Spring survey numbers from Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks continue to show an average long-term decline in mule deer populations in pockets of the state, most drastically in Eastern Montana.
Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks held a press conference on spring survey results on June 24 in Billings, where FWP Wildlife Manager Brett Dorak said extreme drought from 2020 to 2023 pummeled mule deer numbers in southeastern Montana.
“Region 7 was hit about as hard as it gets as far as drought conditions with the severity, and we saw decreased recruitment. So, a decrease in population over the past couple of years,” Dorak said.
Spring survey results show a 20 percent increase of mule deer in southeastern Montana this year over last, but numbers remain roughly 40 percent below the 10-year average.
That’s consistent with last year’s population data, which show the steepest long term decline in the southeastern part of the state.
As a result of declining population numbers, FWP will be issuing fewer tags for antlerless mule deer this hunting season.
Wildlife managers say they will cutting license numbers by about half in northeastern Montana and keeping them at the minimum of the approved license range in southeastern Montana.
