Apply online for MDC spring managed turkey hunts starting Feb. 1

Jefferson City, Missouri -  Missouri youth, archery, and firearms turkey hunters can apply online for 2018 spring turkey managed hunts Feb. 1 - 28 through the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) website at mdc.mo.gov/springturkeyhunts. Managed hunt details and application procedures are outlined on the webpage. Drawing results will be posted starting March 12.

Spring turkey hunting youth weekend will be April 7 and 8 with the regular spring season running April 16 through May 6. Detailed information on spring turkey hunting will be available in MDC's “2018 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information” booklet, available where permits are sold beginning in February. To learn more about turkey hunting in Missouri, visit MDC's website at huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/hunting-trapping/species/turkey

Buy Missouri hunting permits from numerous vendors around the state, online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, or through the MDC free mobile app -- MO Hunting -- available for download through Google Play for Android devices or the App Store for Apple devices.

Top deer harvest counties were Howell with 6,182 deer harvested, Franklin with 5,957, and Texas with 5,619.

Jefferson City, Missouri -  Missouri's 2017-2018 deer-hunting season ended Jan. 15 with the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reporting a preliminary total harvest of 283,940 deer. Top counties for the overall season were Howell with 6,182 deer harvested, Franklin with 5,957, and Texas with 5,619. Of the 283,940 deer harvested, 135,891 were antlered bucks, 30,538 were button bucks, and 117,511 were does. Hunters harvested 263,834 deer during the 2016-2017 deer hunting season.

Deer hunting ended with the close of the archery season. Preliminary data from MDC showed that hunters checked 51,722 deer during the archery season. Top counties for the archery season were Jefferson with 1,169 deer harvested, St. Louis with 1,021, and Franklin with 1,000. Of the 51,722 deer harvested, 21,162 were antlered bucks, 5,319 were button bucks, and 25,241 were does. Hunters checked 47,552 deer during the 2016-2017 archery season.

Fall archery turkey hunting also ended Jan. 15. Preliminary data from MDC showed 2,426 turkeys harvested. Top counties for the archery turkey season were Phelps with 73 birds harvested, Texas with 63, and Laclede with 58. For the previous year, hunters harvested 2,304 turkeys.

The past season was the second in which MDC began allowing crossbows as a legal method during the deer and turkey archery season. Of the 51,722 deer harvested under archery methods, 19,691 were with crossbows. Of the 2,426 turkeys harvested under archery methods, 1,113 were with crossbows. For the first season that included crossbows (2016-2017), of the 47,552 deer harvested under archery methods, 14,336 were with crossbows, and of the 2,304 turkeys harvested under archery methods, 853 were with crossbows.

Missouri -  At its meeting on Dec. 15, the Missouri Conservation Commission approved recommendations by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) for 2018-2019 turkey-hunting and deer-hunting season dates.

Spring Youth Portion: April 7 and 8

Regular Spring Turkey Season: April 16 through May 6

Fall Firearms Turkey Season: Oct. 1 - 31

Archery Season: Sept. 15 through Nov. 9 and Nov. 21 through Jan. 15, 2019.

Firearms Deer Early Youth Portion: Oct. 27 and 28

Firearms Deer November Portion: Nov. 10 - 20

Firearms Deer Late Youth Portion: Nov. 23 - 25

Firearms Deer Antlerless Portion: Nov. 30 through Dec. 2

Firearms Deer Alternative Methods Portion: Dec. 22 through Jan. 1, 2019

 

Details on hunting regulations, harvest limits, allowed methods, required permits, and other related information will be available in the Department’s “2018 Spring Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information” and the “2018 Fall Deer & Turkey Hunting Regulations and Information” booklets. Both will be available where permits are sold prior to the related seasons.

Learn more about deer and turkey hunting in Missouri at huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/

Buy Missouri hunting (and fishing) permits from numerous vendors around the state, online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, or through MDC’s free mobile apps, MO Hunting and MO Fishing, available for download through Google Play for Android devices or the App Store for Apple devices.

Missouri-  Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows that deer hunters in Missouri harvested 7,728 deer during the antlerless portion of the fall firearms deer season, which ran Dec. 1-3. Top harvest counties were Callaway with 250, Macon with 212, and Pike with 205 deer checked. Last year’s harvest total was 6,503.

MDC reduced the length of the antlerless portion of fall firearms deer season starting in 2016 from 12 to three days so harvest numbers prior to 2016 are not comparable to this season.

Missouri -  Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows that deer hunters in Missouri harvested 191,368 deer during the November portion of fall firearms deer season, Nov. 11- 21. Of the 191,368 deer harvested, 99,431 were antlered bucks, 20,148 were button bucks, and 71,789 were does. Top harvest counties were Howell with 4,564 deer checked, Texas with 4,374, and Franklin with 4,095.

Last year hunters checked 185,062 deer during the 2016 November portion of firearms deer season with 95,381 being antlered bucks, 18,888 being button bucks, and 70,793 being does.

“The uptick in harvest this year is likely due to a combination of favorable weather and the continued recovery of deer populations in some areas hit hard by the 2012 drought,” MDC Deer Biologist Barb Keller said. “As the November firearms portion creeps one day earlier each year, it tends to coincide with more of the deer in rut – resulting in higher deer harvest.”

MDC reported three firearms-related hunting incidents during the fall firearms November portion. One of the hunting incidents involved a hunter wounding another hunter while hunting in Benton County. Another incident involved a hunter loading a gun in a truck and it went off hitting another hunter sitting in the truck in Washington County. Lastly another hunting incident involved a self-inflicted firearm wound that occurred in Bates County.

Deer hunting in Missouri continues with archery deer hunting from Nov. 22 through Jan. 15, 2018. The late youth portion of firearms deer season runs Nov. 24-26. The antlerless portion of firearms deer season runs Dec. 1-3. Lastly the alternative methods portion will run Dec. 23- Jan. 2, 2018.

Missouri offers some of the best deer hunting in the country and deer hunting is an important part of many Missourians’ lives and family traditions. Deer hunting is also an important economic driver in Missouri and gives a $1 billion annual boost to the state and local economies.