Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is looking for volunteers across the state to help biologists better understand the deer population.

“Deer spies” are wanted to record the location, date and time and number of does, bucks and fawns they see through Sept. 30.

Information collected will be used by the state to better understand recruitment – the number of fawns each doe can raise until the hunting season. That data, in turn, is used to help regulate the number of antlerless deer hunting permits issued each year.

According to a statement on the department’s website: “To bolster our understanding of whitetail recruitment patterns in the state, we’ve created a citizen science project to solicit help from Maine’s citizen scientists. This project, Maine Deer Spy, allows deer and wildlife enthusiasts as well as Department staff around the state to record and report their deer sightings in a way that feeds right back into Maine’s deer management.”

Directions and submission forms can be found online.

The information can be sent online via mefishwildlife.com/deerspy or mailed to: 

ATTN: Nathan Bieber, Maine Deer Spy
Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
106 Hogan Road, Suite 1
Bangor, ME 04401