Wyoming residents spent 14.5 hunter days per mule deer killed in 2021 to 2025, compared with 10.2 in 2002 to 2006. Nonresidents spent 8.2 days per deer in the recent five seasons and 6.9 in the first five. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) 2025 report on deer harvest and earlier reports provide these statewide survey estimates for 24 seasons. Each figure divides total hunter days by total deer killed to describe the whole field.
IEffort per deer
Residents spent 14.5 hunter days per mule deer killed, nonresidents 8.2
Time afield per resident hunter barely changed, going from 5.3 days to 5.6. The deer killed per 100 active resident hunters dropped from 51.4 to 38.5. Residents as a group spent 16.0 days per buck killed in 2021 to 2025 compared with 9.1 for nonresidents.
- Residents
- Nonresidents
Resident days per deer ran between 9.3 and 12.8 in every season from 2002 to 2018 and stood at 12.1 in 2019. In every season since 2020 the figure has been 14.0 or higher, reaching its high of 15.6 in 2024.
IIFewer does
Residents kill far fewer does per hunter and fewer bucks now
Days per deer includes deer of either sex, so the doe kill changes it. The resident doe kill fell from 4,222 in 2002 to 531 in 2025. Does and fawns killed per 100 active resident hunters dropped from 12.0 in 2002 to 2006 to 3.5 in 2021 to 2025. Ian Tator of WGFD wrote in the Wyoming section of the 2023 range-wide mule deer report of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) that "Harvest has been largely limited to bucks the past several years in response to declining deer numbers".
Bucks per hunter also dropped. Residents killed 39.4 bucks per 100 active hunters in 2002 to 2006 and 35.0 in 2021 to 2025, while nonresidents dropped from 54.7 to 50.1.
Swipe table to see every column
| Hunters | Measure | 2002 to 2006 | 2012 to 2016 | 2021 to 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | Active hunters, mean per season | 37,520 | 34,344 | 26,625 | -29.0% |
| Residents | Days afield per active hunter | 5.3 | 5.3 | 5.6 | +0.3 |
| Residents | Deer killed per 100 active hunters | 51.4 | 50.1 | 38.5 | -12.9 |
| Residents | Bucks killed per 100 active hunters | 39.4 | 41.4 | 35 | -4.4 |
| Residents | Does and fawns killed per 100 active hunters | 12 | 8.7 | 3.5 | -8.5 |
| Residents | Hunter days per deer killed | 10.2 | 10.7 | 14.5 | +4.3 |
| Residents | Hunter days per buck killed | 13.4 | 12.9 | 16 | +2.6 |
| Nonresidents | Active hunters, mean per season | 27,350 | 15,800 | 11,110 | -59.4% |
| Nonresidents | Days afield per active hunter | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.6 | +0.1 |
| Nonresidents | Deer killed per 100 active hunters | 64.8 | 66.7 | 55.4 | -9.4 |
| Nonresidents | Bucks killed per 100 active hunters | 54.7 | 58.1 | 50.1 | -4.6 |
| Nonresidents | Does and fawns killed per 100 active hunters | 10.2 | 8.7 | 5.3 | -4.9 |
| Nonresidents | Hunter days per deer killed | 6.9 | 6.5 | 8.2 | +1.3 |
| Nonresidents | Hunter days per buck killed | 8.2 | 7.5 | 9.1 | +0.9 |
Tator wrote in the 2026 WAFWA mule deer report that "33 herds (89%) remain below objective" and that "Mule deer populations across Wyoming have shown signs of recovery over the past three years". Days per deer measures effort and cannot test that recovery.
IIIFewer nonresidents
Nonresident hunters dropped 59 percent and led most shared area-seasons
Active nonresident mule deer hunters averaged 27,350 per season in 2002 to 2006 and 11,110 in 2021 to 2025. Resident numbers fell from 37,520 to 26,625. In 2002 nonresidents were 42.7 percent of active hunters and took 50.6 percent of all bucks killed. In 2025 they were 26.6 percent of hunters and took 34.3 percent of all bucks killed, or 5,412 of 15,783. Nonresident licenses dropped from 34,200 in 2006 to 11,626 in 2025 on the restated mule deer basis WGFD uses.
