HARRISBURG (TNS) — Hunters have 30,024 Deer Management Assistance Program permits available for harvesting extra deer in state forests and state parks across the state this year.

The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources decided to offer the special permits for 104 units covering more than 1.3 million acres. Twenty-six state parks also are participating in the program this year.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission’s DMAP allows landowners to apply for permits to encourage additional antlerless deer harvests on their properties, enabling DCNR and private landowners to more effectively manage deer populations and curtail damage to forests and crops.

Habitat conditions guide all of DCNR’s DMAP applications,” DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn said. “DMAP permits remain an important tool upon which state forest and park managers rely heavily for continued sustainability of state plants and forests.”

Requests for DMAP-targeted areas, and the number of permits sought, are science-driven. DCNR has a statistically based vegetation sampling protocol, with more than 10,000 plots across state forestland, which assists in determining where DMAP should be applied.

DCNR’s goals for DMAP are to promote a diverse, healthy natural habitat that supports wildlife diversity and healthy deer populations; provide additional hunting opportunities; establish and maintain regeneration to support sustainable forestry practices with minimal need for deer fencing; and promote a healthy, sustainable forest and native, wild plant communities.

Applicants for DMAP permits can find DCNR tract locations and maps, availability numbers, past hunter success rates and other information on an interactive map.

DMAP tags are now on sale. Hunters obtain permits directly from license issuing agents or the HuntFishPA website.