West Central Montana’s hunting season wrapped up Sunday with a slightly lower-than-normal elk harvest.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) said the number of elk reported at regional wildlife check stations trailed last year’s total by 71. That’s just slightly under the five-year average.
FWP attributes the lower harvest to this fall’s relatively mild temperatures and a lack of snow.
Deer harvest totals were on par with last season. Hunters shot 102 mule deer and 492 white-tailed deer.
Traffic through nearly all of the region’s hunter check stations was up.
