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(NewsDakota.com) – New information today about North Dakota’s deer gun lottery that was completed earlier this month.

Randy Kreil, Chief of the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s Wildlife Division, says about 32,000 deer hunters did not receive a license this year following a drastic cut in the number of licenses issued.

5,800 remaining anterless licenses are spread out over about a dozen units in the state. Kreil says they had about 82,000 applicants for the lottery, which was actually down about 17,000 applicants from last year.

About 65,000 total deer licenses will be issued this year in North Dakota, a decrease of about 44,000 licenses from last year. Kreil says the deer population has taken a major hit in North Dakota, mainly because of harsh winters in two of the past three years.

Many unsuccessful lottery applicants were not surprised by this month’s result, as the Game and Fish notified the public well in advance that license numbers were decreasing.