Deer Harvest Sets Record

The current deer harvest this hunting season is the highest in Arkansas history and it’s still going on.

Hunters so far have checked more than 196,000 deer by all methods combined, passing the record of 194,687 set in 1999-2000.

Favorable weather conditions along with increased season limits are factors in the new deer record.

Archery hunting continues through Feb. 28. The three-day Christmas holiday modern gun deer season is Dec. 26-28.

In some deer zones, there will be a muzzle-loader hunt Dec. 28-31. A youth deer hunt is Jan. 5-6.

Management of Arkansas’s deer has evolved over the years. Decades ago, two six-day seasons were statewide with no taking of doe.

Then deer zones were established, allowing rules to be adjusted according to the number of deer in a region.

Today, zone limits for the season range from three to six and the statewide limit is six. This means a hunter can be successful in more than one zone in order to reach that limit of six.

Hunter numbers in Arkansas has remained fairly constant in recent years. Estimates are that about 300,000 people go deer hunting, some for a day or two and others for the entire allotted seasons.

Outdoor, Pages 7 on 12/20/2012

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