- Parts of the Lower Peninsula could once again see prohibitions on feeding deer and elk for recreational purposes.
- The Natural Resources Commission banned deer and elk feeding in the Lower Peninsula starting in 2019
- Those restrictions were lifted this year when new state legislation passed
Deer and elk feeding restrictions lifted in July in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula could partially return as soon as next month.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources recommendsthe Natural Resources Commission — the state’s hunting and fishing regulator — pass a rule that would prohibit recreational feeding of deer and elk in 11 counties: Alpena, Alcona, Cheboygan, Crawford, Iosco, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle and Roscommon.
Those counties are where bovine tuberculosis, a disease that can spread in many mammals through shared feeding and is transmissible to humans, is of a high concern. In four of the counties — Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency and Oscoda — the disease is established in wild deer and cattle is subject to increased testing and movement restrictions…