Hunters harvest more than 52,000 deer during first weekend of Illinois firearm season

ILLINOIS (KFVS) - Hunters in Illinois harvested a preliminary total of 52,354 deer during the first weekend of the Illinois firearm deer season November 18-20.

According to the Department of Natural Resources, hunters took 48,964 deer during the first firearm weekend in 2021.

In some southern Illinois counties, the preliminary deer harvest totals for 2022 compared to previous years includes:

• Alexander County
  • 2020 - 257
  • 2021 - 264
  • 2022 - 239
• Franklin County
  • 2020 - 749
  • 2021 - 848
  • 2022 - 956
• Jackson County
  • 2020 - 1,230
  • 2021 - 1,290
  • 2022 - 1,484
• Jefferson County
  • 2020 - 1,087
  • 2021 - 1,228
  • 2022 - 1,249
• Massac County
  • 2020 - 220
  • 2021 - 238
  • 2022 - 268
• Perry County
  • 2020 - 719
  • 2021 - 783
  • 2022 - 969
• Pope County
  • 2020 - 888
  • 2021 - 934
  • 2022 - 1,068
• Pulaski County
  • 2020 - 178
  • 2021 - 190
  • 2022 - 222
• Randolph County
  • 2020 - 1,341
  • 2021 - 1,457
  • 2022 - 1,518
• Union County
  • 2020 - 773
  • 2021 - 795
  • 2022 - 812
• Williamson County
  • 2020 - 950
  • 2021 - 1,109
  • 2022 - 1,287

Illinois’ seven-day firearm deer season will end December 1-4.

Other deer hunting opportunities in the weeks ahead include:

• Muzzleloader-only deer season Dec. 9-11
• Late-winter antlerless-only and Chronic Wasting Disease deer seasons (in select counties only) Dec. 29 - Jan. 1 and Jan. 13-15
• Archery deer season continues through Jan. 15. (Note: archery deer hunting is closed Dec. 1-4 in counties open for firearm deer season.)

Other information and a table of preliminary Illinois firearm deer harvest totals by county for the first weekend of the 2022 season, and comparable totals for 2020 and 2021, can be found here.

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