As scouting transitions from late summer into early fall and archery season, consider the harvest of anterless deer early in the season. By removing old or mature does without fawns, it takes some pressure off the available food sources as fall and winter approach.
This year the MDWFP has made changes to the anterless limits. Statewide the buck limit remains at three legal bucks per season year. Anterless deer, or does, have been reduced from five to three in most areas and only two in the Southeast Zone.
Public lands have further restrictions on methods of harvest of anterless deer.
“Based on the three-year average data that shows an overall decrease in the deer herd, we felt this adjustment was necessary,” said William McKinley, the Deer Program Coordinator for the MDWFP. “Based on the harvest data this number could be adjusted back up at some point in the future. Annual deer harvest is a fluid number that will always be changing. Those areas of the state where high deer concentrations exist have tools such as DMAP to regulate the herd. We encourage landowners and hunting clubs not already enrolled in DMAP to apply.
“The more deer harvest data we have to work with the better we can manage the herd. In years past there have been attempts to establish harvest data programs, and some have met with limited success. But none have enjoyed the broad-based support of the deer hunting public. That is what we need to ensure the maximum resource is there for the hunting public. The goal for most of the state is to have the greatest number of deer the land can safely support. This will give hunters the greatest resource from which to choose their harvest.”
To learn more about Mississippi’s Deer Management program visit www.mdwfp.com.
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