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2013-14 Fall Hunt Information
Online application service now available for 2013 fall hunts
Hunt regulations are available online; printed copies to be available in mid May
 PHOENIX - The online application service is available for Arizona’s 2013 hunts for deer, fall turkey, fall javelina, bighorn sheep, fall buffalo, and pheasant.
Hunters now have the option of applying online for a hunt permit-tag issued through the draw process by visiting https://az.gov/app/huntdraw/home.xhtml and scrolling down to the “Apply for a Draw” link.
The 2013-14 Arizona Hunting Regulations are available online at www.azgfd.gov/draw. Printed copies of the regulations are anticipated to be at department offices and license dealers by mid May.
The application deadline is Tuesday, June 11, 2013 by 7 p.m. (MST). Those applying online will have to pay the non-refundable $7.50 application fee (which is charged as part of the tag fee whether applying online or with a paper application).
Also, a 2013 hunting license is required of all applicants to apply in the draw. If you haven’t already purchased your license, you can do so through the draw application process. Please keep in mind that if you are purchasing your license online, you must have a working printer handy and print your license out at the time of purchase. The department does not mail out licenses that are purchased online.
Licenses are also available for purchase from Arizona Game and Fish offices and from more than 300 license dealers statewide.
The online application service allows payment with a credit card (VISA and Mastercard only). The cost of the hunt permit-tag won’t be charged unless and until you are drawn.
The online application supports the following browsers: Microsoft Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome and Safari (If you use Safari, it is recommended that you upgrade to the latest version of the OS and Safari browser. Click here to upgrade the Safari browser). This application does not support mobile devices, e-readers and Smartphones.
For those not using the online service, paper applications can be mailed to the Arizona Game and Fish Department, Attn: Drawing Section, PO Box 74020, Phoenix, AZ 85087-1052, or they can be hand-delivered to any of the seven Game and Fish offices located in Pinetop, Flagstaff, Kingman, Yuma, Tucson, Mesa and Phoenix. Mailed and hand-delivered applications must be received by the department by the deadline; postmarks don’t count.
Those submitting a paper application are encouraged to apply early to take advantage of the “correction period.” If your application has an error and is received before 5 p.m. on May 24, 2013, Game and Fish will make three attempts in a 24-hour period to notify you by phone (if a phone number is provided) and help correct the application. After that date, mistakes can cause your application to be rejected.
The drawing process for elk and pronghorn antelope occurred earlier this year. See next section below.
Please note that one of the big changes in the regulations this year is that the Trapping Regulations are not included in the Hunting Regulations booklet. The department will produce a separate Trapping Regulations pamphlet that will be available in the summer of 2013. The Trapping Regulations pamphlet will no longer be a part of the annual Hunting Regulations booklet.
2013 Pronghorn Antelope and Elk Hunt Information
 The draw results for Arizona’s 2013 elk and pronghorn antelope big game hunts are now available by visiting https://az.gov/app/huntdraw/home.xhtml and scrolling down to the “View results and bonus points” link.
Applicants can also find out if they were drawn by calling 602 942-3000 and selecting option two.
There were more than 142,000 applicants for this year’s elk/pronghorn antelope draw for hunts or bonus points, and 26,308 tags were issued. The total number of applications, including those submitted on paper and online, was approximately 103,665.
Hunt permit-tags for successful applicants, and refunds for unsuccessful or rejected applicants/applications (less application fees), are expected to be mailed out by April 19, pursuant to Arizona Game and Fish Department Hunting and Trapping Regulations.
As of April 23, 2013, all leftover elk tags have been issued.
2013 Spring Hunt Information
There are no more leftover tags for 2013 spring javelina hunts with the possible exception of military hunts available at Camp Navajo (for those who qualify). For more information contact Camp Navajo at 602-540-3873 or www.campnavajo.com.
For 2013, the statewide bag limit for javelina has been raised to two per calendar year, with no more than one taken per open area as defined in each hunt number. The bag limit may be filled in any combination of permit-tags (draw tag or first-come leftover draw tag as long as they have differing hunt numbers) or nonpermit-tags (over-the-counter tag). No more than one permit-tag shall be issued per hunter through the initial draw.
Some of the spring hunts are not limited to tags issued through the draw process. For those hunts, a nonpermit-tag may be purchased over-the-counter at Game and Fish offices or at license dealers. Nonpermit-tag hunts are area-specific and include some archery-only spring turkey, juniors-only shotgun spring turkey, archery-only spring javelina, general javelina, general spring bear, and archery-only spring bear hunts.
