We now know Illinois bowhunters took 71,226 deer last season – a few clicks short of the state record 75,106 taken in 2020-21 but a tick above the 68,625 harvested in 2022-23.
Of greater interest is the fact that two-thirds of antlered deer taken during the 2023-24 archery season had between 7 and 10 points, while 1.3% had 14 points or more. And the hunters? For the first time since 2017 legislation removed restrictions on crossbows, the proportion of Illinois deer harvested with crossbows (53.4%) versus those harvested with compound bows (45.5%) leveled off.
This content is restricted to subscribers of OutdoorNews.com. If you are already an OutdoorNews.com subscriber, you can log in here. If you are not and would like to read this and all the other great content OutdoorNews.com has to offer, click here.