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Photo credit: National Deer Association
Impact of passing on young bucks
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.
Maine’s antlerless deer permit system, which was updated in 2022, provides hunters with antlerless deer permits the option to harvest an antlerless deer and then keep on hunting for a buck. This is the perfect time to consider harvesting an antlerless deer to fill the freezer and then letting young bucks go while waiting for The Big One.
2024 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 2024 age report for results.
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