Draw Cycles and Hunt Permit Application Deadline Days
The Arizona Game and Fish Department conducts three separate application and draw cycles for big game hunt permit-tags. Beginning in 2007, the Department for the first time held a separate draw for antelope and elk. This change was made to let hunters know earlier if they have been drawn for these two popular big game animals. The three draw cycles are:
| Species |
Draw Deadline |
| Pronghorn antelope, elk |
Second Tuesday in February (pending Commission approval) |
| Deer, fall turkey, fall javelina, bighorn sheep fall buffalo, pheasant |
Second Tuesday in June (pending Commission approval) |
| Spring javelina, spring bear, spring turkey, spring buffalo |
Second Tuesday in October (pending Commission approval) |
View
Draw Results, Accumulated Bonus Points
Use the link below to
view the last draw results. To access the number of bonus points you have accumulated for deer, antelope, elk, turkey, javelina, bighorn sheep, buffalo and bear, call 602 942-3000, option 2. You will need to provide your date of birth and department identification number, (for most people, this is their social security number).
Learn
More About Big Game Draw Process and Bonus
Points
Use
the links below to learn about the big game
draw and bonus point processes.
Hunt Guidelines and Hunt Recommendations Process
The Arizona Game and Fish Department follows a multi-tiered process for setting hunting season structures, hunting season dates, hunt permit allocations, and other controlling elements for regulating hunting of game animals. Learn more about this process and how you can participate.
Learn
About the Hunter Questionnaire Survey
The
Arizona Game and Fish Department currently
uses a business-reply postcard questionnaire
to survey hunters about harvest, methods,
and effort. This technique has been used
by the Department for over 45 years. The
process was reviewed in 2008 see the report
below for details.
Online Draw and License Information
The department in October 2011 reimplemented the online application service to apply for big game hunt permit-tags. The date of availability of applying via the online service will be announced during each draw cycle. For the current draw cycle for 2012 pronghorn antelope and elk hunts, we anticipate the online application service will be available in early to mid January 2012. Applicants can also submit paper applications by mail or dropped off at a department office. Application forms can be found at all license dealers, at department offices, or by downloading a copy from the link found on the right-hand column of this web page.
Licenses can now
be purchased online here and from more than 300 license
dealers statewide.
Hunt Arizona Edition
Survey, Harvest and Hunt Data for Big and Small Game
 Improve your odds of drawing a hunting tag
Do you want to find the hunts with the best chances of putting a tag in your pocket?
Or, are you more interested in which hunts have the best harvest success? You can find that information and much more in the annual Hunt Arizona resource guide.
The Arizona Game and Fish Department’s annual collection of survey, harvest and hunt data for big and small game has the latest 5-year data as well as historical data that you are bound to find of interest, some of it dating back to 1930s.
Arizona offers some of the best trophy and or unique hunting opportunities in North America for each of these species: Black bear, buffalo, coues whitetail, desert bighorn sheep, elk, javelina, mountain lion, mule deer, pronghorn antelope and turkey (goulds or merriam).
Special Big Game Permit-Tag Program
Each year, in June, the Arizona Game and Fish Commission awards Special Big Game License Tags, sometimes called Commissioners’ tags, to selected 501(c)(3) wildlife conservation organizations who are charged to market and sell those tags to raise funds for Arizona's wildlife.
Up to three tags for each of the following 10 Arizona big game species are typically allocated: pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, black bear, buffalo, elk, javelina, mountain lion, mule deer, Coues white-tailed deer and turkey.
All of the revenues raised are then returned to the Arizona Game and Fish Department to be directly used to benefit those species through wildlife and habitat management in coordination with the Arizona Habitat Partnership Committee.
Tags are typically made available to the public through auctions or raffles, including the Big Game Super Raffle.
The uniqueness of these special tags is that the hunting season is year-round allowing winning tag holders the time to pursue a trophy animal, many of which can only be found in the southwest and some only in Arizona – particularly, the Gould’s wild turkey, desert and Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, Coues white-tailed deer, and the world-famous Kaibab mule deer.
Arizona Big Game Super Raffle
 The Arizona Game and Fish Department frequently receives questions from constituents asking, “What is the Arizona Big Game Super Raffle?”
The Arizona Big Game Super Raffle is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) entity that conducts a special raffle each year to raise money for wildlife conservation efforts. Each year the Arizona Game and Fish Commission sets aside one tag for each of 10 big game species—bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, antelope, buffalo, turkey, bear, javelina and mountain lion—for the purpose of being offered through the Super Raffle.
People buy tickets for a chance to win one or more of the tags. Ticket prices range from $5 to $25 each, depending on species. Winners will be able to hunt for 365 days almost anywhere in the state of Arizona during the 2012-13 hunting season. Every dollar raised for each species by the raffle is returned to the Arizona Game and Fish Department and managed by the Arizona Habitat Partnership Committee (AHPC) for that particular species, with input from local habitat partners across the state.
For more information about the Arizona Big Game Super Raffle, visit www.arizonabiggamesuperraffle.com
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