- Residents
- Nonresidents
Swipe table to see every column
| Season | Resident hunters | Nonresident hunters | Resident bucks | Nonresident bucks | Resident deer | Nonresident deer | Resident days per deer | Nonresident days per deer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 39,444 | 29,341 | 15,254 | 15,595 | 19,847 | 17,733 | 10.8 | 7.6 |
| 2003 | 38,294 | 27,420 | 14,136 | 14,307 | 18,773 | 16,609 | 11.1 | 7.3 |
| 2004 | 37,085 | 26,015 | 14,349 | 14,781 | 19,391 | 17,342 | 9.6 | 6.6 |
| 2005 | 35,559 | 26,533 | 13,800 | 14,220 | 17,888 | 17,378 | 10.5 | 6.9 |
| 2006 | 37,219 | 27,441 | 16,300 | 15,831 | 20,488 | 19,579 | 9.3 | 6.3 |
| 2007 | 38,389 | 27,114 | 16,748 | 14,732 | 21,816 | 19,290 | 9.5 | 6.3 |
| 2008 | 37,579 | 25,160 | 14,286 | 12,947 | 19,589 | 16,749 | 10.6 | 6.6 |
| 2009 | 38,707 | 23,980 | 15,836 | 12,840 | 21,320 | 16,534 | 9.7 | 6.5 |
| 2010 | 38,225 | 22,995 | 14,224 | 11,620 | 19,473 | 14,996 | 10.2 | 7.1 |
| 2011 | 35,628 | 20,515 | 11,315 | 9,990 | 15,475 | 12,476 | 12.8 | 7.8 |
| 2012 | 33,300 | 17,396 | 12,524 | 9,702 | 16,103 | 11,591 | 11 | 6.8 |
| 2013 | 32,284 | 16,437 | 11,942 | 8,779 | 15,219 | 10,191 | 11.2 | 7 |
| 2014 | 33,587 | 14,839 | 13,220 | 8,678 | 16,195 | 9,891 | 11.7 | 6.6 |
| 2015 | 35,396 | 14,463 | 15,722 | 8,964 | 18,349 | 9,967 | 10.1 | 6 |
| 2016 | 37,154 | 15,864 | 17,639 | 9,747 | 20,157 | 11,080 | 9.7 | 6 |
| 2017 | 34,420 | 15,844 | 13,819 | 9,209 | 16,352 | 10,782 | 10.6 | 5.8 |
| 2018 | 33,283 | 15,349 | 13,928 | 8,743 | 16,048 | 10,093 | 11 | 6.1 |
| 2019 | 32,243 | 16,161 | 11,956 | 8,467 | 14,125 | 10,053 | 12.1 | 6.6 |
| 2020 | 33,102 | 14,535 | 11,104 | 6,997 | 13,224 | 8,146 | 14 | 7.5 |
| 2021 | 29,415 | 14,091 | 9,815 | 6,318 | 11,435 | 7,509 | 14 | 8.3 |
| 2022 | 28,789 | 11,750 | 10,095 | 5,622 | 11,391 | 6,394 | 14.5 | 8.5 |
| 2023 | 22,595 | 10,038 | 7,557 | 5,054 | 8,147 | 5,425 | 14.7 | 8.3 |
| 2024 | 25,122 | 9,798 | 8,737 | 5,442 | 9,273 | 5,731 | 15.6 | 7.8 |
| 2025 | 27,204 | 9,874 | 10,371 | 5,412 | 10,968 | 5,720 | 14.1 | 8.1 |
The 21 seasons with hunt-area tables let us compare 2,093 area-seasons with at least 30 active hunters on each side. Nonresidents had higher success in 1,813 of those, or 86.6 percent. From 2021 to 2025 they led in 343 of 406, with the median gap at 14.1 percentage points. The hunt areas nonresidents choose do not explain the gap. Weight the area-seasons from 2021 to 2025 by their nonresident hunters and nonresidents killed 48.7 deer per 100 hunters. Residents killed 32.4 in those same areas and seasons, below their statewide 38.5.
All ten areas with the most nonresident hunters in 2025 had higher nonresident success. This list includes all six areas that our earlier paper on the Wyoming areas that keep leading the buck harvest found in the buck top 10 every season from 2021 to 2025. These tables cannot explain why nonresidents succeed more often.
