HARRISBURG – The Pennsylvania Game Commission reported that hunters harvested an estimated 335,850 deer in the state’s 2008-09 seasons. That’s up four percent from the previous seasons’ harvest of 323,070.
Hunters took 122,410 antlered deer in the 2008-09 seasons, up from the previous license year’s harvest of 109,200. Also, hunters harvested 213,440 antlerless deer in 2008-09, which is almost the same as the 213,870 antlerless deer taken in 2007-08.
“This year’s antlered harvest is on average with the harvest for the last five years,” said Dr. Christopher Rosenberry, Game Commission Deer and Elk Supervisor. “As for the antlerless deer harvest, about one quarter of all antlerless deer licenses issued were used to harvest an antlerless deer, which also is on average with the harvest success rate for the past five years.
“It is important to note that in 2008-09 there was a shorter antlerless deer season for firearms deer hunters in WMUs 2D, 2G, 3C and 4B. As a result, in three of the four WMUs, the antlerless harvest dropped. In WMU 2G, the antlerless harvest was similar to last year.”
Rosenberry noted that the agency has launched a study to evaluate the impact of this split-season. (For more information, please see News Release #012-09 in the “News Release” section of the agency’s Web site.)
Bureau of Wildlife Management personnel currently are working to develop 2009 antlerless deer license allocation recommendations for the April Board meeting. Calvin W. DuBrock, Game Commission Bureau of Wildlife Management director, said that in addition to harvest data, the staff will be looking at population trend data, deer reproduction data, forest regeneration data, and input from new Citizen Advisory Committees.
Harvest estimates for 2008-09 seasons are based on 127,351 usable harvest report cards (44,995 antlered; 82,356 antlerless) returned by hunters to the Commission and 26,057 deer (8,791 antlered; 17,266 antlerless) examined by Game Commission personnel in the field and at processors.
For an explanation of the agency’s deer harvest estimating procedure, visit the Game Commission’s Web site, click on “White-Tailed Deer” icon in the center of the homepage, then scroll down and select “Deer Research” and click on “Reporting rate variability and precision of white-tailed deer harvest estimates in Pennsylvania.”
Yearling bucks comprised 52 percent of the 2008-09 antlered harvest. Since 2003, the percent of yearling bucks in the annual harvest has varied between 50 and 56 percent. Button bucks represented 22 percent of the antlerless harvest, and similar to 24 percent in 2007-08.
Total deer harvest estimates by WMU for 2008-09 (with 2007-08 figures in parentheses) are as follows:
WMU 1A: 5,400 (4,900) antlered, 12,600 (12,500) antlerless;
WMU 1B: 7,500 (6,000) antlered, 13,400 (11,400) antlerless;
WMU 2A: 6,700 (6,600) antlered, 15,300 (14,300) antlerless;
WMU 2B: 4,000 (4,400) antlered, 15,300 (15,300) antlerless;
WMU 2C: 7,500 (8,400) antlered, 12,800 (11,600) antlerless;
WMU 2D: 9,500 (9,100) antlered, 15,600 (18,100) antlerless;
WMU 2E: 5,000 (3,600) antlered, 6,200 (6,400) antlerless;
WMU 2F: 7,000 (4,800) antlered, 9,100 (7,100) antlerless;
WMU 2G: 6,800 (5,100) antlered, 6,500 (6,600) antlerless;
WMU 3A: 4,100 (3,400) antlered, 7,500 (7,800) antlerless;
WMU 3B: 5,500 (5,900) antlered, 9,900 (10,200) antlerless;
WMU 3C: 6,300 (5,300) antlered, 7,300 (9,600) antlerless;
WMU 3D: 3,900 (3,600) antlered, 6,900 (7,000) antlerless;
WMU 4A: 4,200 (4,500) antlered, 6,900 (6,700) antlerless;
WMU 4B: 3,900 (3,500) antlered, 3,800 (4,500) antlerless;
WMU 4C: 5,000 (4,800) antlered, 8,000 (9,400) antlerless;
WMU 4D: 6,600 (5,800) antlered, 9,300 (8,100) antlerless;
WMU 4E: 4,300 (3,300) antlered, 7,200 (8,100) antlerless;
WMU 5A: 2,100 (2,400) antlered, 3,800 (3,900) antlerless;
WMU 5B: 6,800 (6,000) antlered, 11,200 (11,100) antlerless;
WMU 5C: 8,700 (6,500) antlered, 20,200 (18,900) antlerless;
WMU 5D: 1,300 (1,000) antlered, 4,500 (5,200) antlerless; and
Unknown WMU: 310 (300) antlered, 140 (70) antlerless
Season-specific deer harvest estimates – such as archery and muzzleloader and rifle – by WMU for 2008-09 can also be calculated using harvest data from processors and report cards.
