Unit 31 Deer Hunting, New Mexico
New Mexico hunting unit · 8,347 sq mi
Draw hunts — random, no points
New Mexico has no preference or bonus points: every hunt here with draw odds is a random draw, with its own hunt code. Residents, nonresidents applying without an outfitter, and applicants applying with a registered outfitter (a pool open to residents and nonresidents) are drawn in separate pools, and the table gives each pool's odds in words. A Private-Land Only Deer License, sold outside the draw, covers private land only, with the landowner's written permission; it is never valid on public land, State Trust land included.
What hunting Unit 31 is like
Unit 31 is gentle, rolling country with essentially no steep or rugged ground to speak of, which makes it foot-friendly but also means cover comes from brush and grass rather than terrain breaks. Shrub and brush dominates nearly every elevation band, running from the high 60s to mid-80s percent of ground cover depending on band, with pockets of grass and meadow mixed in and a sliver of riparian cover at the lowest elevations. Glassing across open, low-relief ground is the basic method here; without steep topography to pinch deer into predictable travel, hunters cover distance on foot and let their optics do the work of finding bucks in the brush.
About 51% of the unit is public land under BLM, State Wildlife Management Area, or State Trust ownership, though ownership is not the same as guaranteed access — some parcels are closed or restricted, and State Trust land (27% of the unit) can only be hunted during a hunter's own hunt, plus up to seven days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads. The rest, about 49%, is private and requires written permission to hunt. A deer licence can also be had outside the draw as a Private-Land Only tag, valid solely on private land with landowner permission and never on any public ground, State Trust included. Two fires, one unnamed (2022, about 13,000 acres) and the Arch fire (2022, about 5,800 acres), burned on the unit's northeast side; both are now two to four years out, a window when burned ground often glasses easily and grows better feed, pulling deer to its edges morning and evening. Hunters headed that direction should check for current fire closures before they go.
Every draw hunt listed runs by random sequence rather than by choice order, and New Mexico issues no points of any kind toward any of these deer hunts.
Deer hunts in Unit 31 (2026–27)
Each row is a hunt a hunter selects by its hunt code. Draw difficulty is a band in words from the 2026 first-choice results — good, fair, long or very long odds — for each pool; a dash means too few applicants to give a fair band. It is not a published percentage. The outfitter pool is open to both residents and nonresidents.
| Hunt | Dates | Legal deer | Resident | Nonresident, no outfitter | With an outfitter | Rut phase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archery DER-2-302 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | September 1 – September 24 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Good odds | Fair odds | — | Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition |
| Muzzleloader DER-3-304 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | October 24 – October 28 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Good odds | Fair odds | — | Early Pre-Rut |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-300 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | November 7 – November 11 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Long odds | Long odds | Fair odds | Early Pre-Rut |
| Any legal weapon DER-1-301 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | November 21 – November 25 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Fair odds | Long odds | Fair odds | Early Pre-Rut |
| Archery DER-2-303 Including Prairie Chicken WMAs | January 1 – January 15, 2027 | Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) | Long odds | Long odds | Long odds | Winter Concentration / Post-Rut Recovery |
"Residents only" hunts (antlerless elk, and hunts held only on state wildlife areas) are closed to nonresidents. "Unlimited" hunts are private-land hunts: no quota, no draw, valid on private land only with the landowner's written permission. A "Quality hunt" is a State Wildlife Commission designation for hunts meant to improve the chance of a successful harvest, offer a wider selection of mature animals, or give a better experience through timing or hunter density. Youth, mobility-impaired, military and other special-eligibility hunts are not listed.
Archery · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · September 1 – September 24
This archery hunt falls in the Velvet Shed / Early Fall Transition phase, when bucks still feed into the morning before bedding down in shade for most of the day. In the gentle, open country of Unit 31, that means glassing shady pockets and north-facing cover at first light, marking where a buck beds, and closing the distance in the middle of the day while he is still down. Evening glassing can set up a stalk, but more often it is simply a chance to watch a buck until dark and return for him in the morning. A buck that seems to vanish is usually still nearby, tucked into a small crevice or draw, so it pays to check that cover before moving on. Residents see good odds in the draw here and nonresidents without an outfitter fair odds, under hunt code DER-2-302.
Muzzleloader · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · October 24 – October 28
By the last days of October the Early Pre-Rut phase is underway, with bucks still on their own patterns but activity starting to build toward the rut. The flat, brush-covered ground of Unit 31 rewards long looks with optics more than it does still-hunting, since there is little terrain to use for cover or to funnel movement. This is a short five-day muzzleloader window, open to fork-antlered mule deer or white-tailed bucks, with good odds for residents and fair odds for nonresidents applying without an outfitter under hunt code DER-3-304.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · November 7 – November 11
This early-November any-legal-weapon hunt also sits in the Early Pre-Rut phase, so bucks are still working familiar ground but with rutting behavior beginning to stir. The unit's gentle slopes and shrub-and-brush cover mean success depends on patient glassing and covering enough open country to find a buck rather than relying on topography to concentrate them. Draw odds are tighter here than in the fall archery or muzzleloader hunts: long odds for both residents and nonresidents without an outfitter, improving to fair odds for those applying with a registered outfitter, under hunt code DER-1-300.
Any legal weapon · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · November 21 – November 25
Running through late November, this any-legal-weapon hunt stays within the Early Pre-Rut phase, giving hunters another chance at bucks whose patterns are beginning to shift but have not yet turned fully toward the rut. The same gentle, low-relief ground and shrub-and-brush cover apply, so distance and visibility still matter more than terrain features. Odds improve somewhat over the early-November hunt for residents, who draw at a fair rate, while nonresidents without an outfitter remain at long odds and those applying with an outfitter sit at fair odds, under hunt code DER-1-301.
