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Early Youth Firearms Season Shows Higher Numbers In Region, Lower Numbers Statewide

October 30, 2023 8:33PM CDT
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Early Youth Firearms Season Shows Higher Numbers In Region, Lower Numbers Statewide
Young hunters harvested 11,118 deer during Missouri’s early youth portion of the 2023 deer hunting season, Oct. 28 and 29. With patience and guidance from his dad, Keever Schaning, age 6, harvested his first deer on his grandparent’s farm in Owensville on Sunday.

The deer harvest for the 2023 Early Youth Firearms Season in Missouri was a little down from last year, but most of the area experienced higher numbers in relation to last year.

Youth hunters from age 6 through 15 years old harvested 11,118 deer in the early youth firearms season. Of that total, 6,870 deer of the harvest were antlered bucks. 3,410 were does. Josh Roller with the Missouri Department of Conservation says while the state numbers were a little down in relation to last year, the region’s numbers were generally a little higher

 

Youth hunters harvested 13,877 during last year’s early youth portion. Cervid Program Supervisor Jason Isabelle noted that the below average temperatures were conducive to good deer movement, but the combination of cooler temperatures and rainy conditions that persisted throughout much of the weekend likely reduced the amount of time many young hunters spent hunting.

Archery deer hunting continues through Nov. 10 and resumes Nov. 22 through Jan. 15, 2024. The November portion of firearms deer season runs Nov. 11-21 followed by the CWD portion, which is open in CWD Management Zone counties, Nov. 22-26. The late youth portion runs Nov. 24-26. The late antlerless portion of firearms deer season runs Dec. 2-10 in open counties and the alternative methods portion will occur Dec. 23 through Jan. 2, 2024.

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