Illinois 2018-2019 deer hunting seasons result in harvest of 151,577 deer, area totals are up

SPRINGFIELD - Area counties reported a higher overall preliminary deer harvest in 2018-2019 than 2017-2018.

Locally, in Calhoun County, there were 1,709 deer harvested, 852 firearm and 776 archery. In Greene County, there were 1,963 deer harvested, 1,028 firearm and 843 archery; Jersey had 1,255 deer harvested, 670 firearm and 538 archery; Madison County had 1,796 deer harvested, 902 archery and 778 firearm, and Macoupin had 2,955 deer harvested, 1,699 firearm and 1,014 archery.

Hunters in Illinois harvested a preliminary total of 151,577 deer during all 2018-2019 archery and firearm seasons, which concluded on Jan. 20. The total compares with a total harvest for all season in 2017-2018 of 147,965.

Archery: Archery deer hunters in Illinois took a preliminary total of 61,079 deer during the season which began on Oct. 1, 2018, and concluded on Jan. 20, 2019. That compares with the harvest of 57,929 deer during the 2017-18 archery season.

Youth: Youth deer hunters harvested a preliminary total of 1,650 deer during the three-day Illinois Youth Deer Season (Oct. 6-8, 2018), compared to 2,378 in 2017.

Traditional Firearm Season: Hunters took a preliminary total of 80,896 deer during the Illinois Firearm Deer Season on Nov. 16-18, 2018 and Nov. 29-Dec. 2, 2018, compared with 80,117 deer taken during the 2017 firearm season.

Muzzleloader: Hunters using muzzleloading rifles harvested 3,863 deer during the Muzzleloader-Only Deer Season on Dec. 7-9, 2018, compared with harvest 3,765 in the 2017 muzzleloader season.

Late-Winter Seasons: The 2018-19 Late-Winter Antlerless-Only and Special CWD deer seasons concluded on Jan. 20, 2019, with a combined preliminary harvest total for both seasons of 4,089 deer, compared with a harvest of 3,506 deer taken during those seasons in 2017-18. Season dates for the seven-day Late-Winter and CWD seasons were Dec. 27-30, 2018 and Jan. 18-20, 2019.

There were 15 northern Illinois counties open to the Special CWD Season in both the 2018-19 and 2017-18 seasons. The Special CWD season is used to assist in slowing the spread of chronic wasting disease in the Illinois deer herd.

There were 20 counties open for the Late-Winter Antlerless Season in 2018-19, while 22 counties were open for the Late-Winter season in 2017-18. Counties that are at or below their individual deer population goal for two consecutive years may be removed from the Late-Winter season.

The table below provides a county-by-county summary of preliminary deer harvest results for 2018-19, and final 2017-18 harvest results for comparison.

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