The Division of Wildlife Resources has reminders for hunters of changes to big game hunting this year. Here are some of the new laws to be aware of: Harvest reporting is now required for all of the general-season buck deer and bull elk hunts in Utah, in addition to the limited-entry and antlerless hunts. Permit holders will have 30 days to report the results of their hunt after their hunting season ends. Anyone who doesn’t report will be excluded from the following year’s big game and antlerless applications. Several regulation changes were also approved by the Utah Wildlife Board to Utah’s allowed weapons technologies, including prohibiting the use of scopes stronger than 1x power on muzzleloaders for all muzzleloader hunts. Finally, recent updates were made to the rule regarding night-vision devices to clarify that it is not only unlawful to use, but it’s also unlawful to possess night-vision equipment while taking or locating big game from July 31st to December 31st. This update was implemented in order to make the rule enforceable for conservation officers. For information on all changes, check out the 2024 Utah Big Game Field Regulations Guidebook on wildlife.utah.gov.
