PHOENIX — The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) will conduct its aerial winter wildlife surveys for deer and javelina through January 2025.

The department routinely conducts big game surveys with aircraft in Arizona’s game management units (GMUs). These flights are an important tool used by wildlife managers to accurately set annual hunt permit numbers to ensure the health of big game populations.

While AZGFD attempts to minimize these flights during hunting seasons, hunters are advised that some surveys may overlap with an ongoing hunt.