“Although we do not use season-specific harvest data for management purposes, we recognize the public is interested in these harvest estimates,” DuBrock said. “For that reason only, we provide estimated deer harvest breakdowns for firearms, archery and muzzleloader seasons, but we only use total deer harvest estimates when making management recommendations.”
Season-specific deer harvest estimates are as follows:
WMU 1A: firearms, 3,700 antlered, 9,800 antlerless; archery, 1,660 antlered, 1,480 antlerless; and muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 1,320 antlerless;
WMU 1B: firearms, 5,500 antlered, 11,200 antlerless; archery, 1,970 antlered, 1,260 antlerless; muzzleloader, 30 antlered, 940 antlerless;
WMU 2A: firearms, 5,000 antlered, 12,100 antlerless; archery, 1,640 antlered, 1,350 antlerless; muzzleloader, 60 antlered, 1,850 antlerless;
WMU 2B: firearms, 1,600 antlered, 8,800 antlerless; archery, 2,360 antlered, 5,580 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 920 antlerless;
WMU 2C: firearms, 5,600 antlered, 10,300 antlerless; archery, 1,840 antlered, 1,120 antlerless; muzzleloader, 60 antlered, 1,380 antlerless;
WMU 2D: firearms, 6,800 antlered, 12,000 antlerless; archery, 2,620 antlered, 1,520 antlerless; muzzleloader, 80 antlered, 2,080 antlerless;
WMU 2E: firearms, 3,900 antlered, 5,100 antlerless; archery, 1,060 antlered, 410 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 690 antlerless;
WMU 2F: firearms, 5,900 antlered, 7,900 antlerless; archery, 1,040 antlered, 390 antlerless; muzzleloader, 60 antlered, 810 antlerless;
WMU 2G: firearms, 6,000 antlered, 4,400 antlerless; archery, 750 antlered, 690 antlerless; muzzleloader, 50 antlered, 1,410 antlerless;
WMU 3A: firearms, 3,400 antlered, 5,900 antlerless; archery, 680 antlered, 640 antlerless; muzzleloader, 20 antlered, 960 antlerless;
WMU 3B: firearms, 4,500 antlered, 7,600 antlerless; archery, 960 antlered, 940 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 1,360 antlerless;
WMU 3C: firearms, 5,300 antlered, 5,300 antlerless; archery, 960 antlered, 750 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 1,250 antlerless;
WMU 3D: firearms, 3,100 antlered, 5,100 antlerless; archery, 760 antlered, 910 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 890 antlerless;
WMU 4A: firearms, 3,700 antlered, 5,600 antlerless; archery, 440 antlered, 360 antlerless; muzzleloader, 60 antlered, 940 antlerless;
WMU 4B: firearms, 3,100 antlered, 2,800 antlerless; archery, 770 antlered, 420 antlerless; muzzleloader, 30 antlered, 580 antlerless;
WMU 4C: firearms, 3,700 antlered, 6,000 antlerless; archery, 1,250 antlered, 920 antlerless; muzzleloader, 50 antlered, 1,080 antlerless;
WMU 4D: firearms, 5,600 antlered, 7,600 antlerless; archery, 960 antlered, 700 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 1,000 antlerless;
WMU 4E: firearms, 3,300 antlered, 5,600 antlerless; archery, 960 antlered, 640 antlerless; muzzleloader, 40 antlered, 960 antlerless;
WMU 5A: firearms, 1,600 antlered, 2,800 antlerless; archery, 480 antlered, 440 antlerless; muzzleloader, 20 antlered, 560 antlerless;
WMU 5B: firearms, 3,900 antlered, 7,100 antlerless; archery, 2,810 antlered, 2,550 antlerless; muzzleloader, 90 antlered, 1,550 antlerless;
WMU 5C: firearms, 4,100 antlered, 11,500 antlerless; archery, 4,490 antlered, 7,250 antlerless; muzzleloader, 110 antlered, 1,450 antlerless;
WMU 5D: firearms, 300 antlered, 1,400 antlerless; archery, 990 antlered, 2,980 antlerless; muzzleloader, 10 antlered, 120 antlerless; and
Unknown WMU: firearms, 200 antlered, 100 antlerless; archery, 100 antlered, 30 antlerless; muzzleloader, 10 antlered, 10 antlerless.