Big Game Application Eligibility Rules

Below are the rules of whether or not applicants are allowed to apply for certain combinations of tags in a single or successive draw process and the different tags an applicant is allowed to draw in a given hunt year.

Silver State Tag
A person may apply for a big game species Silver State tag and if eligible may also submit an application for the same species or subspecies in the main draw. The Silver State tag is drawn before the main draw and PIW draw, so if successful in drawing a Silver State tag, all other applications for the same species or animal class are marked as ineligible.

Heritage Tag
A person who purchases a Heritage Tag is eligible to apply for and draw a tag for the same species or subspecies in another draw in the same hunt year.

Partnership in Wildlife Tag
If an applicant is eligible to apply for a given subspecies in the main draw, they may apply for that subspecies PIW tag at the same time. The PIW tag draw is after the main draw, so that only unsuccessful main draw applicants for a given subspecies and animal class are eligible for the PIW tag draw.

Dream Tag
The Dream tag draw occurs in July after the main draw and PIW draw. You can apply for all Dream tag subspecies regardless of your eligibility for those subspecies in the main draw. If you happen to draw a Dream tag and you had drawn a tag for the same subspecies and animal class in a previous draw in the same year, you must return that tag since you are not allowed to have a Dream tag and tag from another draw for the same subspecies and animal class in the same hunt year.

Antelope
A person may only apply for one animal class of antelope in a single draw (you cannot apply for both a buck and horns shorter than ears tag in the same draw). You are only allowed to draw one antelope tag each hunt year.

Elk
A person may apply for both antlered (bull) elk and antlerless (cow) elk tag in the same draw.

The specific rules are:

  • You can only apply for one type of bull tag, either antlered or spike in the same draw.
  • You can actually apply for 3 different antlerless (cow) elk tag categories in the same draw: antlerless elk, antlerless elk management (new in 2014), and antlerless elk depredation.

A person is only allowed to draw one antlered elk tag (either bull or spike) and only one antlerless elk tag in a single hunt year.

Bighorn Sheep
A person cannot apply for both a ram and ewe (new in 2014) of the same bighorn subspecies in the same draw. So a person could apply for a California bighorn ram tag and a desert bighorn ewe tag in the same draw. A person is allowed to draw both a ram and a ewe tag in the same hunt year but the ram and ewe tag would be of different subspecies.

Mountain Goat
We only have a single animal class for mountain goat tags (any mountain goat), so as long as you are not in a waiting period for mountain goat, there are no additional application rules.

Black Bear
Like mountain goat, only single animal class for bear, so no additional application rules.

Mule Deer
Like antelope, a person may only apply for one animal class of mule deer in a single draw (you cannot apply for both a buck and doe (antlerless) in the same draw). You are only allowed to draw one mule deer tag each hunt year.

Other Tags
A person may obtain the following “non-draw” tags in addition to any draw tags (for a given subspecies and animal class) in a single hunt year: Heritage tags, deer and antelope landowner damage compensation tags, elk incentive tags, antlerless elk landowner tags.

Second Draw Tags
Except for junior mule deer hunt tags, remaining tags for the second draw will be available to a combined pool of both resident and nonresident applicants if that hunt type (species, class, and weapon) had both resident and nonresident quotas in the first draw.

Restricted Nonresident Guided Mule Deer Tags
A person that applies for a restricted nonresident guided deer tag (early draw before the main draw) may not apply for a nonresident deer tag in the main draw in that same year.

Eligibility Waiting Periods

If you drew a big game tag for: and Harvest... or Did not Harvest...
Bear
(Hunt # 6151, 6251)		 He/She may not apply the next 5 open seasons He/She may apply the next open season
Bighorn Sheep
(Hunt # 3000 (PIW), 3151, 3251, 8000 (PIW), 8151, 8251, 9151, 9251)		 He/She may not apply the next 10 open seasons. He/She may not apply the next 10 open seasons, unless client applied prior to 2009.
Bighorn Ewe
(Hunt # 3181 (Desert), 8181 (California))		 He/She may not apply the next 2 open seasons. He/She may not apply the next 2 open seasons.
Bull Elk
(Hunt # 4000 (PIW), 4151, 4156, 4161, 4251, 4256, 4261)		 He/She may not apply the next 10 open seasons. He/She may not apply the next 5 open seasons.
Elk Depredation
(Hunt # 4102 (Bull), 4107 (Cow))		 He/She may apply the next open season He/She may apply the next open season
Antlerless Elk
(Hunt # 4111, 4176, 4181, 4281)		 He/She may apply the next open season He/She may apply the next open season
Antelope - Horns longer than ears
(Hunt # 2000 (PIW), 2151, 2161, 2171, 2251, 2261)		 He/She may not apply the next 5 open seasons He/She may apply the next open season
Antelope - Horns shorter than ears
(Hunt # 2181)		 He/She may apply the next open season He/She may apply the next open season
Mountain Goat
(Hunt # 7000, 7151, 7251)		 He/She may not apply the next 10 open seasons He/She may not apply the next 10 open seasons
Silver State Tags
(Hunt # 1300, 2300, 3300, 4300)		 He/She may apply the next open season He/She may apply the next open season
Dream Tags
(Hunt # 1500, 2500, 3500, 4500, 8500)		 He/She may apply the next open season He/She may apply the next open season

Definitions

(as used in eligibility rules above)

Species: A basic unit of biological classification (e.g. mule deer, antelope, bighorn sheep, elk, mtn. goat, black bear, or mountain lion).

Subspecies: Generally, a group that is subordinate to "Species" in biological classification (e.g. California bighorn sheep, Nelson "Desert" bighorn sheep, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep).

Animal class: Refers to a specific age or sex class of a game species or subspecies (e.g. Mule deer buck, Cow elk, Desert bighorn ewe).

Antler: "Antler" means any bony growth originating from the pedicle portion of the skull of a big game mammal that is annually cast and regenerated as part of the annual life cycle of the big game mammal.

Antelope with horns shorter than its ears: "Antelope with horns shorter than its ears" means any pronghorn antelope without horns or with both horns that are shorter than its ears.

Antelope with horns longer than its ears: "Antelope with horns longer than its ears" means any pronghorn antelope having at least one horn that is longer than either ear of the antelope.

Antlerless deer (Doe): "Antlerless deer" means any deer without antlers.

Antlered deer (Buck): "Antlered deer" means any deer having at least one antler that is visible above the hairline of the deer.

Antlerless elk (Cow): "Antlerless elk" means any elk without antlers.

Antlered elk (Bull): "Antlered elk" means any elk having at least one antler that is visible above the hairline of the elk.

Spike elk (Spike): "Spike elk" means any elk without branching on either antler.

Bighorn ewe: "Ewe" means any female bighorn sheep having a horn or horns of at least 5 inches in length each as measured on the outside curve of the horn from the skull to the tip.