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SATURDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1961 NYONE for moose this fall? The moose, the biologists say, is the largest antlered animal that ever lived on earth. And, come September and October, thousands of hunters will head for the bush in search of meat on the hoof -- meat weighing anywhere from around 1,000 pounds to nearly a ton. What are the chances of the average hunter, if there is such an individual, getting a shot in Ontario? One can only depend on past performances to judge. Despite the fact 15 years ago moose seemed so scarce that Ontario had a closed season, in 1960 there had been such a comeback that in some areas one out of every three hunters not only got a shot at a moose, but also got the moose. There's a difference! Many a hunter had a clear chance at one of the monsters only to develop the shakes so badly that he couldn't hit a bear in the stern with a snow shovel. But that's one of the hazards which cannot be overseen. However, if you are moose bent, here, briefly, are the open seasons: Rainy River east of Rainy Lake, Sept. 30 to Dec. 23. Sudbury District south of No. 17 highway, Nov. 1 to Nov. 7; Nipissing north of the Mattawa River, Oct. 14 to Nov. 25; Districts of Parry Sound, Muskoka (with minor exceptions); south part of Nipissing, counties of Haliburton, Renfrew, Lanark, Hastings, Frontenac, Peterborough, Lennox and Addington; townships of Somer- ville in Victoria County and Rama and Mara in Ontario County -- Nov. 6 to 18th. In the past, it has cost hunters $26 for a resident moose-deer licence in the southern areas of the province; this year a moose licence ONTARIO TODAY Most lordly resident of Ontario's forests. may be obtained for $10. The licence cost is, of course, but a fraction of the total. And, speaking of costs, according to the Ontario Department of Lands and Forests, in 1955 hunters spent just about $455 for every moose shot. In 1960, the cost dropped a trifle to $407. But hunters spent an estimated $5 million for everything from licence to liquor. AST year, more than 12,000 moose were taken by 36,000 hunters. Surprisingly, Lands and Forests Minister. J. Wilf Spooner was dis- appointed. "There are, according to our in- ventories, about 125,000 moose in Ontario," he told this reporter. "The year's harvest should have been tripled if, full advantage was taken of this natural resource. If every hunter who bought a licence last year had been able to shoot a moose, instead of the usual one in three, we would be cropping our moose herd at just about the proper level." Unfortunately, moose herds which increase too much are subject to disease, starvation. They must be thinned out just as the gardener thins a row of carrots or the woods industry thins out trees which are growing too old. The question of "where to go," is, of course, of major importance to the moose hunter. As far south as Lindsay and Tweed districts, Pem- broke, Parry Sound and North Bay, almost 50 per cent of the hunters got a moose last fall. There were two reasons: Most hunters in these areas shot the first animal they saw. Further north, the marksmen waited until they could down a big bull -- or at least something larger than a calf. And in southern Ontario, there's more group hunting than further north where quite often one man, or at most two, will hunt an area. Top area for the year, however, was the Kenora district where 1,101 hunters reported getting 662 moose for an average of 60.5. How come the moose withstands the pressure of hunting from resident and non- resident hunters? The main reason, Mr. Spooner said, was lack of access roads. "Despite the large scale road building program of recent years, many sections of Ontario remain inaccessible except by air," he said. "With most hunters forced to congregate along existing road systems, the fun of hunting may be lost in the crowd while animals a. few miles distant are undisturbed by the hunt- ers. Our aim over the next few years must be to get more roads open to hunters and relax the restrictions on air travel. In this way, any congestion among hunters will be relieved and moose herds will be provided for public use which are now living and dying with no benefit to anyone." Crossword n Ls ln Loge tle BEAEAE nEmAsE Allee oly 2lalalrl1 lolLlelr la olvlc cl vE Bc lv ns (ul ls/e ME lelcimlEln]T] A EAMAM IN) Inc! Glalmle[s|elv]alnolmalT]c|n] PICTURE CREDITS Cover, Miller Services; Pages 2 and 3, Anderson and Cole, Art Associates Ltd., Toronto Star Syndicate, Federal Newsphotos; pages 4 and 5, Ontario Department of Lands and Forests; Page 6, Toronto Star Syndicate; Page 7, Gov- ernment of India; page 19, Department of Lands and Forests. Ontario Today Publishing Office: 425 University Ave, Toronto, Canada x »