Michigan Deer Hunters Have a New Tagging Option This Season
Michigan’s early antlerless firearm season and Liberty Hunt are coming up this weekend, and hunters will have a new option after taking a deer.
Beginning this season, Michigan hunters can use their phones to digitally tag deer instead of using a traditional paper kill tag.
How Michigan’s New Digital Deer Tags Work
According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the process is pretty simple. If you’re using the new digital option, you have to validate the tag through the DNR Hunt Fish app immediately after taking a deer. That means before snapping photos, field-dressing it, or moving it.
The app records the time and saves everything right on your phone. You don’t even need cell service, which is a good thing considering how spotty reception can be in the woods.
As long as you stay with the deer, you don’t need to attach a physical tag. If you leave it unattended, though, you’ll need to attach a durable tag with your license number written on it in permanent ink.
Michigan Hunters Can Still Use Paper Tags
If you’d rather stick with the old-school paper tag, you still can. Anything purchased through the Hunt Fish app will be digital, while tags bought through Michigan’s eLicense website or at a retail location will still be paper.
One thing you don’t want to forget: validating your digital tag doesn’t replace the required harvest report. You still have to report the deer within 72 hours or before handing it over to someone else, whichever comes first.
Michigan’s early antlerless firearm season and Liberty Hunt run September 12–13.
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