that started can help finish. Crazy what we have started with a bunch of guys that manage to get banned from web forums. Bigger bunch of misfits I have never been associated with. Been a good ride.

 

[BuckSutherland]

The group that started this gets the most influence on long term change. MDDI will form the scope of the audit and influence direction. Those that started can help finish. Crazy what we have started with a bunch of guys that manage to get banned from web forums. Bigger bunch of misfits I have never been associated with. Been a good ride.

Hey, I resemble that. Makes me hate Rick Paquin even more!!

 

[wiscwhip]

The problem I see going forward is, when the Audit is finished and all the botched management is exposed, who says anyone at the DNR's management program will make any changes. Who is going to force anyone from the DNR to do things different?

That would be the Office of the Legislative Auditor on the State's end. On the hunters end, it is as Stu says, the organizations(MDDI, MBI, Bluffland Whitetails, and yes even MDHA, all of them, including local sportsman's clubs) that the hunters support need to use their influence to pressure the Auditors Office to follow through with the changes they have recommended, and believe me, they are going to make changes. They will be forced to do something just by having the audit in the first place, so it doesn't look like the manpower and money for the audit was wasted. That is why you need expert opinions of as many trained wildlife guys as possible, so the Audit Committee gets to hear from more than just your DNR "experts". Use that to steer those changes in your direction and you will have reputable science on your side to justify those changes.

 

[MNAaron]

Nice work everyone...remember to thank your elected folks

 

[bat man]

Need ideas for a party/potential fundraiser/brainstorm mediated session that leads to a clear list of suggestions for the OLA. We have a short time frame, and I am confident that hot bodies in a room leads to ideas that are not considered alone by the same individuals.

Optimally we meet somewhere next week or so. My suggestion is right back to St Francis where it all started in late 2013.

 

[wildfire]

St. Francis would work for me.

 

[wiscwhip]

Brooks, what do you have so far?

 

[bat man]

Brooks, what do you have so far?

I have a word doc I sent to MDHA a couple months back I can dig, and the knowledge that we have to make everybody understand that the best way to manage deer for all stakeholder groups is to track specific assumed issues deer purportedly cause so we can measure the results of programs designed to curb said issues.

If deer might damage ag, track the damage and set thresholds to implement abatement programs. Examine data to see if we are making a difference.

If cars hit deer, track where it happens and find ways to reduce issues. Track the collisions and decide if what we implement works to reduce them.

If deer purportedly eat young trees, establish a working threshold for programs to reduce surveyed damage.

But these things are currently outside the scope of the audit. The audits purpose is to determine whether or not the DNR deer model density estimation and herd monitoring techniques are working. Focus needs to be here. Hunter effort surveys. Hunter satisfaction surveys. DMV deer collision stat relevancy. Harvest data. Sex age kill data/trending. Aerial recalibration. Ground survey counts. Trail camera surveys. Infrared counts. MN DNR CO concerns with cross tagging/electronic registration problems.

Population goal setting is meaningless if you do not have a real data set or combo of sets to decide where you are related to goal. We need to focus on herd monitoring tools and how they relate to herd estimation and how that relates to goal. (which is now perception form god knows where).

Legitimate data means accountability.

What does WI track that is not on the above list that helps establish credible herd estimates/accountability to announced goals?

 

[bat man]

Can we use the buck harvest amounts and the dates they were harvested?

I think harvest combined with hunter effort is of value and if you add in SAK data it has even more value.

Currently we track only reported harvest.

 

[Satchmo]

Think you can get 'em to give us ACCURATE wolf population estimates as well. Mo, you ought to be able to work a "kick in the nuts" into that somewhere too.:p

 

[*Hawaii5joe*]

I'm still amazed by this. Great work guys! made huge progress in an extremely short time period. Did I read on here even the DNR says they support the audit? So that pretty much leaves MDHA the odd man out for the audit support. I knew I was hanging with the right crew when I saw MO get up at the Cambridge listening and chewed the MDHA's and the DNR's a$$'s. It was awesome!