Wildlife officials say they're reaching their population goals for deer, but the agency plans to revisit those targets as hunters report they're not seeing the number of deer they've seen in the past. The DNR says hunters bagged 192,300 deer last year. That's down from the peak, 290,000, in 2003.

The Department of Natural Resources says the decline is a result of a smaller deer population and a windy opening weekend of the firearms season. Minnesota deer hunters harvested 192,300 deer during the 2011 season. That's 15,000 fewer deer than in 2010. The 2012 deer hunting season begins in September.

Mille Lacs is Minnesota most popular walleye lake but it's home to fewer of the fish than at any time since 1972. That's what the DNR's annual fall survey found. In a letter to a group of business owners, the agency reports test netting turned up fewer than half as many walleye as last year. A fisheries supervisor says he's not sure what the low number means but he's very concerned about it.

The DNR is closing two zones to moose hunters but will allow limited bull-hunting in others. The agency has been reviewing the rules as the moose population continues to fall. The state is issuing fewer than 90 permits this year.

The agency says it will have to make cuts that outdoors enthusiasts will surely notice. Among those cuts could be upkeep to hunting paths, fish surveys and deer habitat.

The couple wants an apology after two deer they were taking care of in their back yard were shot and killed by a DNR officer. The agency maintains the deer were a threat to spread disease.

A Hibbing man was charged with illegal baiting after he tossed unused vegetables near his deer stand on his property. An appeals court ruled that allowing the charges to stand could make it impossible for farmers to hunt on their own land.