AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) Maine’s moose hunters could see another bump in the number of hunting permits for the big game animals this year.

Biologists in Maine are proposing an increase of 11 percent in moose permits, bringing the total to 2,820. The permits are doled out via a lottery that attracts tens of thousands of applicants every year.

The state hiked the number of moose permits last year, too. State moose biologist Lee Kantar tells the Portland Press Herald the ticks that plague the animals did not take as much of a toll on moose calves this winter as in previous years.

The proposed number of moose permits will be subject to approvals before the lottery takes place in June. The hunting season takes place in September and October every year.