DWR Announces Big Game Permit Proposals for 2018 Hunts
Depending on which unit you applied for, you might have a better chance at drawing a permit to hunt big game in Utah this fall.
Buck deer, buck pronghorn, bull moose and Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep are among the animals for which Division of Wildlife Resources biologists are recommending a permit increase.
Covy Jones, big game coordinator for the DWR, says most of the state’s big game species are doing well. “If you enjoy hunting or viewing big game,” Jones says, “it’s a great time to live in Utah.”
Starting March 19, all of the DWR’s big game permit recommendations should be available at
www.wildlife.utah.gov/public_meetings.
“The recommendations are arranged by unit,” Jones says, “so you can visit the web page and zero in on the units you applied for.”
Learn more, share your ideas
After you’ve reviewed the ideas at
www.wildlife.utah.gov/public_meetings, you can let your Regional Advisory Council members know your thoughts by attending your upcoming RAC meeting or by sending an email to them.
RAC chairmen will share the input they receive with members of the Utah Wildlife Board. The board will meet in Salt Lake City on April 26 to approve big game permit numbers for Utah’s 2018 hunts.
Dates, times and locations for the RAC meetings are as follows:
Southern Region
April 3
5 p.m.
Beaver High School
195 E. Center St.
Beaver
Southeastern Region
April 4
6:30 p.m.
John Wesley Powell Museum
1765 E. Main St.
Green River
Northeastern Region
April 5
6:30 p.m.
DWR Northeastern Region Office
318 N. Vernal Ave.
Vernal
Email
You can also provide your comments to your RAC via email. Email addresses for your RAC members are available at
www.wildlife.utah.gov/dwr/rac-members.html.
The group each RAC member represents (sportsman, non-consumptive, etc.) is listed under each person’s email address. You should direct your email to the people on the RAC who represent your interest.
Permit recommendations
The following are the total number of permits DWR biologists are recommending for Utah’s 2018 big game hunts:
Hunt 2017 2018
General buck deer 89,050 91,050
Premium limited entry deer 184 184
Management buck deer 61 71
(including “cactus” bucks)
Limited entry deer 1,191 1,153
Doe deer 1,470 1,955
General any bull elk 15,000 15,000
Youth any bull elk 500 500
General spike bull elk 15,000 15,000
Limited entry bull elk 2,833 2,892
Cow elk, public draw 9,830 10,090
Cow elk, private lands only 8,790 9,105
Buck pronghorn 849 1,021
Doe pronghorn 750 760
Bull moose 68 84
Cow moose 22 34
Bison 148 152
Bison (archery only) 10 15
Desert bighorn sheep 53 56
Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep 32 40
Mountain goat 106 117
Mountain goat (archery only) 2 4
Big game animals doing well
While all of Utah’s big game species are doing well, Jones is especially excited about the following:
General buck deer
After the deer hunts are over each fall, DWR biologists go afield and classify the number of bucks, does and fawns on each unit. On 11 of Utah’s 29 general season units, biologists want to see 15 to 17 bucks per 100 does. On the remaining 18 units, the objective is 18 to 20 bucks per 100 does.
Based on the number of bucks observed after the hunts last fall, biologists are comfortable allowing more permits on 10 units. On six units, they’re recommending a permit decrease. On 13 units, permit numbers would stay the same as 2017.
On most of the units where an increase is recommended, the general rifle hunt has been split into two hunts—an early hunt in September and a later hunt in October.
“Permits will be split between two hunts,” Jones says. “That should help reduce hunter crowding and hopefully allow everyone to have a good experience.”
Buck pronghorn
A new management plan for pronghorn will give more hunters a chance to hunt buck pronghorn in Utah this fall.
Data collected in Utah and other states suggest two things about buck pronghorn in the West: excluding bucks that are taken by hunters, survival rates for bucks are relatively low (typically less than 80 percent). And they attain most of their horn size by two years of age.
“Because of these lower survival rates ” Jones says, “and because most of their horn growth occurs by two years of age, it doesn’t make sense to manage for older animals.”
Utah’s pronghorn management plan was revised in fall 2017. “The plan directs us to manage the population such that the average age of pronghorn taken by hunters is between two and three years of age,” he says.
In past years, most pronghorn taken by hunters in Utah were almost four years old.
“Because we are now managing for younger animals,” Jones says, “we can offer more hunting opportunities this fall while still providing a quality opportunity for hunters.”
Bighorn sheep
In the case of Rocky Mountain bighorns, a new population on the Oak Creek Mountains has increased to the point that hunters can take a few rams. “And the population on the Newfoundland Mountains is doing really well,” Jones says. “We’re excited that more Rocky Mountain and desert bighorn sheep opportunities might be offered in Utah this fall.
https://www.heraldextra.com/sanpete-county/sports/dwr-announces-big-game-permit-proposals-for-hunts/article_0509493c-7c51-574c-988a-2f1893256309.htmlhttp://www.standard.net/Hunting/2018/04/05/Despite-national-decline-hunting-and-fishing-remains-strong-in-Utahhttps://www.ksl.com/?sid=39620186&nid=1288
