By Doug Leier
One of the biggest days of the year for prospective deer hunters occurred Friday afternoon May 8. It’s when the Game and Fish Department released the framework for the 2026 deer hunting season.
This year’s deer gun season will open Nov. 6 at noon and runs through Nov. 22, as wildlife managers continue a cautious approach aimed at rebuilding the state’s deer herd.
The statewide population is still recovering from the lingering impacts of the severe 2022-23 winter, outbreaks of epizootic hemorrhagic disease and a landscape where quality habitat continues to shrink. Discussions during spring advisory board meetings focused on additional steps to encourage population growth, including the possibility of limiting adult archery licenses to antlered deer only in the coming year.
“Conservative license allocations are intended to maintain hunting opportunities while encouraging population growth in the state,” said Bill Haase, North Dakota Game and Fish Department wildlife division chief.
Habitat remains one of the biggest challenges facing deer recovery efforts. Quality cover for fawn rearing and recruitment is less abundant than in past decades, particularly across the eastern third of the state where most of the reductions in gun licenses occurred for 2026.
In some areas, deer gun harvest totals have dropped 90% from levels recorded during 2005, when Conservation Reserve Program acres were at their peak and habitat conditions were considerably better.
For 2026, the state will make 39,100 deer gun licenses available to hunters, down 3,200 from last year and the lowest total issued in more than a half century. Muzzleloader licenses were also reduced, and several units will not offer antlerless deer gun licenses.
Nonresident opportunities also were trimmed. A total of 240 nonresident any deer archery licenses will be available, a decrease of 60 from 2025. In addition, nonresident archers may hunt only on private land — excluding Private Land Open To Sportsmen tracts — during the first 9 ½ days of the bow season.
Even with reduced allocations, Game and Fish officials continue emphasizing long-term habitat work through voluntary landowner programs, new partnerships and efforts such as the Governor’s Legacy Soil Health and Habitat Program, designed to improve habitat conditions and support stronger deer populations in the future.
There was encouraging news from western North Dakota this spring, where the annual mule deer survey showed the population up 31% from last year. Department biologists credited strong overwinter survival for the increase, though conservative license allocations remain in place to help sustain the rebound.
Applications for regular deer gun, gratis, youth and muzzleloader licenses are available online through the Game and Fish Department website at gf.nd.gov. The deadline to apply is midnight June 3.
State law allows residents ages 11, 12 and 13 to obtain any antlerless licenses, except in units 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E and 4F, where mule deer doe licenses are issued through a lottery system.
Regular deer gun hunters who are 14 or 15 years old and have never received a youth season deer gun license also may qualify for a youth any-deer license. Hunters who received a license at ages 11, 12 or 13 remain eligible. The exception again applies in units 4A through 4F, where mule deer licenses are issued through lottery.
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