$100,000 Available in Michigan UP Deer Habitat Improvement Grants

The application period for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP) Deer Habitat Improvement Partnership Initiative competitive grant program is open, with up to $100,000 is available. This Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) initiative is a cooperative grant program designed to enhance deer habitat on private lands in the UP.

“There are three primary goals applicants should strive to meet,” said Bill Scullon, DNR field operations manager and administrator for the grant initiative. “The projects should produce tangible deer habitat improvements, build long-term partnerships between the DNR and outside organizations and showcase the benefits to the public.”

The initiative is supported by the state’s Deer Range Improvement Program, which is funded by a portion of deer hunting license revenue. Deadline to apply is March 14 for 2025 UP deer habitat improvement grant funding. Scullon said the maximum amount of individual grants is $15,000 and the minimum is $2,000.

“This important grant program has been operating in Michigan for more than 15 years now,” said John Pepin, DNR deputy public information officer. “Over that time, grant recipients have created almost 150 projects across portions of nearly all 15 Upper Peninsula counties, improving thousands of acres of deer habitat.”

Project applications must be received electronically or postmarked by Friday, March 14, and successful applicants will be notified by April 4. The complete grant application package is available on the DNR website.

Other wildlife-related grants awarded annually by the state’s DNR include a Wildlife Habitat Grant Program, a Deer Plan–Northern Lower Peninsula Deer Private Land Assistance Network Grant Program—and others. Full details and contact information for those and a wide variety of other efforts are also on a DNR webpage. 

“These projects are prime examples of how conservation minded partners and landowners can come together to enhance deer habitat all across the UP,” Scullon said. For more information or questions regarding eligibility on the UP Deer Habitat Improvement Grants readers can phone Scullon at (906) 250-6781 or e-mail [email protected].