Following a long, hard winter, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is recommending a decrease in deer permits for the 2023 general-season deer hunt. “There are a few things that can negatively impact deer populations in Utah,” shares DWR Big Game Coordinator Dax Mangus. “Those include poor or limited habitat, predators and weather — either extreme, ongoing drought or really heavy snowfall, like we had this winter. The most important factors that drive deer population numbers are the survival rates of doe deer (since bucks don’t have babies), fawn production and fawn survival after the winter. 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.” The DWR has proposed a decrease in permits by area of the state depending on the severity of the snowfall for each area. Of the 31 total deer hunting units in Utah, 10 are being recommended for a decrease in permit numbers from the previous year. It is proposed to decrease Northeastern Utah by 1,000 permits which is an 11 percent decrease from last year. The next opportunity to give public input at a RAC meeting in Northeastern Utah is April 20th at 6:30pm at the DWR Vernal Office. Online comments must be submitted by April 13th in order to be shared during this meeting.
