The Wisconsin DNR celebrates the conclusion of the 2024 nine-day gun deer hunt, which kicked off the holiday season in Wisconsin with opportunities to enjoy the outdoors, harvest food for the table, and create memories with family and friends.
Preliminary License Sales Data
Preliminary figures indicate the number of deer hunters in Wisconsin slightly increased compared to 2023. As of 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 1, sales for deer hunting privileges (which include gun, archery, crossbow, conservation patron and sports licenses) reached 791,023, up from 788,697 for the same time period last year. Of those, 553,652 were for gun privileges only, up from 553,479 in 2023.
Deer hunting license and harvest authorization sales will continue throughout the remaining deer hunting seasons.
Preliminary Harvest Totals
Preliminary figures show hunters registered 189,622 deer during the 2024 gun deer season, including 89,787 antlered and 99,835 antlerless deer. Compared to 2023, the gun season harvest total is up 5.2% statewide, with the antlered harvest up 3.6% and the antlerless harvest up 6.6%.
Since the opening of the bow and crossbow seasons, Wisconsin hunters have registered 289,361 deer. This harvest is 8.7% ahead of the same time last year.
Adams County in the Central Farmland Zone led the state with 12.4 deer registered per square mile. Vernon County led the Southern Farmland Zone with 7 deer registered per square mile. Adams County also led the Central Forest Zone registering 4.2 deer per square mile. Finally, Florence County led the Northern Forest Zone with 2.9 deer registered per square mile.
The regular gun deer season ran from Nov. 23 through Dec. 1 and is followed by the statewide muzzleloader season (Dec. 2-Dec. 11), the statewide antlerless-only four-day hunt (Dec. 12-Dec. 15) and the antlerless-only holiday hunt in select farmland zone counties (Dec. 24-Jan. 1, 2025).
