DNR Says There Will be Bucks Aplenty This Hunting Season

(KNSI) – Hunters will have plenty of opportunities to bag a buck this season, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resouces.

Hunters can harvest as many as three deer in many permit areas and five in chronic wasting disease management zones. The DNR also encourages people to use antlerless deer tags to help keep populations in check.

The best spots will be in southern Minnesota, where numbers are the highest. The DNR says deer populations grew and fared well during last year’s mild winter. River floodplains offer some of the best deer habitats for hunting in southern areas of the state.

Last winter was one of the mildest on record and was exactly what the deer herd in northwestern Minnesota needed following the moderate to severe winters of 2021-22 and 2022-23. Over the summer, the DNR took several reports of does giving birth to twins and even triplets in that area. They say that will help local herds recover from those more harsh winters.

Experts say scouting for local pockets of deer will be essential for success, and the best places to look are areas with open fields and forests.

The DNR says hunters should know the permit area number for the area where they plan to hunt before buying a license so they can understand chronic wasting disease regulations and sampling options.

More than 400,000 deer hunters are preparing to head to the woods and fields on Saturday, November 9th, when the firearms season begins.

For more on this year’s hunt, click here.

___