New Mexico Deer — GMU 31
New Mexico GMU 31 covers 5,342,573 acres and lies 12 miles west of Lovington and 29 miles north-west of Hobbs. 57% of it is public land, mostly state trust land (31%) and BLM (25%). In 2025, 1,468 people hunted deer here and took 485 — 33% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 44 tags here for 59 first-choice applicants.
Your chance of drawing here
Every deer license type on offer in GMU 31, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.
Simple view Odds at every point level-
DER-1-300 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 7-11 26 tags · 169 applicants · Standard10% Long shot 3% as 2nd choice
-
DER-1-300 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 7-11 44 tags · 59 applicants · Outfitter44% Real chance 27% as 2nd choice
-
DER-1-301 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 21-25 26 tags · 70 applicants · Standard20% Long shot 4% as 2nd choice
-
DER-1-301 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 21-25 43 tags · 45 applicants · Outfitter56% Real chance 24% as 2nd choice
-
DER-2-302 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Sept. 1-24 44 tags · 19 applicants · Standard100% Likely draw 74% as 2nd choice
-
DER-2-302 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Sept. 1-24 3 tags · 0 applicants · Outfitter100% No first-choice applicants 100% as 2nd choice
-
DER-2-303 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Jan. 1-15, ‘27 6 tags · 52 applicants · Standard12% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
-
DER-2-303 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Jan. 1-15, ‘27 10 tags · 31 applicants · Outfitter13% Long shot 13% as 2nd choice
-
DER-3-304 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Muzzle — Oct. 24-28 11 tags · 9 applicants · Standard100% Likely draw 18% as 2nd choice
-
DER-3-304 Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Muzzle — Oct. 24-28 5 tags · 3 applicants · Outfitter100% Undersubscribed 100% as 2nd choice
| Hunt | Your odds | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants | License | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DER-1-300 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 7-11 Rifle | 10% Long shot | 3% | — | 26 / 169 | Standard | Nov 7–11, 2026 |
| DER-1-300 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 7-11 Rifle | 44% Real chance | 27% | — | 44 / 59 | Outfitter | Nov 7–11, 2026 |
| DER-1-301 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 21-25 Rifle | 20% Long shot | 4% | — | 26 / 70 | Standard | Nov 21–25, 2026 |
| DER-1-301 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Any Legal — Nov. 21-25 Rifle | 56% Real chance | 24% | — | 43 / 45 | Outfitter | Nov 21–25, 2026 |
| DER-2-302 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Sept. 1-24 Archery | 100% Likely draw | 74% | — | 44 / 19 | Standard | Sep 1–24, 2026 |
| DER-2-302 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Sept. 1-24 Archery | 100% No first-choice applicants | 100% | — | 3 / 0 | Outfitter | Sep 1–24, 2026 |
| DER-2-303 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Jan. 1-15, ‘27 Archery | 12% Long shot | 0% | — | 6 / 52 | Standard | Jan 1–15, 2027 |
| DER-2-303 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Bow — Jan. 1-15, ‘27 Archery | 13% Long shot | 13% | — | 10 / 31 | Outfitter | Jan 1–15, 2027 |
| DER-3-304 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Muzzle — Oct. 24-28 Muzzleloader | 100% Likely draw | 18% | — | 11 / 9 | Standard | Oct 24–28, 2026 |
| DER-3-304 ↗ Unit 31, including Prairie Chicken WMAs — fork-antlered deer — Muzzle — Oct. 24-28 Muzzleloader | 100% Undersubscribed | 100% | — | 5 / 3 undersubscribed | Outfitter | Oct 24–28, 2026 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
- The badge —
- plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
- As 2nd choice —
- New Mexico lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
- Points needed —
- the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
- Tags / applicants —
- tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.
What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)
| License | Up front | Gone if you miss | If you draw |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard license | $492 | $107 | $502 |
| Outfitter license | $492 | $107 | $502 |
Application window: closes Mar 18, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- State trust land 1,657,106 ac · 31%
- BLM 1,326,880 ac · 25%
- Bureau of Reclamation 40,006 ac · 1%
- State land 35,778 ac · 1%
- Department of Defense 3,502 ac · 0%
- National Wildlife Refuge 3,250 ac · 0%
- Private or other non-public land 2,276,047 ac · 43%
Source: BLM_Surface_Management_2023 (BLM New Mexico State Office Surface Management Agency layer)
How the hunting has gone
What New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast.
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,468 | 485 | 33% |
| 2024 | 1,501 | 600 | 39% |
| 2023 | 1,532 | 580 | 38% |
| 2022 | 1,553 | 520 | 33% |
| 2021 | 1,610 | 480 | 30% |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Rifle 446 · 84% · 1,283 hunters, 35% success
- Archery 53 · 10% · 257 hunters, 21% success
- Muzzleloader 31 · 6% · 157 hunters, 20% success
What the agency says about the area
GMU 31: Beginning at the intersection of the NM-TX state line and US 180, southwest of Carlsbad, and running northeast along US 180 to its junction with US 285 at Carlsbad, then north along US 285 to its intersection with US 82 at Artesia, then east along US 82 to its junction with NM 249 at Maljamar, then north along NM 249 to its junction with NM 172, then north along NM 172 to its junction...
Source: NM Game Management Units (NMDGF_Game_Management_Units_I_E__v2_WFL1), layer 0
Boundary: NM Game Management Units (NMDGF_Game_Management_Units_I_E__v2_WFL1), layer 0
Harvest: 2025-2026 Deer Harvest Report
Harvest: 2024-2025 Deer Harvest Report
Harvest: 2023-2024 Deer Harvest Report