Eastern Oregon Deer Hunts

• New naming system: Deer Hunt Areas will use a new alphanumeric system to identify hunt areas within herd ranges. For example, hunt area #1 within the Northeast herd range would be NE-01. Note: Some herd range names have been changed since Mule Deer Plan adoption to reduce confusion between WMUs and new herd ranges and hunt areas. See table for recent name changes.
  
  Mule deer herd range names as proposed in the MD Plan and name changes (in bold) and hunt area acronyms.

• Larger hunt areas: Expect new hunting areas that are different and often larger than traditional WMUs. These larger hunt areas will be less impacted by emergency closures and allow hunters more flexibility in response to wildfire or hunting pressure.

• Tag adjustments: There is a 9% overall reduction in eastern Oregon deer tags across the 100 Series Buck Deer and 600 Series Antlerless. Tag numbers could fluctuate over the next few years as hunters and ODFW adapt to these new hunt areas.

• Fewer total hunts: Larger hunt areas mean fewer individual hunts overall.

• Preference points: There are no changes to the preference point system. An individual hunter's buck deer preference points will be the same number as they are after the 2025 drawing and will apply to the new buck hunt areas. But like all new hunts, there will be a period of uncertainty regarding how hunters in 2026 decide to select hunts, apply their points, and the number of preference points needed to draw a tag for a given hunt area. Hunters should consider this uncertainty when deciding how to use preference points over the next few years.

Landowner Preference Tags

The number of limited LOP mule deer tags available for each hunt will be provided to registered landowners by May 1, 2026. The number of LOP tags available for each mule deer hunt are determined by a formula that considers the total number of controlled hunt tags available for that hunt through the controlled hunt drawing and the performance of that mule deer population relative to the population management objective.

On January 16, 2026, the Fish and Wildlife Commission approved a modification to the formula used to allocate mule deer LOP tags. The new formula uses a simplified two-tier structure based on herd range population size and growth rate to either 1) limit buck mule deer tags to 15% of a controlled hunt's tag numbers or 2) allocate landowner's tags according to acreage.

ODFW has updated the formula used to allocate Landowner Preference (LOP) tags. This new approach generally increases the total number of LOP tags statewide, recognizing the important role private lands play in providing habitat for mule deer. However, some landowners may see fewer tags in 2026 if controlled hunt tag numbers decline in their area. ODFW will review this new allocation system after two years to ensure it's working as intended.

ODFW is also reviewing the registered tax lots for each LOP account to confirm which Deer Hunt Area each landowner qualifies for. Until your account is assigned to its correct Deer Hunt Area, you may not be able to fully complete your tag distribution list. We expect all LOP accounts to be updated by March 2026. Landowners enrolled in the LOP program will receive email updates as this process moves forward.

What hunts will be affected? New hunt areas will apply to all eastern Oregon mule deer hunting including buck hunts, doe hunts, and for all weapon types. 

Why do the 2026 Northeast Oregon hunt boundaries continue to follow existing WMU lines? Boundaries for hunts still align with WMUs as ODFW is still deploying collars in this area and data collection and interpretation are not yet complete. Once new information has been collected and analyzed, ODFW will likely propose different hunt areas for that NE herd range in the coming years. Note NE-01 will likely remain unchanged as most monitoring has already occurred in this area.

Why is the change necessary? Mule deer populations are in decline across much of the western U.S. due to factors such as habitat degradation, habitat loss to development, predation, climate change and poaching. The state's new Mule Deer Plan adopted in June 2024 directs implementation of herd ranges as the basis of all data collection, including harvest. With these changes ODFW can improve population modelling to allow for effective monitoring of mule deer population trends, identification of declining populations, and rapid management response to population declines.

Can the change be delayed? Delaying implementation of new hunt areas further delays collection of accurate herd range scale harvest data and reduces the accuracy of new monitoring and modeling techniques. MOs are also set to be reviewed in 2029; the sooner harvest aligns with mule deer biology, the more accurate population performance and abundance estimates will be.