Archery · Fork-antlered deer (mule deer or white-tailed) · January 1 – January 15, 2027
Opening in January, this archery hunt falls in the Winter Concentration / Post-Rut Recovery phase, after the rut has wound down and deer settle into more concentrated use of the landscape. January brings modest average snowfall and lows near freezing in Unit 31; if snow has actually accumulated by the hunt dates, it is worth working lower into the shrub-and-brush and grass-and-meadow cover where deer may be holding. This is the longest hunt on the calendar at two weeks, but also the toughest to draw, with long odds across all three pools — resident, nonresident without an outfitter, and those applying with an outfitter — under hunt code DER-2-303.
Terrain & elevation
- Elevation
- 2,800–4,600 ft, typically around 3,800 ft
- Slope breakdown
- 100% gentle · 0% moderate · 0% steep · 0% rugged
- Public land by ownership
- ~4,216 sq mi
Habitat & cover
What grows here, by elevation. Each band adds to 100% on its own — these are shares of that band, not of the unit.
Lower elevations
- Shrub and brush83%
- Grass and meadow9%
- Other cover7%
- Riparian1%
Mid elevations
- Shrub and brush86%
- Other cover9%
- Grass and meadow5%
Higher elevations
- Shrub and brush68%
- Other cover17%
- Grass and meadow15%
Cover classes from the USGS National Land Cover Database. “Other cover” is the remainder — bare ground, water, agriculture and developed land.
Recent fires
Wildfires in the last several seasons that burned a meaningful share of Unit 31. Fire perimeters show where a fire burned, not how hot — and closures change through the year, so check current fire closures and restrictions before you go.
- Unnamed fire, 2022 — about 13,000 acres in the unit, mostly on its northeast side.
- Arch fire, 2022 — about 5,800 acres in the unit, mostly on its northeast side.
Fire perimeters from the National Interagency Fire Center.
Land & access
About 51% of Unit 31 is public land by ownership — State Trust land, BLM and State Wildlife Management Area. Ownership is not the same as legal access: some parcels are closed or restricted.
- State Trust land27%
- BLM23%
- State Wildlife Management Area<1%
- military land<1%
- Unclassified ownership<1%
- Private49%
Public land includes State Trust land (27% of this unit). You may use it only during your own hunt, plus up to 7 days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads (NM State Land Office / Game Commission easement). Some parcels are withdrawn; check the State Land Office's hunting-access map.
Military land is closed to hunting except where a specific hunt says otherwise.
Fall weather
- August — highs around 93°F, lows around 66°F
- September — highs around 86°F, lows around 60°F
- October — highs around 78°F, lows around 48°F
- November — highs around 66°F, lows around 36°F
- December — highs around 57°F, lows around 29°F, about 0.1 in of snowfall
Unit 31 deer hunting FAQ
Can a hunter get a deer licence for Unit 31 without going through the draw?
Yes. Besides the random draw hunts, New Mexico sells a Private-Land Only Deer License outside the draw to residents and nonresidents alike. That licence is valid only on private land with the landowner's written permission and is never valid on public land, including State Trust land.
How hard is it to draw a deer hunt in Unit 31, and does it differ by pool?
Odds vary by hunt and by which of the three pools an application falls into: residents, nonresidents applying without an outfitter, and applicants (resident or nonresident) applying with a registered outfitter. The September archery and October muzzleloader hunts run good to fair odds for residents and nonresidents, while the November any-legal-weapon hunts and the January archery hunt run long odds for residents and nonresidents without an outfitter, with the outfitter pool often faring better in November.
Can a nonresident hunt deer in Unit 31?
Yes, a nonresident can apply for any of the draw hunts listed for Unit 31, either without an outfitter or through the outfitter pool, and can also purchase a Private-Land Only Deer License outside the draw if hunting private land with permission. Draw odds for nonresidents without an outfitter range from fair in the early fall hunts to long in the November and January hunts.
Does New Mexico use preference or bonus points for deer hunts in Unit 31?
No. New Mexico has no points system of any kind for deer, so there is nothing to build or hold from one year to the next. Every draw hunt is decided by a random sequence number assigned to each application, not by accumulated points.
How much of Unit 31 is public land, and what are the rules on State Trust land there?
About 51% of the unit is public, split between BLM, a State Wildlife Management Area, and State Trust land, with the remaining 49% private and requiring written permission to hunt. State Trust land, which makes up 27% of the unit, can only be used during a hunter's own hunt plus up to seven days of scouting beforehand, entering by public or established roads, and some parcels are withdrawn from access entirely.
Data sources & methodology
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — Hunting Rules & Info booklet (2026-27) — season dates, legal animals, hunt codes and the rules for each hunt
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — How the New Mexico draw works — the random draw, the choices a hunter ranks and how licences are split among the draw pools
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — Applications and draw information — the draw results behind the draw-difficulty bands for each pool
- New Mexico Department of Game and Fish — Game management unit maps — unit boundaries and the official unit maps
- USGS / MRLC — National Land Cover Database — habitat and cover classes by elevation band
- USGS PAD-US — Protected Areas Database of the United States — land ownership and access
- Daymet daily climate, 1991–2020 (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) — fall weather
- National Interagency Fire Center — wildfire perimeters — recent fires, their size and where they burned
Draw difficulty is a qualitative band from first-choice results for each pool, not published odds. Rut phases are regional timing, not New Mexico-specific dates. Land shares are separate, non-overlapping categories. Confirm current dates and rules in the New Mexico Hunting Rules & Info booklet before you hunt. Unit data last updated October 21, 2026.