Youth Season Proves Successful

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows that young hunt­ers ages 6 through 15 har­vested 17,222 deer dur­ing Missouri’s early youth portion of the 2017 deer hunting season, which ran Oct. 28-29. Top counties for the early youth portion were Osage with 380, How­ell with 377, and Frank­lin with 354 deer checked. Last year’s harvest total for the early youth portion was 11,171.

“The increase in harvest during the early youth por­tion compared to last year is likely due to the excel­lent weather over the week­end, which was favorable for deer movement,” MDC Deer Biologist Barb Keller said.

“Weather during early youth season last year was particularly poor, with highs in the 80s throughout much of the state.”

For the latest deer harvest totals by county and por­tion, visit MDC’s website at http://on.mo.gov/1jjz7Ew.

Archery deer hunting con­tinues through Nov. 10 and again from Nov. 22 through Jan. 15, 2018. Up next for deer hunting in Missouri is the November portion of firearms deer season, which runs Nov. 11-21. That will be followed by the late youth portion of firearms deer season on Nov. 24-26. The antlerless portion of firearms deer season runs Dec. 1-3. Lastly the alter­native methods portion will run Dec. 23- Jan. 2, 2018.

Get more information on deer hunting in Mis­souri through MDC’s free 2017 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information booklet avail­able where permits are sold, from MDC regional offices and nature centers, and online at http://bit. ly/2tmUdHo.