John Yakabuski, Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, and Mike Harris, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, today announced the government’s proposal to revise moose management in the province, based on the recommendations of the Big Game Management Advisory Committee.
The goal is to modernize Ontario’s selective harvest approach by moving to selective harvest by bull tags, cow/calf tags, and calf tags for both bow and gun seasons, with calf tag quotas across the province. With the implementation of direct controls on calf harvest in place, it wants to extend the calf hunting season for the full length of the moose hunting season.
This spring the government formed BGMAC to advise the province on a path forward. The committee has provided its report to the government, which is now available here. BGMAC hosted seven listening sessions in May and June. Over 600 interested hunters, members of the public and organizations attended these sessions to share their perspectives to develop a path forward. Over 2,000 individuals provided comments through an online survey.
One of those meetings was held in North Bay.
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“We are listening to moose hunters across the province, and our proposal is designed to work for the hunting community,” said Yakabuski. “I encourage Ontario’s hunters to review the proposal and consider its implications on moose populations and future hunting opportunities."
Moose hunting contributes over $205 million a year to Ontario’s economy.
