Montana has a large population of two types of deer, the mule deer and the white-tailed deer. They are the mule deer, Coues deer, and Texas white-tail. Wisconsin is having a deer boom, with this 2021 article reporting the states population of 1.6 million is the highest its been in decades. This is quite a noticeable decline from the population high of 250,000 seen in 1988. The most recent estimate I could find for West Virginias white-tailed deer population was about 550,000 in 2017. According to the same state estimates, White-tail populations have consistently increased since 1989 where they were estimated to number around 3.5 Million. Regular hunting ensures that a state will only have the number of deer its ecosystems can support. In Mississippi, the deer herd is estimated at 1.75 million animals, which is higher on a deer-per-unit-area basis (density) than any other state, and only Texas has a greater number of deer. They live in forests, prairies, coastal areas, and grasslands. Everything You Want To Know About Muntjac, What Do White-Tailed Deer Eat? The reader should bear in mind that many . Idaho has about 520,000 white-tails, and the rest are mule deer. Wayne and Hickman counties are the only two counties that meet both of these criteria. The harvest was 10.9% lower than the 2020/21 record harvest of 17,265 deer, but marked the ninth consecutive year that the Delaware harvest exceeded 14,000 deer. Pennsylvania: 34 deer per square mile. White-tailed deer were plentiful in Illinois during the early 1800s, but supply began to dwindle by 1850 with the development of the railroads, cutting of timber and conversion of prairie land to farm land. Spring Spotlight Survey Results, 2022 After many years of stability, the state reports deer population trended downwards between 2003 and 2015. Conservation efforts, game management programs, and habitat protection have all helped them survive. They will lose these spots after a few months. New Hampshire's Fish and Game Department says human feeding has damaged its deer populations. However Texas is also home to mule deer, who live in the Trans-Pecos and Panhandle regions. The antlers grow in late spring, and are covered with tissue called velvet during this growth period. Read more about white-tailed deer in Michigan at Michigan.gov. Vermont is near the northernmost part of white-tailed deers range, and the deer must look for areas of shelter with mature evergreen trees to withstand the low temperatures and deep snow of winter. Because of this permits and licenses are becoming more flexible opening up new opportunities for the states hunters. Like many other states, deer and other large game in Iowa was hunted to near extinction by the early 1800s. Animal husbandry and agriculture also grew, removing forested land in favor of farming. If the deer population gets too large, it can damage forest growth and destroy native vegetation. Deer species in the U.S. are split into eastern and western groups, with some cross over in the middle. (Texas is big in everything, it seems even deer!) Indiana had almost deer left in 1900. The state's 630,000 deer hunters generate $2.2 billion annually, but according to a report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum, hunting license sales dropped by 5.8 percent from 1999 to 2017. Everything You Want To Know About Muntjac, What Do White-Tailed Deer Eat? Like other deer species they grow new antlers each spring and shed them during the winter. In the late 1800s, India gifted eight Axis deer to King Kamehameha V. These eight ended up on Molokai and have since been introduced to most of the other Hawaiian islands. Trying to figure out their population in the state is challenging due to the remote and densely forested areas where they live. The overall size, length, and branches on antlers depends on how well-fed the deer is, how old it is, and some is just genetics. RALEIGH, N.C. (May 10, 2022) Results from the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission's annual deer harvest summary indicate hunters across the state reported harvesting 168,427 deer during the 2021-22 hunting season a 6.3% increase . Learn more about the gestation period of fawn in this article. They are largely concentrated around the so-called Hill Country and Edwards Plateau regions. California Department Fish and Wildlife: Deer Harvest Requirements. If you ever see a deer in the woods and they spot you, you might catch them flagging as they run away. North Carolina's major efforts to restore our state's deer resource took place in the 1940s through the 1970s. A 2018 estimate puts the white-tailed deer estimate around 18,000 for Rhode Island. The white-tailed deer gets its name from its white patches, which are behind the nose, around the eyes, inside the ears, over the chin and throat, and beneath the tail. Thank you for visiting! Like many states, Ohio successfully reintroduced deer, and they are now thriving. Clearly restocking, management efforts, and the shift away from clearing land for agriculture have worked, to the point where many counties are now trying to lower the number of deer to a more sustainable number. If you do plant deer favorites (fruit trees, sunflowers, peas, lettuce, tulips, hosta, berry bushes), do so strategically. The most recent number listed on the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Parks site estimates 1.75 million white-tailed deer in the state. Michigans many deer are all white-tails. . According to the states department of fish and wildlife, since the early 90s the deer population has stayed between 400,000 and just under 700,000. Oregon Department