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THE GREAT OUTDOORS — In a recent meeting, Utah Wildlife Board members announced several new changes for big-game hunts for the 2017 season.
The approved changes will all be listed in the 2017 Utah Big Game Application Guidebook, which will be available online by early January, the Division of Wildlife Resources said. Here are some of the biggest changes that are coming:
Henry Mountains management buck deer hunt
The Utah Wildlife Board approved some additional management buck deer hunts on the famous Henry Mountains Unit, known for its large mule deer. The hunts will be open to only archery and muzzleloaders hunters, and hunters will only be allowed to take bucks that have three or fewer antler points on at least one side.
“Management hunts allow us to give more hunters a chance to hunt world-class units like the Henrys while still protecting the largest bucks on the units,” DWR big-game coordinator Justin Shannon said in a news release.
The additional hunts were approved due to large buck-to-doe ratios in the area.
“Last year, the buck-to-doe ratio on the unit was 65 bucks per 100 does,” Shannon said. “The number of bucks needs to be closer to 40 to 55 bucks per 100 does, which is the objective for the unit. If we don’t reduce the number of bucks, they’ll start competing with each other, and with the does, for resources. Competition among deer can have negative effects on body condition, deer survival and antler growth.”
Other additional muzzleloader deer hunts
Other changes for 2017 include additional muzzleloader hunts throughout the state. The board approved three additional late-season limited-entry buck deer hunts. The hunts will take place at the beginning of November on three general season deer units: Ogden in northern Utah, Mount Dutton in south-central Utah, and Plateau, Fish Lake, in south-central Utah.
“The buck-to-doe ratio, on all three units, is higher than 18 to 20 bucks per 100 does,” Shannon said. “We’re comfortable allowing a limited number of muzzleloader hunters to hunt these units once the general rifle hunt is over.”
Late-season limited-entry muzzleloader deer hunts are now offered on 15 general-season deer hunting units in Utah, DWR reported.
New mountain goat hunt
A new mountain goat hunt was also approved for the upcoming hunting season. It will take place on Mount Dutton in south-central Utah and will allow hunters to harvest mountain goats that travel to Mount Dutton from the neighboring Tushar Mountains. Biologists also recently transplanted mountain goats on Mount Dutton, and Shannon said the mountain goat population in that area is doing really well.
New archery hunts
Two new archery hunting opportunities — one for mountain goats and one for bison — will also be available in 2017. The archery-only mountain goat hunt on the North Slope/South Slope/High Uintas Central Unit will run from Aug. 19 to Sept. 10, 2017. During the hunt, billy or nanny goats can be taken.
The other new archery hunt will be held on the Henry Mountains Unit. The hunt will run Oct. 6-20, 2017, and hunters will be able to harvest a bull bison or a cow bison.
Because mountain goats and bison are a once-in-a-lifetime big-game species in Utah, DWR said for hunters who draw a permit for one of the hunts, that archery hunt will be the only one they will have in their life to hunt that species in the state.
