Among the 100,000-plus bucks that Empire State hunters bagged last fall were some truly impressive trophies.

According to the Northeast Big Buck Club (which includes New York, Pennsylvania and all of New England), New York hunters registered several bucks gross-scoring at least 200 Boone and Crockett points.

And dozens scoring over 150 inches came from all over the state.

Archers, muzzleloaders and gun hunters took good bucks in various parts of this large and diverse state, from September all the way through January.

According to Pete Grannis, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) commissioner, the take for 2007 included 104,451 bucks and 114,690 antlerless deer.

The buck kill grew by 8 percent over 2006 (96,569) and 17 percent over 2005 (89,015), suggesting that deer populations in many portions of the state are continuing to grow.

The perennial leader in buck take -- Steuben County -- surprisingly fell to third place in 2006, but regained its top position in 2007 with a buck kill of 5,657.

Allegany County was next with 4,660 bucks, followed by Cattaraugus County with 4,470 bucks.

Erie and Chautauqua rounded out the top five.

A more accurate picture may be revealed by harvest density. By this calculation, the top counties for buck harvests were Allegany County (4.5 bucks per square mile), Yates (4.3), Wyoming (4.0), Steuben (4.0) and Tompkins (3.8).

These counties produced the most deer, the most bucks and in some cases, the biggest bucks.

But huge bucks came from every corner of the state.

The largest buck of the 2006 season was taken by Bob Cuozzo during the firearms season in Chemung County. This huge 19-point non-typical had a gross B&C score of 215 3/8 and a net score of 209 6/8.

Also in 2007, Keith LeVick killed the largest buck of the year -- and a new muzzleloader state record -- in Niagara County. That 22-point non-typical scored an amazing 231 2/8 gross and 221 0/8 net B&C points.

There was also a 200-class archery buck taken in Sullivan County, but that one is still pending official scoring by the NBBC.

HOTSPOTS FOR BIG BUCKS
Not every buck gets this big, of course.

In the Adirondacks, trophy bucks reach maturity by simply avoiding hunters. In western New York, where deer populations are high, hunting pressure is offset by good genetics and nutrition. In the Southern Zone, fewer bucks avoid shotgun hunters long enough to see their second year, so while many bucks are taken, most of them have mediocre racks.

Though any part of the state can produce trophy bucks, habitat and hunting conditions impact your probability of harvesting a trophy buck.

New York's whitetail herd is currently estimated at over 1 million deer, and local experts are encouraged about this fall's buck-hunting prospects. Here's what hunters can expect for the upcoming season:

WESTERN NEW YORK
Western New York includes regions 7, 8 and 9 (and their corresponding wildlife management units), which stretch from the Interstate Route 81 corridor west to the shores of Lake Erie and the Niagara River.

In 2007, hunters in western New York took 57,140 bucks, compared to 51,336 bucks in 2006.

Steuben County was the harvest leader in both the region and the state with 5,657, or four bucks per square mile.