Check Here for Final Big Game Hunting Numbers in Montana

Check Here for Final Big Game Hunting Numbers in Montana

General rifle season for big game hunting in Montana came to an end on December 1st, 2024, and numbers this year are slightly up from the past couple of years.  However, overall numbers are down compared with 10–20-year averages.

via GIPHY

This year in central Montana, over 2600 hunters checked in at the station in Augusta, Montana.  Of those, success rates were slightly above average with 25 percent of hunters successfully harvesting big game in the central area of the state.

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Check Stations a Vital Part of Collecting Data for Montana FWP

The check stations located in Augusta and other cities help the Montana FWP collect biological data, show attention to detail, and serve as a source of local information for hunters.

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According to the MFWP and the Augusta check station, the season started slow due to weather, but did pick up with snow arriving the last two weeks of the season.  However, they stated that "Despite that favorable weather the overall harvest finished approximately 10 percent below recent average with 695 big game animals checked at the station during the 2024 season."

Individual Species Numbers for Central Montana Hunting Harvest

Final numbers released by the MFWP show the following numbers for big game in central Montana:

• Whitetail Deer - "White-tailed deer harvest trended from average to slightly below average levels. White-tailed deer harvest finished with a total of 271 deer checked, approximately 8 percent below the 10-year average and 13 percent below the 2023 harvest."
• Mule Deer - "Mule deer was above average for much of the season, with 237 mule deer checked. This is 13 percent above the 10-year average and the highest harvest since 2017."
• Elk - "Elk harvest for 2024 was approximately 32 percent below the 10-year average, and the lowest overall harvest since 2021. Antlered elk made up less than half the total harvest at 42 percent of the total."
• Moose, Sheep, Goat - "Both of the hunters with moose and mountain goat licenses on the southern Rocky Mountain Front were successful this fall. Of the eight area bighorn sheep license holders, seven were successful in harvesting sheep."
• Wolf, Antelope, Birds - "One wolf was checked at the check station and a total of six have been harvested in wolf management unit 400 area by the end of the general rifle season. An additional 11 antelope and various game birds were also brought to the check station."