Swipe table to see every column
| Hunt area | Resident hunters | Resident success | Resident days per deer | Nonresident hunters | Nonresident success | Nonresident days per deer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Bearlodge | 662 | 16.6% | 13.5 | 652 | 35.1% | 6.4 |
| 17 Northwest Gillette | 647 | 22.9% | 22.9 | 537 | 55.9% | 7.4 |
| 82 Baggs | 1,195 | 24.8% | 20.1 | 464 | 49.6% | 9.7 |
| 1 Crook | 374 | 36.4% | 6.5 | 400 | 46.8% | 5.2 |
| 23 Clearmont | 492 | 35.8% | 11.6 | 396 | 66.9% | 5.7 |
| 15 Southeast Wyoming | 1,074 | 46.0% | 8.8 | 364 | 66.8% | 6.1 |
| 64 Laramie Peak | 701 | 41.7% | 10.4 | 332 | 50.9% | 8.6 |
| 40 Buffalo Creek | 247 | 36.4% | 10.7 | 300 | 67.7% | 7.5 |
| 26 Ucross | 185 | 34.1% | 10.7 | 296 | 48.6% | 7.3 |
| 25 Tongue-Goose | 472 | 18.0% | 33.6 | 296 | 27.7% | 21.1 |
Swipe table to see every column
| Seasons | Area-seasons compared | Nonresidents higher | Residents higher | Equal | Median gap, points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 to 2011 | 849 | 729 | 118 | 2 | 15.6 |
| 2012 to 2020 | 838 | 741 | 96 | 1 | 17.8 |
| 2021 to 2025 | 406 | 343 | 63 | 0 | 14.1 |
| All 21 seasons | 2,093 | 1,813 | 277 | 3 | 16 |
IVGeneral license ground
Residents spent 9.5 to 36.1 days per buck in 21 general-license areas
A resident hunting on a general license still has a choice of ground. WGFD listed General as the only mule deer license type in 54 hunt areas in every season from 2021 to 2025. Among those, 21 had at least 30 resident hunters each season and 1,000 over the five. Over those seasons combined, residents spent 9.5 days per buck in area 6 Skull Creek and 36.1 in area 28 Hunter Mesa. Bates Hole-Hat Six, Green Mountain, Shirley Mountain and South Converse also came in at 13.1 days or fewer. Seven of the 21 were below the statewide resident figure of 16.0. Days per buck were lower for nonresidents than residents in all 21 and in all 18 with at least 30 nonresident hunters each season.
Swipe table to see every column
| Hunt area | Resident hunters 2021-25 | Resident bucks 2021-25 | Resident days per buck | Resident bucks per 100 hunters | Nonresident hunters 2021-25 | Nonresident days per buck |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Skull Creek | 1,889 | 701 | 9.5 | 37.1 | 885 | 7.1 |
| 66 Bates Hole-Hat Six | 3,644 | 1,195 | 10.4 | 32.8 | 447 | 5.5 |
| 96 Green Mountain | 1,484 | 529 | 11.3 | 35.6 | 305 | 10.2 |
| 70 Shirley Mountain | 2,212 | 716 | 12.7 | 32.4 | 413 | 9.2 |
| 65 South Converse | 2,620 | 890 | 13.1 | 34 | 1,244 | 9 |
| 33 Red Fork | 1,135 | 343 | 13.7 | 30.2 | 1,513 | 7.7 |
| 145 Salt River | 3,206 | 953 | 15.9 | 29.7 | 447 | 10.9 |
| 46 Cloud Peak | 1,088 | 271 | 17.8 | 24.9 | 439 | 12.3 |
| 152 Lower Hoback | 1,961 | 482 | 18.9 | 24.6 | 675 | 10.2 |
| 134 Bear River Divide | 2,183 | 459 | 19.9 | 21 | 278 | 13.1 |
| 144 Greys River | 3,539 | 876 | 20.7 | 24.8 | 594 | 12.2 |
| 53 Devils Canyon | 1,029 | 239 | 21.3 | 23.2 | 280 | 14 |
| 142 Piney-Horse Creek | 2,614 | 671 | 21.4 | 25.7 | 514 | 12.9 |
| 135 West Green River | 6,953 | 1,497 | 21.9 | 21.5 | 514 | 14 |
| 154 Raspberry Ridge | 1,348 | 336 | 23.2 | 24.9 | 176 | 15.1 |
| 76 Sheep Mountain | 3,941 | 922 | 25.2 | 23.4 | 337 | 21 |
| 143 South Piney | 3,417 | 679 | 27.6 | 19.9 | 176 | 13.9 |
| 75 Four Mile | 2,575 | 503 | 29.4 | 19.5 | 232 | 18.5 |
| 27 Buffalo | 1,175 | 157 | 29.9 | 13.4 | 556 | 12.8 |
| 25 Tongue-Goose | 2,123 | 384 | 30.7 | 18.1 | 1,133 | 17.2 |
| 28 Hunter Mesa | 1,144 | 201 | 36.1 | 17.6 | 398 | 21.9 |
VWGFD survey methods
Survey methods changed and area tables count hunters more than once
All harvest and effort figures here are WGFD survey estimates, and none counts the herd. WGFD sent questionnaires by mail for 2003, used internet surveys with mail follow-up by 2007 and worked with the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center on a voluntary survey for 2025. We cannot separate out any effect on reported days.
