Pike County fourth in deer in the state for deer harvest
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By BETH ZUMWALT
Pike County deer hunters harvested 1,949 deer in the seven day firearm season that spanned two weekends. Last year the total number of deer harvested by firearm was 1,8409.
Total for the year was 170,758 including all methods of hunting. The 2023 totals 160,313.
Randolph County was the leader of the deer harvest with 2,299, followed by Adams County with 2,291, Jackson came in with 2,010 and and Jefferson County was just behind Pike with1,912.
The overall firearm deer numbers were up state-wide as 76,494 deer were harvest during the same period in 2023 and this year the state-wide numbers was 82,496.
Carson Medford, of Pittsfield and an avid deer hunter, said he believes the weather was better the first season and more hunters were in the field.
“But by the second season, it was colder and the deer were hitting the food plots,”Mefford said.
Mefford went on to say that the deer population is out of control in Pike County.
“I was out, in the country and saw 65 deer in one area,” Mefford said. “They need to bring back the late winter doe season.”
Most farmers, especially those who farm bottom land, where food and water are both plentiful, agree the deer numbers are out of control.
Brady Borrowman, who lives near the Ray Norbett West Preservation Area, just north of Rockport, says IDNR will not allow any hunting on the preserve and the deer that have found sanctuary there are just destroying acres of crops.
Facing escalating crop damage, the Jasper and Clark County Farm Bureaus hosted a meeting for local farmers and landowners to voice their concerns to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).
During the Jan. 21 meeting in Newton, IDNR shared information and answered questions regarding local deer populations and hunting regulations.
“The deer nuisance problem is very serious in my district. It’s something that needs attention,” Rep. Adam Niemerg, R-Dieterich, told FarmWeek at the start of the meeting. “We’re here today to make sure that those voices are heard and to make sure we’re doing the right thing moving forward on the deer population issue.”
There are two legal ways to remove deer in Illinois — licensed hunting and deer removal permits issued by IDNR. Deer removal permits can be granted if deer are damaging property or threatening public health and safety.
“When it comes to limited quotas (on the harvest of deer per hunter), we see those come into place in the firearm level or season,” IDNR Forest Wildlife Program Manager Dan Skinner said at the meeting. “In Illinois, our management unit for deer is set at the county level. So, we make our management decisions at the county level.”
Skinner said IDNR is reassessing how it calculates an area’s deer population to ensure an adequate number of tags are available. This includes updating and standardizing the deer-vehicle accident (DVA) reporting system used to help decide quotas during the firearm season. In recent years however, Skinner said IDNR has discovered the DVA data “might not be telling the whole story of what’s going on.”
An objective of IDNR’s research with Southern Illinois University, which will begin in July 2025, is to look for additional ways to estimate county-by-county deer population density. Skinner said this research is expected to wrap up in June 2026.
“There is no doubt we are facing devastation in our fields,” Jasper County farmer Bruce Lewis told FarmWeek. “It was very important for IDNR and our representative to be at this meeting and take our ideas to the state to help us control the population.”
IDNR encouraged farmers who are facing crop damage like Lewis to submit photos of the damage to their district biologist. After proving damage, they can receive 10 permits to remove deer from the field. Each Illinois district biologist can be found online at wildlifeillinois.org/idnr-district-wildlife-biologist/.
“Farm Bureau members throughout the state have made it clear that this is a top issue for them, and we have made it a legislative priority this spring,” said Anna McKinley, Illinois Farm Bureau assistant director of state legislation, addressing IFB’s ongoing efforts to find a solution. “We have been working with legislators and stakeholders to introduce legislation that gives landowners more tools for deer management on their own properties, while also encouraging doe harvest during regular hunting seasons.”
