What the DWR does to help Utah's deer

Find out more about mule deer and what the DWR is doing to help them.

Multi-year, multi-pronged efforts are top priorities for the Division of Wildlife Resources. — Read more.

Carbon County mule deer

• Restoring mule deer habitat: Watershed Restoration Initiative tackles top problem facing deer herds.
• Mule deer research is underway in Utah: The DWR has started, or is in the process of starting, several mule-deer related research projects across Utah.
• The effects of predators on mule deer herds: If there's one word that can get a deer hunter's blood boiling, it's this one — predators. But are hunters focusing their frustration on the right target?


Carbon County mule deer

• Supplemental winter feeding of deer: During severe winter weather, the public is understandably concerned about deer. Read more about why winter feeding isn't always the most appropriate solution.
• Learn about mule deer habitat: Good, sustainable habitat is key to the long-term health of Utah's deer herds. Find out what type of habitat and shelter mule deer need to survive.
• Restoring Utah mule deer habitat: Utah leads the West in habitat restoration. Spearheaded by the DWR, the Watershed Restoration Initiative is a unique partnership working toward healthy wildlife habitat.
• Threats to mule deer herds: Weather, urbanization, invasive plants, predators, wildfires and unmanaged grazing all affect the health of Utah's deer herds.
• Minimizing browsing damage from deer: As Utah's housing developments expand, deer find new human neighbors in their backyards who might not like them nibbling on their tulips and fruit trees. Find out what you can do to get along with the deer in your yard.
• Disease issues in Utah deer: The division closely monitors Utah's deer herds to check for chronic wasting disease. If you've stopped at a checking station, you've likely had first-hand experience with these efforts.

Mule deer management plans

• Utah Mule Deer Statewide Management Plan — PDF
• Unit deer management plans

The Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA)

• WAFWA Mule Deer Working Group publications
  The DWR is active in the Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies and in the Mule Deer Working Group.
  • Fact Sheet 1: Relationships Among Mule Deer and Their Predators
  • Fact Sheet 2: Understanding Mule Deer and Winter Feeding
  • Fact Sheet 3: Highway Effects On Mule Deer Movement and Survival
  • Fact Sheet 4: Competition Between Mule Deer and Elk
  • Fact Sheet 5: Carrying Capacity — How Many Deer Can We Have?
  • Fact Sheet 6: Understanding Mule Deer and Antler Point Restrictions
  • Fact Sheet 7: Antlerless Mule Deer Harvest
  • Fact Sheet 8: Illegal Harvest and Mule Deer Populations
  • Fact Sheet 9: Urban Mule Deer Issues
  • Fact Sheet 10: Translocation of Mule Deer
  • Fact Sheet 11: Disease and Parasite of Mule Deer
  • Fact Sheet 12: Understanding Mule Deer Migration
  • Fact Sheet 14: Fertility Control and Mule Deer Population Management
  • Fact Sheet 16: Mule Deer Shed Antler Hunting
  • Fact Sheet 17: Winter Range Disturbance
  • Fact Sheet 18: Mule Deer and the Effects Of Fire
  • Fact Sheet 19: Mule Deer Nutrition
  • Fact Sheet 20: Mule Deer Management and the Public Process
  • Fact Sheet 21: Pinyon-Juniper Management for Mule Deer
  • Fact Sheet 22: Habitat Conversion by Wildfire and Invasive Species
  • Fact Sheet 24: Managing Hunting for Opportunity or Mature Bucks
  • Fact Sheet 26: Encountering Newborn Deer Fawns
  • Fact Sheet 29: Mule Deer and Wild/Feral Horses and Burros
  • Fact Sheet 31: Assessing Mule Deer Harvest
  • Fact Sheet 32: Historical and Current Mule Deer Abundance
• Mule deer: Changing Landscapes, Changing Perspectives
• Mule Deer and Movement Barriers

Utah's Watershed Restoration Initiative

• The initiative is committed to finding and implementing solutions to problems facing Utah's landscapes.

Deer-related Wildlife Board meetings

You can watch Utah Wildlife Board meetings about deer hunting (typically April or May and December).

