Hunting draw allocations decreasing year over year in WMU 406

[WinefredCommander]

Heard turkey draw went from 150 tags in 2024 to 50 in 2025! What a joke!!

[SouthWestRanger]

Originally Posted by WinefredCommander

Heard turkey draw went from 150 tags in 2024 to 50 in 2025! What a joke!!

If you saw the dramatic difference in turkey population you’d be all for the change, they are also now transplanting birds from BC to rebuild the numbers. Going to make the draw a lot longer but improve the experience for those drawn.

[WinefredCommander]

Originally Posted by SouthWestRanger

If you saw the dramatic difference in turkey population you’d be all for the change, they are also now transplanting birds from BC to rebuild the numbers. Going to make the draw a lot longer but improve the experience for those drawn.

BC birds are dumb as bricks. Kill more lions and there will be more turkeys.

[SouthWestRanger]

Originally Posted by WinefredCommander

BC birds are dumb as bricks. Kill more lions and there will be more turkeys.

Can’t argue there haha, less lions = more birds, doesn’t change the fact they aren’t doing stellar in AB.

[SLH]

Have outfitter/guide allocations gone down correspondingly?

[DRhunter]

Originally Posted by SLH

Have outfitter/guide allocations gone down correspondingly?

No they have not. Not to derail this thread, as the comment below likely belongs on the mule deer allocation thread rather than specific to WMU 406, but will respond directly to this question.

The frustrating part is that the outfitter allocations were just renewed (at least for mule deer from my conversations with government) in December for another 5 years with no reduction in outfitter tags and then five months later significantly reduce the mule deer resident tags available as they transition away from the CWD management/over harvest policy. A number of WMU's in southern Alberta now have upwards of 50% of allocations going to outfitters.

DR

[Pekan]

Originally Posted by WinefredCommander

BC birds are dumb as bricks. Kill more lions and there will be more turkeys.

So dumb. I saw a banded hen walking around pincher creek looking very bewildered.

[Pekan]

Originally Posted by DRhunter

No they have not. Not to derail this thread, as the comment below likely belongs on the mule deer allocation thread rather than specific to WMU 406, but will respond directly to this question.

The frustrating part is that the outfitter allocations were just renewed (at least for mule deer from my conversations with government) in December for another 5 years with no reduction in outfitter tags and then five months later significantly reduce the mule deer resident tags available as they transition away from the CWD management/over harvest policy. A number of WMU's in southern Alberta now have upwards of 50% of allocations going to outfitters.

DR

That's a shame. It's getting to the point that hunting antlered mule deer only happens for a guy once every several years. I've been waiting 6 years and will probably wait one more to draw in 306.

[45-70GOV]

Originally Posted by Pekan

That's a shame. It's getting to the point that hunting antlered mule deer only happens for a guy once every several years. I've been waiting 6 years and will probably wait one more to draw in 306.

Same situation in my area. Waiting 6-7 years for a crack at one of 5 mulie tags every year.

If a resident has to wait more than 2 years we should'nt be selling our opportunities away. Frustrating