Additional Opportunities for White-Tailed Deer Hunters

[Bon]

Additional Opportunities for White-Tailed Deer Hunters

 

 

 

 

State forestlands and state parks are participating in the Pennsylvania Game Commission's (PGC) Deer Management Assistance Program, and they need the help of white-tailed deer hunters.

 

The program allows landowners to apply for permits to encourage antlerless deer harvests on their property, enabling the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and private landowners to manage white-tailed deer populations.

 

Out-of-balance deer populations impact other wildlife and disrupt forest regeneration, which is vital to healthy, sustainable forested ecosystems.

 

The department is offering hunters 30,328 permits in 101 units totaling more than 1.3 million acres.

 

Deer Management Assistance Program tags are now on sale. Hunters obtain permits directly from license issuing agents or the PGC website.

 

The department’s goals for the Deer Management Assistance Program are to:

 

• Promote a diverse, healthy natural habitat that supports wildlife diversity and healthy deer populations.

 

• Provide additional hunting opportunities.

• Establish and maintain regeneration to support sustainable forestry practices with minimal need for deer fencing.

 Promote a healthy, sustainable forest and native, wild plant communities.

 

Twenty-six state parks and 18 state forest districts are participating in the program this year.

 

Applicants for Deer Management Assistance Program permits can find DCNR tract locations and maps, availability numbers, past hunter success rates, and other information on an interactive map