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DMU stands for Deer Management Unit. This is the DNR's published plan for the White-tailed deer in each county. The following is their published plan for Mason County. Please note there is no mention of deer culls being needed. Mason County is 053 Click Here to view the online publication by the DNR.
Area Description

The Mason County Deer Management Unit is in the Northern Lower Peninsula Region. Only 17% of the land base is public land, most of which is federal. State land consists of Ludington State Park, Pere Marquette State Game Area, and other small parcels managed by the Parks and Recreation Division for river access. U.S. Forest Service land is primarily concentrated on broad expanses of glacial outwash plains in the eastern part of the county and on lake plain to the northwest. Cover types consist primarily of upland oak and pine, some aspen, and lowland deciduous and conifer inclusions in areas along outwash channels. Agriculture is a major component of Mason County. Farmland consists of row crops, orchards, and specialty crops including carrots, squash, pumpkins, and asparagus. Farming is concentrated on the fine textured glacial till plains and flat end moraine ridges in the central and western portions of the county. Orchards are found on the moraine ridges along the lakeshore. Topography varies; most of the county consists of flat outwash plains or flat moraine ridges, though some end moraines provide steeper relief. River systems include the Big Sable, Lincoln, and Pere Marquette. These river corridors provide important lowland cover and migration routes for deer and other species.

Management Guidance
The desired population trend in the DMU is a slight reduction paired with an increase in annual harvest. Two main goals guide the deer management in this DMU: 1) impact management; and 2) hunting opportunities. Impact management refers to reduction of undesirable effects associated with deer over-abundance, in this DMU these include crop damage, deer-vehicle collisions, and poor deer health due to over population. Hunting opportunities refers to providing a large enough deer population to meet hunters' criteria for what they consider a quality hunting experience. A third factor that needs to be considered is that DMU 053 is within the NW Antler Point Restriction (APR) Zone. APRs limit which antlered deer (bucks) can be harvested by hunters to provide a mechanism for yearling bucks to graduate into older age classes. The APRs in place can be part of a strategy called Quality Deer Management (QDM), which involves intentionally letting some bucks reach older ages, 2) maintaining deer numbers below the biological carrying capacity, and 3) striving for an equal buck to doe ratio in the deer population. Antlerless deer (doe and fawn) harvest is recommended under QDM as a means of reaching achieving the second and third principles of QDM.

Deer Management Recommendations
The deer population appears to have increased over the past five years as a result of a series of mild winters and a steady reduction in hunter numbers. An increased deer population puts a strain on the resources available to deer, as evidenced by increased agricultural damage complaints and observations of substantial deer browse to forest regeneration. Deer-vehicle accidents have also increased over this time period which is a good index of deer population. Past efforts to increase doe harvest (i.e. an increased antlerless quota) have brought the doe harvest numbers closer to that of the buck harvest and in some years resulted in a generally equal harvest ratio.
An increase in antlerless licenses is recommended to provide enough to address an increasing deer population and maintain balanced sex ratios. The goal is to provide a slight reduction in the population followed by stabilization at a new, slightly lower level where there is abundant natural nutrition for the deer population, and agricultural damage and deer-vehicle accidents are reduced. The increase in licenses is on private land to place additional harvest where productivity is high, and problems are most likely to arise. As hunter numbers continue to decline in this DMU additional antlerless harvest opportunities will likely be needed to keep up with the deer population.