of Fish & Game: how to hunt deer and elk in Oregon. Deer in the suburbs are well-known for eating the nice flowers and shrubs youve spent time planting in your yard. But by that time, damage to deer herds had already been happening for almost 30 years. There are an estimated 35 to 36 million deer in the U.S. Once hunted almost to extinction, they have made a successful recovery. Kansas has about 50,000 mule deer, and the rest are white-tails. The Department notes that deer live in natural woodlands, shelterbelts, old homesteads, and grasslands in every part of Kansas. The mule deer is a generalist and will forage on whatever is available. They seem to be everywhere, but how populous are they? In the 1800s, however, several Axis deer from India were sent to Hawaii. Depending on the time of year, they eat: The total population of all deer in the U.S. is around 25 to 35 million. 2021 Virginia Deer Season Review. Currently about 110,000 deer are harvested each year in the state. The state Department of Environmental Conservation is concerned that this population may not be sustainable. In Vermont they also prefer the valley areas that have a mix of forest and fields. White-tailed deer in Florida tend to be a little smaller than in other states, due in part to the warm climate. Washington: 305,000. There is a great timeline of deer management through the years on the wildlife departments website. White-tailed deer were once common in Delaware, but hunting reduced their numbers. Columbia Black-tailed deer (Northern California and Pacific Northwest). 2021 data shows an estimated mule deer population of about 84,000 90,000 in Nevada. The majority of the North American population lives east of the Rocky Mountains. They are also an important food source for the endangered Florida panther. This is due in part to lack of predators and changes in land use (less mature forest, more transition zones). develop estimates of deer density across the state. However they are not out of the woods with continued habitat loss and disease (such as the 2017 screwworm epidemic that killed a large portion of male Key deer) threatening their numbers. Coat color tends to be more reddish-brown in the spring and grayish-brown during winter. Besides hunting, deer watching is a popular activity among visitors to the states parks and wildlife management areas. Although Fayette County had the highest harvest rate at 2.6%. The 2020-2021 deer season showed hunters how . The longest known mule deer migration occurs in Wyoming where deer travel 150 miles from the Red Desert to the mountain slopes around the Hoback Basin. Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife: White-tailed deer in Maine. Alabama has more than 1.5 million white-tailed deer. Hunters harvested 168,427 deer during the 2021-22 season; a robust number indicative of a strong population. Deer hunting plays an important role in keeping ecosystems balanced. Contact the AZ Animals editorial team. Combined with habitat protection measures, this ban allowed deer to thrive. Maines many wild, pristine forests are a healthy habitat for deer. Wyoming is home to 70,000 white-tail deer and about 330,000 mule deer. Idaho is home to both mule deer and white-tailed deer. It is one of the few states where mule deer are a more popular game animal than whitetails. But what is their population by state? By the turn of the century people began to realize they needed conservation programs or the deer would go the way of the buffalo. The white-tailed deer found in Arizona belongs to the subspecies called Coues. However the accompanying article states estimates are likely conservative. White-tailed deer populations are growing at a steady pace in Texas. The states only deer species is thriving in every region. Delawares White-Tailed Deer: Hunting and Management. The endangered Columbian white-tailed deer are only found in the far southwestern corner of Washington along the lower Columbia River. Based on 2015 deer populations estimates from North American Whitetail Magazine, here are the worse deer states to live: 1) Georgia: Deer population around 1.2 million. Every three years, the DNR approves population objectives for each deer management unit based on population metrics and CDAC input. That includes white-tail deer, mule deer, black-tail deer, and a handful of rare deer species. The white-tailed deer is the most common game species in the state today, however hunting was banned between 1841 and 1954 to allow the population to rebound after a huge decline in the early to mid 1800s. Deer harvests began to increase again in 2016, possibly due to coyote densities declining. 2021 WAFWA Deer & Elk Business Meeting: Jim Heffelfinger: 1:00-2:40 PM: Deer Session 3: Disease: The white-tailed deer is native to North America, Central America and parts of South America. Because of that, out-of-state hunters' dollars have been a huge boost to the Iowa economy. We will be looking at the population of white-tailed deer, mule deer, and black-tailed deer. Last year, both rifle and archery harvests were below average. There is a really nice timeline of events affecting the deer on the states history of deer management page. Deer adapt to changing environments, and that adaptability has helped them make a strong comeback. Montana has a large population of two types of deer, the mule deer and the white-tailed deer. Wildlife biologists suggest developing softwood, nut-bearing habitats as a better alternative to human feeding. There is some concern that in the long run, they may outcompete the native mule deer. Additional Sources used in this article : WildlifeInformer.com