(The Center Square) – Wisconsin gun hunters harvested nearly 190,000 deer during the gun hunting season, up 5.2% from the year before.
Hunters harvested 89,737 antlered deer and 99,835 antlerless during the season, which ran from Nov. 23 to Dec. 1.
The numbers rose after the opening weekend was slightly lower than 2023.
Overall, hunters have harvested 289,361 deer this season, 8.7% ahead of the total from one year ago.
Deer hunting license sales are at 791,023, up from 788,697 for the same time period last year. Of those, 553,652 were for gun hunting compared to 553,479 in 2023 at the same time.
Muzzleloader season runs from Dec. 2-11 before a four-day antlerless-only hunt from Dec. 12-15.
There was one reported gun-hunting injury during the season, when a 14-year-old sitting in an enclosed tower stand with his father on private property was shot through both his left and right foot in Vernon County.
“The victim’s father heard what sounded like a gunshot in the distance,” the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources reported. “Shortly after, the victim felt pain in his feet and found that he was shot through both the left and right foot. The victim was transported privately to the hospital and received medical treatment for his injuries. The shooter has been identified, and an investigation is pending.”
