The Michigan Department of Resources is proposing a limit of one antlered deer during its whitetail season, which will be presented to the Michigan Natural Resources Commission today. This would be a change from its statewide bag limit of two antlered deer per year (except in DMU 117, where the bag limit is one antlered deer).

Deer hunting in the state has declined over the decades, resulting in an abundance of deer in the Lower Peninsula as well as increases in crop damage and deer-related vehicle collisions. In the Upper Peninsula, the deer population is lower due to tough winters and habitat loss. As a result, the DNR also recently enacted an extended late antlerless firearm season in the southern half of the state, encouraging hunters to harvest more does in an effort to reduce deer-human conflicts, improve the doe-to-buck ratio, and help bucks reach older, more mature age classes, according to FOX 17. The one-buck proposal intends to further encourage tagging more antlerless deer, and may also encourage hunters to be more selective about bucks, resulting in the harvest of more mature deer.

“This recommendation would ensure all deer licenses require or include options for taking antlerless deer, which would shift Michigan’s deer harvest ratio away from the persistent bias towards antlered deer,” according to the proposal from the Michigan DNR. 

According to a Facebook post from the DNR, the agency will not decide on the proposals until at least its next meeting on May 13. If approved, the one-buck limit would take effect March 1, 2027.

If a one-buck rule is enacted, here is how deer licenses would be sold in both the Upper and Lower Peninsula:

Single deer license

• Lower Peninsula: Antlerless only
• Upper Peninsula: Antlerless deer in archery only or an antlered deer

Combo deer license

• Lower Peninsula:
  • Regular Tag: One either sex deer
  • Restricted Tag: One antlerless deer
• Upper Peninsula:
  • Regular Tag: One antlerless deer in archery only or an antlered deer with a minimum three-point antler restriction
  • Restricted Tag: Antlerless deer in archery only

How many deer have hunters harvested in recent years in Michigan?

• 2025

  • Total: 295,845
  • Antlered: 153,696
  • Antlerless: 142,149

• 2024

  • Total: 299,492
  • Antlered: 157,271
  • Antlerless: 142,221

• 2023

  • Total: 274,282
  • Antlered: 155,649
  • Antlerless: 118,633

Michigan has a whitetail population of around 1.7 million (info taken from the 2026 Deer Hunters’ Almanac).

In addition to the one-buck limit, the DNR is also proposing to shorten the muzzleloader season, start the late antlerless firearm season earlier, and combine the Liberty Hunt with the early antlerless firearm season.