A program to control coyotes and other predators

• Utah's predator-control program

Antler gathering ethics course

• From Feb. 1 to April 15, shed antler and horn gathers must possess an antler-gathering certificate. To obtain this certificate, take this online ethics course. You may print the certificate at the end of the course.

Living with cougars

Staying safe while living and recreating in cougar country

Cougars are exciting animals to see in the wild and rarely cause problems for humans. Although unlikely to happen, you should know how to react if you encounter an aggressive cougar.

What to do if you meet an aggressive cougar

• Do not run from a cougar. Running will provoke an instinctive prey response and the cougar may pursue you.
• Make yourself look intimidating. Make eye contact with the cougar, which cougars consider a threat. Make yourself look big by opening your jacket, raising your arms and waving them. Speak loud and firm to the cougar.
• If you have children, pick them up. Try to pick children up before they panic and run. When you are picking children up, keep eye contact with the cougar and try not to bend over too far or turn your back to the cougar.
• If you are attacked, fight back! Protect your head and neck, as the neck is the target for the cougar. If the cougar thinks it is not likely to win its fight with you quickly, it will probably give up and leave.

Facts about cougars

• Cougars, Felis concolor, are also known as the mountain lion, puma or panther.
• Cougars are one of North America's largest cats and are recognized by their tawny color and long tail.
• Cougar kittens, or cubs, have blackish-brown spots on their body and dark rings on their tails that fade as they get older.
• Cougars are solitary animals, making them a rare sight for humans. They usually hunt alone and at night, ambushing their prey from behind. Typically, cougars kill their prey with a bite to the lower neck.
• After making a kill, a cougar often will take the carcass to the base of a tree and cover it with dirt, leaves or snow, saving it to eat later.
• Cougars live all across Utah, from high in the Uinta Mountains to the dry southern Utah deserts.
• Cougars' main prey is deer, so cougars are often found close to deer.
• Cougars live up to 12 years in the wild but have lived up to 25 years in captivity. In the wild they face death through accidents, disease and large predators (including humans).

Living in cougar country

If you live in cougar country, here are a few guidelines to make your property safer:

• Do not feed wildlife. Feeding wildlife attracts animals to your yard that may be prey of cougars, thus attracting cougars to your yard.
• Do not feed pets outside. Cougars will eat pet food, and the food could attract cougars to your yard. Keep pets indoors at night as well, as pets make easy prey for cougars.
• Make your yard deer-proof. If your landscaping is attractive to deer, cougars will follow the deer and hang close to your property.
• Dense vegetation makes great hiding places for cougars. Remove vegetation that could be a hiding place, making your yard less friendly for cougars.
• Outdoor lighting and motion-sensitive lighting is a deterrent for the secretive cougar. Lights also make approaching cougars visible.
• Secure livestock in a barn or shed at night. If that is impossible, a small, well-lit pen close to a structure is the next-best option.
• Keep a close eye on your children when they are playing outside. Bring children in before dusk when cougars begin to hunt.

Playing in cougar country

If you recreate in cougar country, here are a few guidelines to make your experience safer:

Note the typical "M" shape on this cougar track. Also note that no claws show on the print. Felines walk with their claws retracted.

Cougar track
Note the typical "M" shape on this cougar track. Also note that no claws show on the print. Cats walk with their claws retracted.

• Hike with other people and make noise. Cougars rarely bother groups of people.
• Keep a clean camp. Store food and garbage in your vehicle or hang it between two trees where cougars (and bears) cannot reach it.
• When hiking with small children, keep the children in the group or in sight ahead of the group. Remember, cougars ambush from behind, so keeping a child in front of the main group will lessen the possibility of attack.
• Keep away from dead animals, especially deer or elk. This could be a kill that a cougar is guarding or will be returning to. A cougar will defend its food.
• If hiking with pets, keep them close to the group. Roaming pets will be open to cougar attacks or could irritate a cougar that is trying to avoid the group.

Whom to call if you meet a cougar

If you encounter a cougar in a residential area, or if you have an aggressive encounter with a cougar, please alert the Division of Wildlife Resources.

During regular office hours, please call the DWR office closest to you. A Division employee will notify a conservation officer of your encounter or transfer you directly to law enforcement personnel. If the encounter or sighting occurs after hours or on the weekend, please call the police, who can contact a conservation officer to handle the situation.