New York State Deer Harvest Figures are Impressive
Bob McNally 05.25.17
New York biologists estimated 213,061 deer were taken during the 2016-17 hunting seasons, an estimated five percent increase over 2015-16.
Last season’s deer kill included 106,055 antlerless and 107,006 antlered. This is a 7.5-percent increase over the preceding season, reflecting modest population growth following deer losses during the harsh winter of 2014-15.
The state antlerless deer kill was up 2.6 percent as managers sought to increase doe harvest in certain parts of the state.
Regionally, hunters in the Northern Zone took 24,674 deer, including 16,495 adult bucks. In the Southern Zone, hunters took 188,387 deer, including 90,511 adult bucks.
Muzzleloader deer hunters collected 4,000 more whitetails than in the previous season. Bowhunters took 46,735, or about 9,000 more deer than in 2015. Crossbow hunters, with increased participation, took 26.4 more deer than the previous year. Youth hunters harvested 4.9 percent fewer deer on their special weekend last year than the previous year due to adverse weather.
