In May the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources reduced antlerless deer hunting permits for the fifth year in a row. But although the past has been bleak for Utah’s deer, their numbers are actually on the uptick, especially in Southern Utah.
Last week, on June 7, the application period opened for the 2023 season. It will last until 11 p.m. on June 22. Here’s what you should know about the reductions and increases of deer hunting permits across the state before you submit an application:
- Northern Utah: A decrease of 7,500 permits (about a 31% decrease from last year).
- Central Utah: A decrease of 550 permits (a 4% decrease from last year).
- Northeastern Utah: A decrease of 700 permits (about a 8% decrease from last year).
- Southern Utah: An increase of 600 permits (about a 5% increase from last year).
- Southeastern Utah: A decrease of 200 permits (about a 2% decrease from last year).
The main reason for the reductions of past years has been because of drought. Not enough deer were surviving with enough food in the dry conditions. With the high amount of snow this spring, however, deer in Northern Utah are having the opposite problem: food buried in too much snow.
In Southern Utah deer are enjoying the extra growth that comes with flooding and snowpack. Hunters are powerless against these trends.
“The way we hunt buck deer in Utah doesn’t drive deer populations, but what happens with deer populations drives how we hunt buck deer,” said Dax Mangus, the division’s big game coordinator, in a statement.
Utah wildlife officials say there are an estimated 335,000 deer, up almost 30,000 from an estimate in late March 2022 but still about 70,000 below the state’s goal for the population.
Hopefully the reductions will make way for more encouraging growth and more stable populations in the future.
– The Byway
Feature image caption: Deer graze in the foothills near Salt Lake City, Utah. Courtesy Carter Williams/ksl.