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According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, hunters harvested an estimated 316,240 deer in the state’s 2010-11 seasons, which is an increase of 2 percent from the previous seasons’ harvest of 308,920.
Hunters took 122,930 antlered deer in the 2010-11 seasons, an increase of 13 percent from the previous license year’s harvest of 108,330. Also, hunters harvested 193,310 antlerless deer in 2010-11, which is a decrease of 4 percent from the 200,590 antlerless deer taken in 2009-10.
“The 2010-11 antlered deer harvest of 122,930 is slightly above average based on when the Game Commission began to stabilize deer population trends in most of the state in 2005,” said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director. “Antlered deer harvests increased by 20 percent or more in Wildlife Management Units 2C, 2F, 2G, 3D, 4C, 4D and 5C. In fact, in WMUs 2C and 2G, the antlered harvest increased by 31 percent.”
Roe noted that the decrease in the antlerless harvest reflects the reduction in the number of antlerless deer licenses allocated for the 2010-11 seasons, as well as the shortened antlerless deer hunting opportunities in eight Wildlife Management Units. Those WMUs were: 2C, 2D, 2E, 2G, 3C, 4B, 4D and 4E.
Bureau of Wildlife Management personnel are working to develop 2011 antlerless deer license allocation recommendations for the April meeting of the Board of Game Commissioners.
Harvest estimates for 2010-11 seasons are based on 111,630 usable harvest report cards (46,680 antlered; 64,950 antlerless) returned by hunters to the commission, which included 62,684 reported by mail and 48,946 reported by the new online harvest reporting system.
Yearling bucks comprised 48 percent of the 2010-11 antlered harvest, and 2.5-year-old or older bucks comprised 52 percent. This year’s harvest marks the highest percentage of 2.5-year-old or older bucks in the last 30 years. Since 2003, the percent of yearling bucks in the annual harvest has varied between 49 and 56 percent. Button bucks represented 23 percent of the antlerless harvest, which is similar to the long-term averages.
The 2010-11 hunting seasons marked the second time crossbows were legal in statewide archery deer seasons for all hunters. In those 19 WMUs outside of the three urban areas, the archery harvest increased 13 percent. The proportion of the archery harvest taken by crossbows in the 19 WMUs increased from 30 percent to 34 percent. Crossbows have been legal in urban WMUs of 2B, 5C and 5D since 2004.
A comparison of the last two deer harvests
Deer harvest estimates by WMU for 2010-11 (with 2009-10 figures in parentheses) are:
WMU 1A: 5,900 (5,500) antlered, 11,900 (10,700) antlerless;
WMU 1B: 5,500 (5,100) antlered, 9,200 (9,500) antlerless;
WMU 2A: 5,800 (6,800) antlered, 13,500 (13,900) antlerless;
WMU 2B: 4,000 (4,300) antlered, 13,000 (20,000) antlerless;
WMU 2C: 8,500 (6,500) antlered, 9,600 (10,900) antlerless;
WMU 2D: 11,500 (10,000) antlered, 18,000 (16,000) antlerless;
WMU 2E: 4,200 (3,700) antlered 6,000 (5,300) antlerless;
WMU 2F: 6,400 (5,200) antlered, 5,700 (6,600) antlerless;
WMU 2G: 6,800 (5,200) antlered, 3,600 (4,200) antlerless;
WMU 3A: 3,800 (3,300) antlered, 6,500 (6,000) antlerless;
WMU 3B: 5,400 (4,900) antlered, 7,600 (9,100) antlerless;
WMU 3C: 6,200 (6,200) antlered, 8,300 (7,100) antlerless;
WMU 3D: 3,900 (3,100) antlered, 5,500 (6,300) antlerless;
WMU 4A: 3,800 (3,700) antlered, 6,400 (7,400) antlerless;
WMU 4B: 4,500 (4,000) antlered, 5,100 (4,100) antlerless;
WMU 4C: 5,700 (4,700) antlered, 8,400 (7,200) antlerless;
WMU 4D: 6,300 (5,000) antlered, 5,500 (7,200) antlerless;
WMU 4E: 4,800 (4,100) antlered, 5,900 (6,300) antlerless;
WMU 5A: 2,400 (2,200) antlered, 3,400 (4,200) antlerless;
WMU 5B: 6,900 (6,000) antlered, 12,500 (11,300) antlerless;
WMU 5C: 9,400 (7,600) antlered, 24,000 (23,200) antlerless;
WMU 5D: 1,100 (1,100) antlered, 3,700 (3,900) antlerless; and
Unknown WMU: 130 (130) antlered, 10 (190) antlerless.