If you’re a deer hunter and have been disappointed you missed out on a permit last year, you may be in luck this year. There is a proposal to increase Maine’s deer hunting permits by 59 percent.

Biologists say because of a mild winter in many parts of the state the deer herd is looking robust so they have proposed an increase in any-deer permits with an increased allotment of 16, 985 this season. That would bring the total of permit’s to 45,775 which is up from last year’s of 28, 770.

The 2015 allotment was only the fourth to fall below 30,000 permits since the any-deer permit system was implemented 31 years ago.

But some hunters said they didn’t understand why such a dramatic increase was called for a year after the allotment had fallen to a historic low.

The 59 percent will not be all across the state though as nine districts in northern and eastern Maine will see no allotments of any-deer permits because populations are below targets.

Also on Wednesday the Advisory Council voted unanimously 10-0 to reduce the number of moose permits from 2,815 last year to 2,140 in 2016.

 

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