Date: 05/20/05
Contact: Geoff Schneider
Phone: (775) 688-1997

Big Game Hunting Tag Numbers Continue to Rise

For the second straight year, the Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners has increased the number of tags that will be available to hunters during the upcoming big game hunting seasons.

Responding to reports from Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) biologists that big game populations have increased from last year’s levels, commissioners hiked the number of tags that will be issued for most big game animals, including mule deer.

This year more than 700 additional resident hunters will be issued tags to hunt buck mule deer in the state’s general rifle hunt. This year’s quota has been set at 9,205, an increase of more than 700 tags from 2004 and 1,000 more than 2003.

Deer tags for resident junior hunters were set at 3,000, the same quota as last year. Resident muzzleloader tags have increased by 106 to 833 while resident archery deer tags have increased by 129 to 1,999.

Rifle tags for nonresident buck deer hunters increased by 500 this year to 1,152. Muzzleloader tags for nonresidents were increased by 10 to 132 while archery tags were hiked from 231 last year to 321.

Despite the increase in buck tags, a report issued by NDOW’s big game biologists said there are ominous problems facing deer herds. “Many of our mule deer habitats are in worse shape today than in any time in the recent past. Consequently, there are higher mortality rates now than in the past. Winter weather extremes, lack of thermal cover, excess energy expenditures, lack of cover to hide fawns from coyote predation, and lack of quality forage to maintain body condition to prevent diseases are all factors which, when combined, take a higher toll on our deer herds,” the report said.

Buck antelope tags for resident rifle hunters increased in 2005 to 1,470, a hike of nearly 100 tags from last year. This comes on the heels of a seven percent increase in tags that hunters were allocated in 2004.

Tags for nonresidents to hunt buck antelope increased from 71 last year to 237. Resident archery buck antelope tags increased from 330 last year to 368 while the same tags for nonresidents increased from 14 in 2004 to 60 this year.

Biologists noted that the statewide pronghorn antelope population has increased to slightly over 20,000 animals, which is up from the 2004 estimate of 18,500. They said that fawn ratios have remained high for the past two years and are an indication of the favorable moisture and habitat conditions that existed in 2003 and 2004.

Rocky Mountain elk are faring very well and hunters will be rewarded for the continuing increases in herd sizes by being allocated 729 tags for the resident rifle bull hunt. This is 126 more than last year and 280 more than 2003.

Resident muzzleloader hunters are being allocated 121 tags to hunt for bull elk in Nevada this year, an increase of 37 from last year. Nonresidents were awarded 17 tags for 2005 compared to a single tag in 2004.

Residents have been allocated 986 rifle cow elk tags while the nonresident allocation for the hunt is 120.

“The quality of bulls in the harvest remains high with 69 percent of bulls harvested being six points or better. Elk populations continue to thrive and increase in units where elk populations are below objectives,” NDOW stated in their annual report to the commission.

Desert bighorn sheep tags for resident hunters were set at 125 for 2005, an increase of five from last year and 10 more than in 2003. Nonresidents have been given 19 ram tags compared with 13 last year.

Biologists say desert bighorns are responding to favorable habitat conditions and good lamb production. The sheep, which live in mountain ranges in the southern portion of the state, suffered through several recent drought years.

California bighorn sheep tags for resident hunters have been increased from 29 last year to 32 in 2005. The nonresident quota has increased by one tag to five. Biologists report that the bighorns continue to do well in their ranges in northwest Nevada.

Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep also are faring well and the quota for residents has been set at five. Nonresidents, who were not provided with any tags last year, have been allocated one tag in 2005. Biologists say that the sheep, which live in the northeast part of the state, have stable to slightly increasing populations.

Mountain goat tags have been increased by one this year to 23 for resident hunters while nonresidents will see their allocation jump from one last year to four in 2005. Biologists said that there have been tremendous increases in recent years in the opportunity to hunt mountain goats in Nevada because the animals continue to do well in the East Humboldt and Ruby Mountain ranges.

More than 50,000 hunters applied for tags to hunt in Nevada during the upcoming seasons. Hunters will be notified of the tag drawing results by June 17.
 

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