AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine biologists proposed offering nearly 110,000 “any deer” permits this year, and an advisory panel recently approved the total. That’s the most in state history. The deadline to apply for a place in the permit lottery is Monday at 11:59 p.m.
Biologists have said they want to encourage more deer hunting because the deer have exhibited strong survival over winters. The state uses the deer hunt to control the population of the animals to help prevent health hazards such as car accidents and disease.
The “any deer” permits allow hunters to harvest deer of either sex. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife said in a statement “deer are as numerous now as they’ve ever been during the past decade” in southern and central Maine.
The permit drawing is held Sept. 11 and the hunt itself takes place in the fall.
