How have crossbows impacted deer, turkeys in Minnesota after two seasons? DNR releases report

St. Paul — As required by the state Legislature after allowing all hunters to use crossbows to hunt deer and turkeys, the Minnesota DNR has compiled its crossbow report for the 2023 and ’24 seasons. The agency says data from those first two seasons suggest crossbows have not adversely impacted the two species.

“In the past, the archery harvest has been a negligible (number) of deer taken, so we’ve never really had to calculate,” said Joe Stangel, the DNR’s southern region wildlife manager.

While Stangel said he hasn’t combed through the crossbow report to thoroughly analyze its findings, he said the region has more deer in it than he has seen since the late 1990s.

“During my career, in the southern region, I have seen really most lottery areas disappear,” Stangel said, adding that the Minnesota River basin has improved in deer numbers, as have other deer permit areas.

While the report offers an overview of how crossbows are being used around the state for whitetail and turkey hunting, the data within cover only two years. It highlights how there is more to be learned with continued, annual use of crossbows by state hunters if this allowance continues in years to come.

“We have a lot of deer, but you can, in some places, impact that due to the overharvest, and if we’re not accounting for that” – that’s why the report is beneficial, Stangel said.

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Details from the report

The report sets out to understand how archery hunters are using crossbows, whether they’re using the newly-legalized tools, and it analyzes the past two years compared with previous years and year-long averages.

Overall, the report found that there have been no adverse effects on turkey or deer populations with expanding crossbow use for all in 2023 and 2024, as its use was extended through June 30, 2026, by the Legislature.

One of the key findings in the report is that in the northeast and southwest, where lottery designations are more prominent in firearms deer season DPAs, those areas will be monitored closely by the agency if crossbow use is extended again or indefinitely.

Historically during the archery season, hunters with an archery permit have been allowed to harvest deer across the state. The average 10-year success rates for hunters from 2013 to 2022 are around 43.7% and 43.9%, respectively, for taking bucks and does.

Statewide, with increased access to crossbow use, hunter success rates didn’t increase significantly in 2023. In 2023, 42.8% of hunters were successful in taking bucks, and 45% were successful at taking adult female deer with crossbows.

The following year, 48% of hunters were successful in harvesting a buck, while 40.1% were successful in harvesting a doe.

Looking closer at non-lottery versus lottery deer permit areas, the agency’s report states that it’ll monitor these spots closely and change regulations if needed.

With only two years of data to consider, the percentage of successful hunters in lottery DPAs jumped from 56% in 2023 to 62.2% in 2024.

“Antlerless harvest opportunities are more limited in lottery areas, and hunters may be choosing crossbows to maximize their chances of success,” the report states.

The agency’s report acknowledges that if trends start to look concerning, adjustments to firearms quotas, or regulations on archery permits, could be options to curb excessive hunter success at the expense of the herd.

How about turkeys?

The DNR could facilitate similar emergency regulations if it notices that turkey populations are disproportionately affected due to increased crossbow access.

With a turkey archery permit, hunters are not limited to only hunting one season with the possibility of hunting F Season as firearms hunters are in the spring.

Of the record spring turkey harvests, archery hunters accounted for only 14% of the total harvest in 2023, 17% in 2024, and 16% in 2025. Of those percentages, 7% of archers each year were using crossbows.

For spring turkey hunting, of the firearms turkey hunters who headed afield, 14,137 harvested a bird, outnumbering the 1,226 crossbow harvests and 1,540 vertical bow harvests in early 2025.

Hunter thoughts

The report also surveyed firearms, vertical bow, and crossbow users about their perceived effects of expanded crossbow use in the state.

While it is a polarizing topic, crossbow, vertical bow, and firearms deer hunters all agreed that the expanded allowance is attracting new hunters or retaining existing sportsmen, especially youth and women hunters.

Of the women who hunted deer with archery equipment in 2023 and 2024, 64% used a crossbow compared with 46% of men.

Where the two camps differ is the perceived effects that more crossbow hunters will have on deer populations. Crossbow users disagree that there will be negative impacts on the herd, but vertical bow users agree negative impacts may follow.

The full report is available here.

2025 archery harvest so far

After kicking off on Saturday, Sept. 13, archers pursuing white-tailed deer had harvested about 5,000 whitetails as of Tuesday, Oct. 7, according to preliminary numbers. That estimated harvest is about 17% lower than the same time last year.

“Which isn’t too surprising, given how warm it’s been,” said Paul Burr, the DNR’s acting big-game program coordinator.

He added that during the first week and weekend of October, when temperatures dipped, harvest numbers ticked up. By Oct. 14, total harvest in the state has jumped to 7,133.

“We had quite a cold snap on Monday and Tuesday, and we saw – even though they’re weekdays – some pretty big harvest numbers comparatively,” Burr said.

Of the deer harvested through Oct. 14, 54.77% have been antlerless deer.

“We try to promote antlerless harvest as much as possible, at least in areas that really need it,” Burr said.

The ratio of which hunters are hunting with a crossbow or vertical bow are almost evenly split, with 47% using crossbows and 53% using vertical bows. However, Burr added that it’ll increase even when the weather gets colder, as seen last year.

“As it gets colder, crossbows might be a little bit easier to use, especially if deer are a little bit more timid after being hunted. Crossbows might offer a little bit more of an opportunity to harvest a deer, maybe at slightly longer distances,” Burr said.

Region 3, covering deer permit areas in the metro and southeastern Minnesota, have produced a majority of harvests, accounting for 60% of the approximate 5,000 registered deer.

“It’s always the most productive region, just because of the quality of habitat,” Burr said, adding that three- to five-deer limits tend to lead to more harvest.

Early harvest by region

Region 1, covering the northwestern quadrant of the state, had accounted for about 20% of the harvest through Oct. 7, with Region 2 in the northeast and Region 4 in the southwest accounting for 22% of the total harvest, or 11% apiece.

Each of the regions’ harvests range from 13% to 15% below last year’s harvest at this time, except for Region 4’s harvest this year, which is about 30% down from last year, according to Burr.

“It’s all relative, because we’re just talking about like 600 deer versus 800 deer last year … but for whatever reason they’re lagging a little bit behind,” Burr added.