is your #1 source for free information about all types of wildlife and exotic pets. When alarmed, white-tailed deer will raise their tail straight up, flashing the white. They consider the population stable. In the 1950s, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission brought deer from other states to repopulate parts of Florida. Although it has some mule deer, most of the deer in this state are members of the white-tailed family. Mule deer are native to the state, and the white-tailed deer were introduced by Idaho Fish & Game in the 1950s to present more hunting opportunities. Overall outlook: New York's 2021 deer hunting forecast said biologists expect 2021-'22 to be another productive season for hunters. Deer prefer forested areas where they can find vegetation to eat. It is important they have access to both the cover provided by the forest and the grazing in open areas and along the forest edge. Based on preliminary data provided by the South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) the number of reported deer-vehicle collisions for 2021 was 6,409 . After two days of flying, they counted 796 elk - 172 were bulls with 460 cows and 160 calves. The others are black-tail deer and mule deer. Deer populations are actually higher than they were historically in many areas, or they are at the point of exceeding the carrying capacity of their local environment. Arkansas nearly lost its deer population. 42. Colorado Parks & Wildlife: Big Game Hunting. Michigan: 31 deer per square mile. It also has about 320,000 black-tail deer, and the rest are mule deer. Over the years, she raised livestock animals, small animals, dogs, cats, and birds, which is where she learned most of what she knows about various animals and what allowed her to work as a dog groomer and manager of a specialty pet store. White-tailed deer are one of three deer species native to North America. The state attracts more deer hunters than almost any other. South Dakota has more than 80,000 mule deer and 420,000 white-tail deer. Thus far they report that the harvest has not met the numbers they want, and the state is continuing to work on management strategies. According to data from State Farm, U.S. drivers had 1.9 million animal collision insurance claims in the U.S. between July 2021 and June 2022, down 5.5 percent from the same period a year ago. The first recorded sightings of the white-tailed deer in Utah happened in the northern part of the state, Cache county, in the late 1990s. In some states, deer are so plentiful that regular hunting is needed to keep a balanced ecosystem. White-tailed deer are a popular game animal found in almost every part of the United States. Habitat, not predators, is the major factor determining mule deer numbers in Nevada. Despite these high harvests, the population still remains pretty stable. The population is thriving, and Louisiana permits controlled hunting to manage it. Wayne county had a harvest percentage rate of 2.4% and Hickman county had a harvest rate percentage of 2.1%. Deer live in every county of the state. While there is no one fail safe solution to keep them away, here are a few top tips. This includes during the winter and early spring, they feed on Douglas fir, western red cedar, red huckleberry, salal, deer fern, and lichens growing on trees. Mule deer make up the majority, with white-tailed deer mainly found in eastern parts of the state and a few pockets in central and mountain areas. How many deer are in Wisconsin 2021? States With Minimal Deer Populations. Thank you for reading! In 2017 the Georgia Wildlife Resources Division reported an estimated population of 1.27 million. Post hunt population estimates are the starting point for setting antlerless quotas and harvest of antlerless deer is the primary way to manage deer herd abundance. White-tailed deer are found throughout the state even in some coastal locales. Their size can vary greatly dependent on their location. This includes flowers, grass, tree and shrub fruits, nuts, acorns, berries and lichen. The main noticeable difference between the mule deer and the white-tailed deer are ear size, tails, and antlers. It will be something the state keeps an eye on going forward. The Alabama Department of Conservation and other groups began restocking white-tailed deer as early as the 1930s, with most of the restocking efforts happening during the 50s and 60s. In the western states, Idaho is the only state that has at least 750,000 deer within a state. There are nearly 2,000 different species! During this time, Maine's deer population grew to an estimated all time high of 331,000, however, much of the growth occurred within the southern tier of the state. Today, the population sits around 660,000. Unregulated commercial hunting and subsistence hunting threatened to eliminate the white-tailed deer from much of its range. The mule deer population has been in decline since 1980, decreasing from 300,000 to todays estimate of 170,000 190,000 in 2020. We protect and manage the fish, forest, and wildlife of the state. This 2021 article in the Greenville Sun quoted the states wildlife resource agency as estimating 900,000 white-tailed deer in the state. These experiments demonstrate the tremendous capacity for deer population growth when occupying good habitat. The only Southern state in the top 10, Mississippi has an estimated 1.75 million white-tailed deer. They are herbivores who eat what is seasonally available. The Oklahoman reports the estimated deer population today at around 750,000. Each year, hunters take 40 to 70 percent of the antlered bucks and up to 25 percent