AUGUSTA – Applications for 2015 any-deer (antlerless) permit lottery are now available online from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.
Online applications are due by 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 17, 2015. Paper applications may be submitted in person or by mail no later than 5 p.m. on July 27, 2015. To apply online, visit www.mefishwildlife.com. The Department no longer mails paper applications.
It is free to apply for the any-deer permit lottery. The drawing will be held on Sept. 9, 2015 and results will be posted on the Department’s website.
The department uses the any-deer permit system to manage the white-tailed deer population in the state. By controlling the harvest of female deer in the 29 regional wildlife management districts throughout the state, biologists can manage population trends.
A total of 28,770 any-deer permits will be issued in 15 of the state’s 29 wildlife management districts. This is a decrease from last year when there were 37,185 permits available to hunters. The permit allocation is: 13,980 for residents; 7,196 for landowners; 7,196 for juniors; and 398 for Superpack holders.
This past winter was of above-average severity in some parts of the state, which may have resulted in increased winter mortality rates for our over-wintering deer. Therefore, IFW wildlife biologists have recommended decreasing the number of any-deer permits in much of the state.
The 15 wildlife management districts where any-deer (antlerless) permits will be issued are 3, 6, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 29. This year, permits have been allocated to districts 3, 6, 14, and 18 as biological data collected and field observations by staff suggest that these WMD’s have experienced population growth.
Deer hunting season (firearms) begins with Youth Deer Hunting Day on Saturday, October 24, 2015. Youth may take a buck statewide or an antlerless deer only in the wildlife management districts where any-deer permits will be issued this fall.
This year, Maine Residents Only Day is on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015, and regular firearms season for deer runs Nov. 2 through Nov. 28, 2015. For more information, visit www.mefishwildlife.com.
