Pike County Tops in Missouri at the End of Deer Hunting Season

We are the champions, my friend is what the song says and Pike County can claim that title as the top harvest location at the end of Missouri's deer hunting season.

The Missouri Department of Conservation just announced the totals for the end of the late antlerless portion of firearms deer season that happened between December 7 and December 15. According to the numbers just released by the state, 14,607 deer were harvested during that hunting period. That's a big drop from 18,916 that were taken during that same season the year previous.

The breakdown by Missouri counties is interesting as Pike County topped the list with 477 deer harvested. Second was Callaway with 391, and Lincoln was third with 382.

Deer hunting is not completely done for Missouri as the Department of Conservation noted "Archery deer hunting continues through Jan. 15, 2025. The alternative methods portion will run Dec. 28 through Jan. 7, 2025.".

Why have hunters taken far less deer in Missouri in 2024 compared to 2023?

Missouri Whitetails has 3 theories including:

• Population decline
• Hemorrhagic disease outbreak
• Drought

The likely answer lies in all 3 factors contributing to less deer being harvest by hunters in the state so far in 2024. We'll see what the final totals look like once archery season ends in early 2025.