Photo by Mark Werner

Deer hunters in the Mid-Atlantic should have ample opportunity to put venison in the freezer this fall. While in some cases population management objectives are being met, seasons and bag limits continue to hedge on the liberal side. Throughout the fall -- for the gun hunter, bowhunter, as well as the muzzleloader -- the chances should be abundant.

Here's a state-by-state look at the current deer-hunting picture, based a large degree on harvests of the past season. The objective here is to paint an accurate picture of where deer populations are strongest, that is, where is the best place to bag a deer, any deer. Harvest data on a county basis and deer management basis will be examined. Next month we'll look at the trophy buck picture.

NEW JERSEY
According to Carole Kandoth, principal biologist for the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife's (DFW) Deer Research Project, last year's whitetail harvest was down about 16 percent from what it was the prior year.

"This was due in part to regulations changes made last season," Kandoth explained. "Other factors may have come into play, ones which I am still in the process of analyzing. This includes license and permit sales."

Last fall and winter, New Jersey deer hunters harvested a total of 58,564 deer during all of the combined seasons. During the prior year's slate of hunts, 69,456 deer were bagged.

"We are looking for good seasons this coming year," Kandoth stated. "Generally, for most deer hunters, I feel deer hunting is a good experience in New Jersey."

A rather complex plan is used to manage New Jersey's whitetail numbers. This includes various bow seasons, firearms and shotgun seasons. While the herd was at one time managed on a county basis, the state is now divided up into 67 deer management zones (DMZs). According to the DFW, these DMZs are areas with similar herd characteristics, hunting pressure and deer habitat, and are bounded by highways, rivers and other easily identifiable landmarks. Various regulations sets are formulated each year to tailor deer hunting regulations to specific deer management areas. Last season, there were eight regulations sets.

A variety of hunts last season provided the total harvest of 58,564 deer. This includes 13,128 deer taken during the fall bowhunt, 709 during the youth hunt, and 8,340 from the permit bowhunt and 7,895 from the six-day firearms hunt. The permit muzzleloader hunt produced 10,359 deer. Another 16,950 deer were bagged by means of the permit shotgun hunt. The winter bow season added another 1,183 deer to the total. The 2004 season bag consisted of 17,965 antlered deer and 40,599 antlerless.

Hunterdon County experienced the highest deer kill last season. The various hunts provided harvests of: fall bow, 2862; permit bow, 1,820; six-day firearms, 1,474; permit muzzleloader, 1,514; permit shotgun, 3,226; winter bow, 163. The youth day hunt added an additional 79 deer. Other top counties from last season's hunt include Sussex, Warren, Somerset and Burlington. All of these counties had harvests in excess of 5,000 animals with the exception of Burlington, which had a total take of 4,937.

Top deer management zones last season included DMZ 12 (5,032 deer taken), DMZ 8 (4,996), DMZ 5 (3,687), DMZ 10 (3,676) and DMZ 2 (2,470). These DMZs are located, for the most part, in the northern section of the state. Some DMZs in New Jersey fall within Earn-A-Buck regulations. In these zones, before they can take a buck, hunters must first harvest an antlered deer. Deer harvests tend to be higher in Earn-A-Buck zones. Earn-A-Buck regulations tend to be applied to areas with high levels of development or with lots of agricultural land. Such land use often necessitates the lowering of whitetail numbers.