Onaway?s deer check station to stay open
by Peter Jakey, Managing Editor
One of Presque Isle County’s deer check stations will be open after all. The Department of Natural Resources issued a press release more than two weeks ago that the Posen and Onaway stations, which had been opened a decade ago when bovine tuberculosis was found in the free-ranging deer herd, would be closed.
Behind the scenes there was an effort among area DNR staff to keep one station open. It will be Onaway?s.
While the state budget is tight and services have been trimmed, some DNR staff, want to ensure the testing of the deer continues. It will only be open during the firearm season. “There may be days when there is only one person there,? said Jennifer Kleitch, wildlife biologist stationed in Atlanta. ?It could get backed up.?
THE PORTABLE trailer will be set up on the east side of the Presque Isle County Road Commission garage on the east side of Onaway. Deer will be checked as they have been in the past.
Other than the Gaylord service center, the only location to get deer checked during the bow season will be in Atlanta, but arrangements have to be made to meet with staff by calling 989-785-4251, extension 5233.
?Alpena will not be open during the archery season,? said Kleitch. ?That’s a change, a big change.? Alpena will have a deer check station open during the firearm season.
The information gathered at DNR deer check stations are used
BIOLOGISTS AGE each animal, measure antler beams and examine for disease. All of these observations are important to monitoring the overall health of the deer herd. As a gesture of appreciation, the DNR gives a Deer Management Cooperator patch to hunters who are willing to take the time to bring in their deer and help in this endeavor. Hunters do not need to bring the entire animal into a check station. Many hunters bring the head only to be checked, which provides biologists with the information they are seeking.
The DNR will only collect heads for TB and CWD monitoring from deer that are identified as ?suspect? and for systematic sampling from the known areas of concern, which include the five counties of northeast Lower Michigan, plus Iosco, Shiawassee, and Kent Counties.