|
Managing Buck Age Structure
Photo credit: National Deer Association
Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife's goal when managing a popular game species is to provide hunting and wildlife viewing opportunity while ensuring that the population remains healthy. When it comes to deer hunting, we want all hunters to be able to choose to take the deer that best fits their hunting values and the hunting experience that they are looking for; we don?t want to restrict someone?s ability to take the buck they want. We do recognize that a number of Maine?s deer hunters want to see more older bucks, so if you?re a hunter interested in seeing more older bucks in your area, consider letting a young buck walk this year.
Rut Watch: A New Community Science Project
October 1 - December 31, 2023
To gather information about whitetail rut timing and breeding behaviors from hunters and wildlife watchers, we?ve added the Rut Watch survey to our Maine Deer Spy project. You may report any observed breeding season behaviors, such as a buck mounting a doe, buck rubs, scrapes, sparring, and chasing. For information on each of these behaviors, please see the Frequently Asked Questions section below. If you?re in the woods this fall and spot any deer breeding season sign, please consider submitting your data.
|
2022 Deer Age Report Now Available
Every year, MDIFW randomly samples from hunter-harvested deer to get a better idea of the age structure of the deer population around the state. If a tooth was collected from your deer, you may now view the 2022 age report for results.
|
|
|
|
