Pennsylvania Game Commission Releases Deer Harvest Report

By Ammoland Editor Joe Evans

USA -(Ammoland.com)- Pennsylvania’s buck harvest increased 9 percent, and the overall deer harvest was up 6 percent, in the 2016-17 seasons, which closed in January, the Pennsylvania Game Commission reported today.

Hunters harvested an estimated 333,254 deer in 2016-17 – an increase of about 6 percent compared to the 2015-16 harvest of 315,813.

Of those, 149,460 were antlered deer – an increase of about 9 percent compared to the previous license year, when an estimated 137,580 bucks were taken. It’s the largest harvest of antlered deer since 2002.

Hunters also harvested an estimated 183,794 antlerless deer in 2016-17, which represents an about 3 percent increase compared to the 178,233 antlerless deer taken in 2015-16.

Bowhunters accounted for nearly 33 percent of the overall deer harvest, taking 109,250 deer (59,550 bucks and 49,700 does) with archery tackle. Meanwhile, 20,409 deer (1,350 bucks and 19,059 does) were harvested during muzzleloader seasons.

The percentage of older bucks in the harvest remained high, with 56 percent of bucks taken by Pennsylvania hunters during the 2016-17 deer seasons being 2½ years old or older. In 2015-16, 59 percent of bucks in the harvest were 2 ½ years old or older.

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Source:: AmmoLand