of the does within many areas of Missouri. This time the population grew to 212 deer in only 6 years. Today, the deer population is estimated to be at least 500,000. Nebraska. The data are then monitored over time to improve deer management and inform decisions about harvest goals. The total population estimate for deer living in the U.S. is approximately 35-36 million. Generally cloudy. We also share helpful tips and guides on a variety of topics related to animals and nature. The program aims to address many factors impacting mule deer such as post-fire rehabilitation, pinyon-juniper removal, invasive weed abatement, re-establishing beneficial shrub/grass/forbs to compromised habitats, water development, spring protection, highway crossings, migration corridor protection, disease surveillance, assessing and trying to mitigate impacts from mining/energy development, predator management, and collaring and monitoring mule deer to identity limiting factors/mortality/habitat selection, etc.. The states Department of Natural Resources says these deer are abundant in every county and habitat of West Virginia. Hawaii has about 1,000 black-tail deer and 110,000 Axis deer. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks: deer information and hunting guide. There is also a small population of black-tailed deer on the island of Kauai that were introduced from Oregon in 1961. The TWRA page states that the deer population has expanded from just a few counties in eastern Tennessee during the 1940s to being present in all 95 counties state-wide today. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks: deer information and hunting guide. Wyoming Game & Fish Department: Deer Hunting. . In the April 2020 state wildlife report, estimates put the elk population in the Black Hills at approximately 6,000 - 8,000, and the population in Custer State Park at approximately 460. To try and combat this, the state has a community deer management assistance program, that includes additional licenses hunters can obtain to harvest deer on private properties, with landowner permission. Finally, Maine's deer population grew prolifically through the 1990's as a result of the regulatory system that limited doe harvest, plus a series of mild winters. If you see a sick or abnormally thin deer or deer dead of unknown causes, please report its location to the CWD hotline: (866) CWD-WATCH (293-9282) . New Mexico has three native deer species. As the largest of the lower 48 states, Texas has lots of room for deer. Archery (including crossbows) accounted for 14% of the deer kill; muzzleloaders, 23%; and firearms, 63%. The New Hampshire Fish & Game page lists the population estimate for the state at 100,000 white-tailed deer. New Mexicos game & fish page states that while poor conditions in the early 2000s suppressed deer numbers, things have since improved and today populations are stable with most experiencing growth. Visit our site to view our resource on Estimating Deer Populations on Your Property: Population Dynamics. The supply of deer food throughout the state was in generally good condition. However, in West Virginia, drivers had the highest likelihood of hitting an animal. Nebraska is another state that is home to both white-tailed and mule . The FWC is working to reduce the risk of CWD spreading into this state with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, hunters, captive cervid owners, landowners, and the public. The good news seems to be that the white-tailed deer numbers have recovered from the hit they took in 2012-2013 from a bad outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD). There are approximately 5.6 Million White-tailed deer in Texas. The distribution of hunted deer is about 60% mule deer and 40% Coues deer. Habitat, Mortality, Harvest Per Hunter, and Deer Observations. Deer where nearly extirpated from the state by the early 1900s, with only a few thousand left in remote pockets. In 1960, there were 22 deer management areas and most deer seasons were only 2 to 4 weeks, with the longest at 56 days. The Axis deer, also known as the chital, is native to the Indian subcontinent. It also has a small but healthy population of sika deer (Cervus nippon yakushimae) They are not native to the state, but they were released into the wild from a private farm. Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. The White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) is the most popular game species in Misissippi.Nationally, the white-tailed deer population likely exceeds 30 million. Georgia Wildlife Resources Division: deer hunting information. In the 1920s, the population almost went extinct from hunting and deforestation. But things got worse. Have some feedback for us? Their tail is thinner than the white-tailed deer, with a distinctive black tip at the bottom. Survey data is collected by field biologists using aerial and ground surveys in the . Nebraska Game & Parks: deer hunting in Nebraska. The deer mostly live in the northeastern part of the state. Read More On the other hand, hunting them provides food for many and their meat is very prized. This represents a 2.4 percent increase in harvest from 2019 (193,073) and is 38 percent below the record harvest established in 2002 (319,902). Other deer related concerns in the state include Lyme disease and deer-vehicle collisions, which are taken to account in the states management practices. It was sometimes an up and down battle for the deer, but things really began to improve in the early 1970s when management of deer was turned over from the state legislature to the department of natural resources.