With opening day of firearm deer season a week behind us, we’re taking a look at this year’s harvest so far.
The DNR says license sales this year are up a little bit, but reported harvests are down about 10% from last year. That coincides with Minnesota’s and Wisconsin’s harvest numbers.
The DNR says they’re still seeing more bucks harvested than does, and they’re again asking hunters to consider taking an antlerless deer.
“As hunter numbers continue to decline for a number of reasons, I understand deer are still continuing to reproduce at a high rate, and so a higher percentage of hunters will need to take those to be able to maintain a stable deer population,” Vernon Richardson, Local Wildlife Habitat Biologist for the DNR.
They want to remind hunters about the mandatory harvest reporting through their app or online.