Drought was tough on farmers, but good for moose.
Preliminary numbers from a project that puts tracking collars on moose show that only one of the calves — the most vulnerable group — died from winter ticks this year.
Project leaders are still watching with caution, as winter ticks are in the adult stage in April and are feeding heavily.
It was 71 last year.
Permits also are down to 80 in Vermont, from 165 last year.
Vermont, which joined the study this year and didn’t have drought issues as serious as New Hampshire, has seen five of its 30 collared calves die, so far.
Some feel it’s time to stop moose hunting, period.
In New Hampshire, there were only about 50 moose in 1950.
Rines notes the hunt is targeting about 1 percent of the moose population in New Hampshire.
That will have a bigger impact … We could stop (hunting) tomorrow, and what’s going to happen to these animals will continue to happen."