Annual Private Lands Management (PLM) tags for Mule Deer and Pronghorn Antelope are available on Five Dot Ranch properties. Mule Deer hunting season opens in late September and extends through the end of November, with hunting access across PLM-managed private lands within units X-6A, X-5A, X-4, and X-3A. Pronghorn Antelope hunting season opens in early August and runs into September in the Lassen Unit. Please contact our hunting program managers, Brian Dougherty or Logan Swickard, at [email protected] for future opportunities.
PLM properties like Five Dot invest in habitat improvements – water sources and native vegetation among them – and often see expanded season dates and bag limits as a result.
About California’s PLM Program
Private Lands Management (PLM) is a California Department of Fish and Wildlife program built around a simple idea: habitat loss is the single biggest challenge facing wildlife today, so the state works with private landowners willing to actively improve habitat – things like water sources, native food plants, and cover – in exchange for hunting tags on that land. It began in 1979 as a three-year pilot with five ranches in five counties, and the California Legislature made it a permanent, long-term program in 1983. Properties are licensed for five-year terms, with annual reviews to confirm the agreed-upon habitat work is actually getting done.
PLM properties range from 375 to 270,000 acres – Five Dot’s participation puts its Mule Deer and Pronghorn Antelope hunting in that same statewide network. A wide range of species benefit from the habitat work beyond just the animals being hunted, including elk, wild turkeys, and quail, and many PLM properties see expanded season dates and/or bag limits as a result of their habitat investment. Wildlife doesn’t recognize property lines, either – improvements made on a PLM property like Five Dot’s tend to benefit neighboring public land too.
Learn more about the PLM program directly from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.