Hunting News

Mule deer numbers increase by 100,000 in 4 years

Mule deer numbers increase by 100,000 in 4 years

By Utah Division of Wildlife Resources

When Utah's general rifle buck deer hunt begins Oct. 22, hunters will find the number of deer in the state is the highest it has been since the 1980s.

The number of bucks, compared to the number of does, is also impressive.  Surveys conducted by DWR biologists, report a total population of more than 384,000 mule deer. In just four years, the state's mule deer population has grown by more than 100,000 deer.The general rifle buck deer hunt is Utah's most popular hunt; more than 56,000 hunters have a permit for the hunt.

After hunt seasons concluded in 2014, the average ratio of bucks to does on general season units in Utah was 21 bucks per 100 does. After the 2015 hunts, the ratio had increased to 23 bucks per 100 does.

The number of rifle hunters who take a buck is also increasing. In 2013, 37 percent of those with a general rifle buck deer permit took a deer. By 2015, just two years later, the success rate increased to 43 percent.

"Not all of those deer were young animals," according to Justin Shannon, big game coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources. "The number of mature bucks that hunters are taking keeps growing."

"As with all types of hunting," Shannon said, "the hunt itself is one part of the overall experience. Being together with family and friends, making memories and enjoying the resource, is what it's all about."

Shannon encourages hunters to visit the new Utah Hunt Planner website at wildlife.utah.gov/huntplanner.

He expects this fall's hunt to be similar to the hunt in 2015. "I think the success rate, and the number of bucks hunters see, will be similar to last year, and last year was really good."

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