Hunt-area tables count each hunter once in every area that hunter hunted. In 2025 the area rows added up to 34,337 resident and 11,500 nonresident hunters compared with 27,204 and 9,874 in the statewide table. We take statewide hunter totals here from the statewide table and use area hunter counts only within an area. The area rows for bucks, deer and days match the statewide tables in 20 of 21 seasons. For the same-area test we dropped 38 area-seasons with printed success above 100 percent. WGFD's 2015 report on deer harvest lists 87,199 mule deer licenses for 2007 where the 2012 report on harvest listed 91,789. We use licenses only from 2006 on the restated basis.
VIYour residency rows
Base plans on your residency's rows and the areas open to you
Our read is that Wyoming mule deer hunting now splits into two different hunts by residency. Plan from the rows for your own residency. A resident with a general license who wants the most bucks for the days spent should start with Skull Creek, Bates Hole-Hat Six, Green Mountain, Shirley Mountain and South Converse at 9.5 to 13.1 days per buck from 2021 to 2025. Treat any single season as one noisy survey year.
NOTES AND SOURCES
- Source: Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD), 2025 Deer Harvest Report (Tables 2, 5 and 7).
- Also: WGFD, 2015 Deer Harvest Report (Tables III and IV, archived copy).
- Also: WGFD, 2012 Big and Trophy Game Harvest Report (mule deer Tables III and IV, archived copy).
- Scope: Wyoming mule deer hunters by residency, 2002 to 2025. Statewide grain for every season (active hunters, bucks, deer of either sex, hunter days, days per deer). Hunt-area grain for 21 seasons (2002, 2003 and 2007 to 2025), used only to compare residents and nonresidents inside the same area and season.
- Method: Statewide values are WGFD survey estimates read from the mule deer statewide and ten-year tables in four reports (2025, 2015, 2012, 2002). The editions print identical hunters, harvest and days for every overlapping season, and only licenses were restated. For 2002 the report prints days per deer but no hunter-day total, so 2002 days are the sum of the hunt-area rows, which match the printed days per deer. Hunt-area sums of bucks, deer and days equal the statewide tables in 20 of 21 seasons for both residency groups (2019 nonresidents are short two areas), but hunt-area hunter counts do not add up to statewide hunters because a hunter is counted in each area hunted, so hunter totals always come from the statewide table. Era rates are ratios of five-season sums. The same-area comparison uses WGFD printed success per area and side. The same-area kill rates weight each area-season by its nonresident hunters (DERIVED).
- Limits: Hunters, harvest and hunter days are WGFD estimates from hunter surveys, not counts.
- Limits: Days per deer counts deer of either sex. Doe harvest fell sharply over the period, so days per buck is shown beside it.
- Limits: WGFD changed how it ran the survey over these years, from mailed questionnaires in 2003 to internet surveys with mail follow-up by 2007 and a voluntary survey with the Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center by 2025.
- Limits: Hunt-area tables count a hunter once in each area hunted, so area hunter counts overstate statewide hunters. In 2025 the area rows held 34,337 resident and 11,500 nonresident hunters against 27,204 and 9,874 statewide.
- Limits: We found no hunt-area tables for 2004 to 2006, and the number of mule deer hunt areas fell from 151 in 2002 to 126 in 2025.
- Limits: Success here is deer of either sex per active hunter. These tables cannot say why nonresidents succeed more often.
Fully Drawn Research is an independent data analysis desk, not affiliated with any state wildlife agency, transportation agency, mapping provider or outfitter. Fully Drawn Research is an independent data and analysis desk. This paper reports FDR's own analysis of public agency and survey data. Harvest, catch and survey figures describe what hunters and anglers reported or what agencies counted or estimated, not how many animals or fish are present, and they reflect regulations and hunter or angler choices as well as wildlife numbers.
Keep reading
FDR Scout puts county harvest history like this on the map of the ground you hunt. Open Scout →See the plans →