(GREAT FALLS) – Through the third week and ending on the fourth Sunday of the general rifle season, 1,730 hunters have come through Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks Augusta check station which is slightly below recent average but six percent higher than last year at this point of the season.
With two weeks left in the general rifle season, a total of 385 deer and elk have come through the station, which is 3 percent below the ten-year average and 11 percent below last year at this time.
After near-average elk harvest in the early days of the season, elk harvest has now dropped to 36 percent below average with a total of 94 elk checked thus far this season, down from the ten-year average of 145 elk.
Total deer harvest remains above the ten-year average and similar to overall deer harvest at this time last year, with just under 300 deer checked so far this season.
An additional four bighorn sheep, six antelope, one mountain lion, one mountain goat, one black bear and variety of game birds have also been checked through the station so far this season.
The general deer and elk seasons run through Sunday, Nov. 30th
