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Utah, 2027 shed season

Utah Shed Antler Season 2027

Utah requires the free Antler Gathering Ethics Course for anyone gathering sheds from January 1 to May 31.

“There are no seasonal shed antler gathering closures for Utah residents or nonresidents. You may gather shed antlers or horns—or parts of shed antlers or horns—statewide, but there are a few requirements:” Utah Division of Wildlife Resources

Permit or course
Rule type
from Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
6
Rules quoted
each linked to the agency page
Yes
Course or permit
Antler Gathering Ethics Course
September 21, 2026
Rules read
from the agency page
The rule

Shed antler rules in Utah

Permit or course

The certificate is renewed each year and carried in the field, and it opens no closed area or private land. Utah keeps no standing seasonal closure, but a winter hard enough to trigger emergency feeding of big game brings a statewide shed hunting closure from the DWR director.

Statewide

There is no standing seasonal closure on gathering shed antlers or horns for residents or nonresidents, subject to the course requirement.

There are no seasonal shed antler gathering closures for Utah residents or nonresidents. You may gather shed antlers or horns—or parts of shed antlers or horns—statewide, but there are a few requirements:
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

Statewide

If harsh winter conditions trigger emergency feeding of big game, the DWR director will close shed hunting statewide.

In the event that harsh winter conditions trigger emergency feeding of big game, the DWR director will close shed hunting statewide in order to improve the chances of survival for deer and other big game animals.
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

Statewide

The certificate does not allow entry to closed areas or private land; landowner permission is required on private land.

Important: The antler-gathering certificate does not authorize you to trepass on closed areas or private lands to collect shed antlers or horns.
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source
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Courses, sale and state land

More Utah shed rules

Required: Antler Gathering Ethics Course

Antler Gathering Ethics Course, Jan 1 to May 31.

If you would like to gather shed antlers or horns — or parts of shed antlers or horns — in Utah from Jan. 1 to May 31, you must have an antler-gathering certificate on your person.
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

Buying and selling sheds

Shed antlers and horns may be bought or sold any time of year, and commercial antler buyers who resell for profit need a Certificate of Registration.

Recently, the Utah Wildlife Board approved a rule that allows legally obtained shed antlers and horns to be purchased or sold at any time in a whole or altered state. However, a Certificate of Registration is required for commercial antler buyers.
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

State wildlife land

A license or free digital access permit is being phased in to enter wildlife management areas, starting in some counties, and it applies to shed hunters.

This requirement applies to anyone accessing a WMA for shed hunting or other recreational purposes.
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source
When antlers drop

When deer shed antlers in Utah

For white-tailed deer, Iowa Department of Natural Resources puts the drop at mid January to mid March.

Whitetail deer have about a two-month shedding period in Iowa, beginning mid-Jan. and ending mid-March.
Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Read it at the source
A large elk antler lying in green grass with snow covered mountains in the distance
An elk shed on the National Elk Refuge, Wyoming, with the Tetons behind. Elk winter range in the West is where most dated shed closures fall, because the closures exist for the animals wintering there. “Shed Antler on the National Elk Refuge (53662858076)”, USFWS Mountain Prairie, Public domain

Utah shed antler questions

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Shed antler rules in other states

Utah deer seasonArchery and firearms dates for Utah, read from Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.Utah deer rutWhen bucks breed in the fall, months before those antlers drop.Shed antler rules by stateEvery state's shed rule, the dated western closures and when each species drops.
A young bull elk carrying a single antler standing among elk bedded in snow
A young bull that has already dropped one antler, among elk bedded in snow. Colorado Parks and Wildlife says elk may start shedding in February and run through April. “Bull Elk and Herd (6258537907)”, USFWS Mountain Prairie, Public domain

Compiled September 21, 2026. Every rule above is republished from Gathering shed antlers or horns, Utah DWR and the other Utah Division of Wildlife Resources pages linked beside each quote, read on September 21, 2026. Rules change between winters, so the agency page is the one to check before a trip. Every state is in the national shed antler guide.