Michigan hunters will have more flexibility for taking antlerless deer this fall because of two new deer management units approved by the Natural Resources Commission at its May 7 meeting in Detroit.

The new DMUs -- 486 and 487 -- were formed by authorizing a private land antlerless deer license valid for one specific DMU to be used in other DMUs with similar management issues.

DMU 486 consists of Mecosta, Muskegon, Isabella, Midland and Bay counties and the southern part of Newaygo County, as well as all counties in Zone 3 except for Kent, St. Clair, Macomb, Wayne and Monroe. All counties in DMU 486 have deer populations above goal.

DMU 487 consists of six counties in the northeastern Lower Peninsula where bovine tuberculosis in the deer herd is an ongoing concern: Alcona, Alpena, Iosco, Montmorency, Oscoda, and Presque Isle counties.

Hunters with access to private land in more than one county may purchase a private land antlerless deer license for a traditional DMU or the new larger DMU and will be able to use the same antlerless deer license in any of the counties within the larger DMU.

Public land antlerless deer licenses will still be available by application for traditional DMUs and will be valid only for public land within the specific DMU issued.

In addition, the NRC approved splitting two traditional DMUs into two parts to better manage disparate habitats. Newaygo County (formerly DMU 062) has been split into DMU 162 (southern Newaygo) and DMU 262 (northern Newaygo). Similarly, DMU 049 along Lake Michigan in the Upper Peninsula has been divided into eastern (DMU 249) and western (DMU 349) segments because of habitat and ownership differences.