MDC reports 88,843 deer harvested during firearms opening weekend

Top counties: Franklin with 2,078 deer checked, Texas with 1,931, and Callaway with 1,735.

Preliminary data from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shows that deer hunters in Missouri harvested 88,843 deer during the opening weekend of the November portion of the fall firearms deer season Nov. 16 and 17. Of the 88,843 deer harvested, 51,086 were antlered bucks, 8,115 were button bucks, and 29,642 were does.

Top harvest counties for opening weekend were Franklin with 2,078 deer checked, Texas with 1,931, and Callaway with 1,735.

Last year, hunters checked 99,470 deer during the opening weekend of the 2018 November portion of firearms deer season.

The November portion of fall firearms deer seasons continues through Nov. 26. Archery deer season opens again Nov. 27 through Jan. 15, 2020. The late youth portion runs Nov. 29 through Dec. 1. The antlerless portion runs Dec. 6-8. The alternative methods portion runs Dec. 28 through Jan. 7, 2020.

Pictured is Ben Ray of Sikeston, Missouri with his buck shot in Bollinger County, Missouri.