Montana Bison 385-21 — Hunting District 385
Bison License 385-21 — Either Sex [ABSAROKA BEARTOOTH ONLY] · Gardiner
- What you may take
- Bison License 385-21 — Either Sex [ABSAROKA BEARTOOTH ONLY] (any)
- Weapon
- Rifle
- Season (2026)
- Sep 15 – Nov 14, 2026
- Tags (2026)
- 5
- for 2,193 first-choice applicants
Showing resident results. Switch to nonresident
Odds by point level — 2026 draw
Prior-draw probability for a first-choice resident applicant. 5 tags, 2,193 first-choice applicants. Source: 2026 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1.
| Points | Your chance | Applicants | Drawn |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | <1% | — | — |
First-choice tags drawn ÷ first-choice applicants, as published. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks publishes no per-level applicant counts for this hunt. How we compute these.
What it costs (2026 resident fees)
Optional, not counted above: Bonus point only (no application) (July 1 - Sept 30, per species) $15.
Next application window: opens Mar 1, closes May 1, 2027 (expected) · results ~May 15. Last cycle's schedule rolled forward — confirm when the agency publishes.
Point creep & years to draw
No points in this draw — every applicant has the same chance each year, so there is no cut to creep and nothing to build toward.
Seasons (2026)
How this tag has hunted
Across every license type in Hunting District 385, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks counted 2 bison taken in 2023. Full Hunting District 385 profile: maps, public land, five years of harvest →
Montana's figures blend mandatory reporting with a phone and mail survey. FWP does not publish district-level hunter counts for elk or antelope, so success rates are missing for those. Source: Bison harvest by state-licensed hunters - Southwestern Montana
Year by year
The standard draw for residents, one row per year.
| Year | Tags | Applicants | Applicants per tag | Points needed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 5 | 2,193 | 438.6 | — | 2026 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1,941 | 388.2 | — | 2025 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2024 | 5 | 1,717 | 343.4 | — | 2024 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2023 | 5 | 1,366 | 273.2 | — | 2023 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2022 | 5 | 1,148 | 229.6 | — | 2022 Bison Drawing Statistics... · sheet1 |
| 2021 | 5 | 796 | 159.2 | — | 2021 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2020 | 5 | 628 | 125.6 | — | 2020 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2019 | 5 | 491 | 98.2 | — | 2019 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
| 2018 | 5 | 406 | 81.2 | — | 2018 Bison Drawing Statistics... · p. 1 |
Other licenses valid in Hunting District 385
Legal cartridges for bison in Montana
From the Montana hunting laws rules on file for a rifle. "Depends" means the rule turns on your specific load — check the state page.
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How to read these numbers
Every percentage on this page is a prior-draw probability: the chance an applicant with that many points would have drawn in the draw year shown, computed from the agency's published results. It is not a forecast — quotas, applicant numbers, and point creep change every year. Every figure links to the agency document it came from. Where a state does not publish a number, we show a dash, never a zero. Hunts with fewer than five tags show counts instead of percentages. Fees show the fee year used. Read the methodology for the engine details.
Not an application service
This page is informational only. Draw rules, quotas, fees, and deadlines are set by the state agency and change by commission action — confirm everything on the agency's own site before you apply, and apply through the agency, not here. We disclaim all liability for reliance on this page.