Changing the opening day for firearm deer hunting season from the traditional November 15 to a nearby Saturday is a move being mulled by the Natural Resources Commission. No decision on the proposal is expected until at least next spring.

The change is under consideration because hunters have asked for it and because license sales are on the decline and might improve if opening day were on a Saturday, said Deer Research Specialist Brent Rudolph of the Department of Natural Resourced (DNR) Wildlife Division.

Every year during hunting season, the DNR receives letters from hunters explaining they would enjoy the sport on opening day, but were unable to attend for various reasons. Many of the letters say hunters would involve their children if opening day didn't fall on a school day.

Opening day is November 15 and participation varies depending on what day the opener falls upon. The commission has considered changing the date for many years because of that, Mr. Rudolph said.

Many factors will be considered, including deer habits, hunter preferences, and license sales. No action will be taken until further research is conducted.

Moving the season to an earlier date could impact the deer population. Deer mating season varies slightly depending on the region of Michigan, Mr. Rudolph said, but tends to peak in the middle of November. If too many bucks are killed before then it could reduce the overall deer population.

Conflicts with other hunters could arise if the date is changed. Moving the date further ahead could cut into other hunting seasons, resulting in a change in those seasons as well, he said.

Tradition is also a concern. A survey sent to 9,000 deer hunters in 2006 revealed 64% of 5,600 respondents wanted to retain the original date out of tradition. A new survey will be conducted in the future. Past data does not account for the state of the 2009 economy, Mr. Rudolph said. Questions about the change will likely be included on the deer harvest survey that is sent at the end of this year.

Several options have been considered for a date change. The Saturday before November 15 was talked about, but the deer population concern was raised. The Thursday after November 15 was discussed, along with the Saturday closest to Thanksgiving.

Saturdays are under consideration, Mr. Rudolph said, because license sales tend to increase when firearm deer hunting season falls on that day. But in northern Michigan, more people hunt during the middle of the week, on Wednesday and Thursday.

"There's no arrangement that optimizes all those things," Mr. Rudolph said.

The late 1990s saw the greatest levels of participation and registration, he said, because of light restrictions and high populations of deer. Since then the DNR has seen a 1% to 2% decrease in hunting each year. The economic recession did not seem to lead to a pronounced decline in hunting, though , he noted.

A likely reason why hunting is becoming less popular in Michigan is a change of lifestyle, Mr. Rudolph said. Citing an article published by The Wildlife Society, he said as more people become accustomed to urban life, the hunting lifestyle has decreased.

No action on the proposal will be taken in the near future, Mr. Rudolph said. The matter will most likely be reviewed when new survey data is obtained, as soon as April 2010.