Hunters steaming into final week of deer season

The state’s deer season wraps up Sunday, and it appears hunters will easily top last year’s harvest total.

DNR has released numbers from the first weekend of the late-winter and special CWD seasons, which produced a harvest of 1,714 deer, compared to 2,654 in those same counties in 2016.  This year, 15 counties were open to the CWD season, and 22 counties were open to late-winter hunting. The top-five county harvest totals were Jo Daviess (156), Perry (143), Fulton (134), Brown (94), and Schuyler (88).  The late-winter and special CWD seasons will conclude Jan. 12-14.

Meanwhile, bowhunters are way ahead of last year’s pace. As of today (Jan. 8), archers had taken 56,478 deer. At this point last season, they had harvested 52,567. According to the DNR,  harvest to date has consisted of 45 percent does and 55 percent bucks (25,107; 30,617). The top-five county harvest totals were Pike (1,959), Fulton (1,563), Jefferson (1316), Adams (1,223), and Williamson (1,105).

The archery season remains open through Jan. 14. The second late-winter and CWD seasons will be held Jan. 12-14.