Elk have the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, but mule deer — a game species that can face sustainability challenges in Montana — haven’t had an advocacy organization in Northwest Montana until just recently.

The Mule Deer Foundation established a small chapter supported by just a handful of active members in 2011, and the group now is trying to gain momentum in the Flathead. 

The chapter will hold an informational meeting Tuesday, Jan. 29, at Famous Dave’s restaurant in Kalispell at 7 p.m., with hopes of recruiting help for a banquet that is planned for March 23.

“Unfortunately, it’s really hard to put on a banquet when you only have a few people,” said Marshall Johnson, the Mule Deer Foundation’s regional director.

The chapter’s first banquet was held last year at the Hilton Garden Inn in Kalispell, attracting about 140 people.

To Johnson, the turnout indicates there is considerable interest in advocacy for mule deer and their habitat in the region. Hunters frequently comment at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks meetings about their concerns for the scattered mule deer populations in Northwest Montana.

“Many people are concerned, but in our day and age, the culture is that of ‘someone else will do it’ and unfortunately that is not the case as fewer and fewer people under the age of 50 are volunteering for anything,” Johnson says.

Banquets are the primary fundraisers for the organization. Its 10 chapters (soon to be 11 with a new one in Hamilton) have raised more than $225,000 to support primary goals of promoting youth hunting and habitat conservation.

Projects funded by the organization in 2012 included a prescribed burn in southeast Montana, a mule deer migration study, habitat improvement projects in the Butte area and a spring population survey in the Missoula area.

Regional representatives of the Mule Deer Foundation will meet with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials in Helena on Feb. 1 to ask questions and discuss mule deer management plans in Montana, and Johnson says the organization’s involvement with mule deer management direction is important.

Johnson says the Northwest Montana chapter is hoping to recruit six more committee members. Those interested in the upcoming meetings and banquet can reach him at 406-850-8785.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by email at jmann@dailyinterlake.com.