HUNTING NUMBERS KIEL OVER
    A survey of state deer stations show that the deer tally and number of registrations during Wisconsin’s nine-day gun hunt dropped 13 and 29 percent, respectively, from last year. The DNR’s numbers are expected to change before a final report is published late this winter, but thus far they show a drop of more than 81,000 deer killed and 86,000 buck registrations. Officials attribute the drastic drop, at least in part, to the end of the earn-a-buck requirements and fewer antlerless permits being issued. Also of note are the seven hunters accidentally shot this year (four of them self-inflicted), making it the fourth safest on record.

HISTORICAL SITES GET A BOOST
    Whether or not it has something to do with a poor economy, attendance and retail sales at Wisconsin Historical Society sites are up 9 percent compared to last year, and earned revenue is up 3 percent. The sites, which include Circus World, Madeline Island Museum, the First Capitol, and Old World Wisconsin, saw nearly 188,000 people, and raised more than $2 million this year. Circus World saw the biggest jump, with a more than 17 percent attendance increase, and 22 percent increase in retail sales.