The Wildlife Board has approved the big game hunting permits for 2022 seasons and has reduced the number of general-season deer hunting permits following DWR biologists’ evaluation of deer population health and assessment of previous year’s harvest.
Data factored current habitat and environmental conditions and included extreme drought conditions which affected permit recommendations for 2022 seasons. The current management plan objective is to have just over 400,000 deer across Utah; there are currently an estimated 305,700 deer in the state.
“We’ve had several years of drought and are still facing ongoing extreme drought conditions statewide, which has a significant impact on the survival rates of deer,” said Covy Jones, big game coordinator.
“We currently have more demand for deer hunting in Utah than we have the supply for. While it is antlerless deer permits, not buck permits, that impact deer population numbers, we are recommending a decrease for both types of permits. We use the data and management plans to make proactive recommendations to achieve healthier herds.”
The wildlife board approved a total of 73,075 general-season deer hunting permits, a decrease of 950 permits from the previous year. Of the 29 total deer hunting units across the state, 13 have decreased permit numbers from the previous year.
“The number of permits we recommended for 2022 will help us achieve or maintain the objectives detailed in Utah’s mule deer management plan for harvest size, animal quality and hunting opportunity,” Jones said.
The current management plan includes an objective of an average age of bull harvest between 4.5 to 8 years of age. The board approved a decrease on some units, but an overall increase in bull elk permits for the 2022 public drawing.
Approved permits for the 2022 big game and antlerless hunting seasons include General-season buck deer 73,075; Premium limited-entry deer 184; Management buck deer (including cactus bucks) 45;
Handgun, archery, muzzleloader, and shotgun (HAMS) limited-entry buck deer hunts 15; Limited-entry deer 1,020; Antlerless deer 635;
General any bull elk 17,500 for adults (unlimited for youth); General spike bull elk 15,000; Antlerless elk 7,948; Youth any bull elk 500; Limited-entry bull elk 3,070; Buck pronghorn 1,249; Doe pronghorn 278;
Bull moose 110; Antlerless moose 18; Bison 158; Desert bighorn sheep 71; Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep 57; Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep ewe hunt 5; Mountain goat 104.
The Wildlife Board also approved one new antlerless deer hunt to address damage to agricultural areas caused by deer. Five new antlerless elk hunts were also approved, as well as a new doe pronghorn hunt.
“Antlerless deer hunts are designed to reduce depredation on private lands, tackle urban deer issues, address chronic wasting disease hotspot areas, and to help slow the decline of range conditions,” Jones said.
Elk are impacted differently by drought because survival of adults typically remains high, while pregnancy rates have been shown to decline during extreme drought conditions. DWR biologists typically do a census on the state’s elk units on a three-year rotation.
This year, the northern parts of the state were surveyed, and elk populations actually slightly increased in some of those areas since they didn’t experience the same extreme drought conditions as some of the central and southern portions of the state. Many of these hunting areas are largely made up of private lands, so DWR biologists are working with private landowners to address depredation issues where elk populations are above objective.
Much of the rest of the state, including central, southern and southeastern Utah, have elk populations that are at or slightly below their population objectives. As a result, the wildlife board approved a slight decrease for the antlerless elk permits that will be available in the public antlerless drawing in 2022.