Fewer deer hunting licences will be available this year because of the high mortality rate for deer over the winter, says the New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources.

About 25,000 deer died over the winter months in New Brunswick, because of starvation, predation and collisions with cars, said Rod Cumberland, a biologist with the department.

About a quarter of the province's deer population died during the winter, Cumberland said.

In the north, where the most snow fell, the mortality rate reached about 34 per cent, he said.

The heavy snow cover in the province made it difficult for deer to find food, and the crusty snow conditions made them easy prey for predators, Cumberland said.

The mortality rate is about double the usual figure for a winter in the province, he said, which means the province will offer fewer hunting licences for deer.

"Two-thirds of the province will see a decline in their licences," he said. "They might even be as scarce as hen's teeth in some places."

Regulating the number of licences, especially for does, will give the herd time to recuperate from the winter's losses, he said.

"It minimizes what we take as hunters, so the herd can get a jump start and start growing again in some of these areas where we'd like to see more deer."

It will take about two years for the province's deer herd to recover from the winter, Cumberland said.