Wisconsin hunters see slow start to gun deer season

Wisconsin hunters are seeing a slow start to the state’s nine-day gun deer season compared to last year.

Preliminary figures released by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Tuesday show hunters registered 89,203 deer through opening weekend, down almost 2 percent from the 90,831 deer registered at the same time last year. The opening weekend harvest was nearly 5 percent below the five-year average.

“We are down slightly, which was to be expected given the late start of the opener,” DNR Deer Program Specialist Jeff Pritzl said. “We see that in other years when the opening date of the gun season is late on the calendar. It’s further removed from the peak of the breeding season.”

Pritzl said the late start reduced deer movement during the daytime. Wisconsin’s nine-day hunt started Saturday and runs through Dec. 1. Preliminary totals for the deer harvest are slated to come next Tuesday.

The DNR reported 541,258 gun deer licenses were sold through Sunday, tracking slightly ahead of the 539,811 gun licenses sold at the same time last year.

Snow was lacking across the state over the weekend, which usually improves hunter success. Although, conditions were mostly favorable with light rain on opening day. Hunters encountered temperatures near or above 40 degrees (Fahrenheit) during the day.

However, northern Wisconsin did see snow Monday. Pritzl said it’s unclear what the past weekend means for the rest of the season, noting the harvest has recovered in years with challenging weather conditions.

“As I recall from a couple of years ago, we might actually see numbers pick up at a better pace, where hunters were fortunate to get some snow on the ground,” Pritzl said.

The harvest included 49,038 bucks, down 4.3 percent from the same time last year. The antlerless kill was 40,165 deer, up 1.5 percent from 2023.

Pritzl said hunters saw better success this opening weekend compared to last year in Waushara, Winnebago, Dodge, Adams and Marquette counties. Hunters in Waushara and Winnebago counties saw the biggest gains, bagging around 23 percent more deer.

However, hunters in the northern forested region saw a drop in the harvest over the weekend compared to 2023. Ashland and Clark counties saw the largest decline, killing roughly 26 percent fewer deer.

The DNR had zero hunting incidents during opening weekend. During the same time last year, hunters reported two incidents, one of which was self-inflicted. Lieutenant Renee Thok, the agency’s hunter education administrative warden, urged hunters to do their part to ensure a safe season.

“With the upcoming Thanksgiving gatherings, the DNR wants to remind all hunters to be safe, responsible and sober while in the woods,” Thok said.

Overall, three people sustained injuries during last year’s season, including an Adams County woman who was shot while walking her dog after a hunter confused the animal for a deer.  For the calendar year, the DNR recorded 11 hunting incidents and no fatalities in 2023. 

The agency has also been urging hunters to test deer for chronic wasting disease. The DNR hopes to sample around 19,200 deer for the deadly deer disease this year.

Hunters can submit deer for sampling anytime at self-service kiosks and dispose of deer carcasses at designated dumpsters or landfills.