Antler collectors face trespassing charges as market stays hot
A stack of illegally collected big-game antlers recovered by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is weighed in Ogden on Friday, April 24, 2020.
A truckload of illegally collected big-game antlers in Summit County is pictured on Friday, April 24, 2020.
OGDEN — As demand remains high for big-game antlers, illegal gathering is booming in Utah, according to wildlife officers.
Picking up shed antlers can be a fun family activity if it’s done in respect of private property rights and state law, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources says.
After game wardens got a tip April 24, three Utah County men were cited for allegedly illegally gathering antlers in the Chalk Creek area of Summit County.
They did not have written permission from the landowner.
“The area where the men entered is clearly marked with ‘no trespassing’ signs,” DWR Conservation Officer Jeremy Wilcox said in a press release. “They told me they knew the land was private property, but they spotted an elk shed off the road and said ‘they couldn’t resist’ getting it. They then remained on the property for hours, scouring the area for more antlers.”
In addition to losing the antlers, the men faced fines of up to $680 for unlawful taking or possessing wildlife parts while trespassing, a class B misdemeanor.
They also may lose their privilege to hunt big game in Utah for up to three years, the DWR said, plus in 48 other states that participate in the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact.
“We’re patrolling and people are watching,” Wilcox said.
In an interview later, Wilcox — who is based at the DWR’s Ogden office — said trespassing by antler gatherers is almost more common than trespassing by hunters.
Antler gathering has long been a pastime, but in recent years “it just exploded,” Wilcox said. “We have a lot of people that will just plain churn shed antlers; that’s all they do all day.”
Wilcox said the Utah County men gathered 30 antlers: 19 elk, seven deer and four moose.
The DWR estimated a shed antler buyer would have paid up to $1,500 for the 30 antlers.
Wilcox said antlers, shed by game every year, are in demand for furniture and to be converted into dog chews.
According to the Missouri Department of Conservation, antlers also are in demand in Asia as a potent potion in powdered form.
A clearinghouse, Antlerbuyers.com, says the Asian market has dropped somewhat this year because of COVID-19, but prices remain strong.
According to the clearinghouse, the average price for elk antlers as of May 1 was $13 per pound. Mule deer antlers go for $10 a pound.
Utah has a restricted antler gathering season, Feb. 1 through April 15. To collect horns during that season, gatherers first must complete an online shed antlers ethics course.
That season is controlled because big-game animals are weak coming out of winter and vulnerable to dangerous stress.
Antler collecting the rest of the year is legal, other than on private property and during parts of the year in wildlife management areas.
Illegal gathering of shed antlers on private property can be reported to the state’s Turn-In-a-Poacher hotline at 1-800-662-DEER (3337).