Photo by BillKinney.com

By Jeff Brown

New York State boasts a current whitetail population of over one million deer. Hunters enjoy a variety of opportunities from early fall through December for archery, rifle, shotgun and muzzleloader hunting. Although the 2003 deer harvest was 18 percent below the previous year, it was well above the 10-year average.

New York Department of Environmental Conservation wildlife biologists are expecting another very good season in 2004. Here's a look at what happened in 2003, and what deer hunters can expect in their regions this season:

"New York's deer hunters took more than 94,000 adult females in 2003, about 90 percent of the DEC's objective," Crotty said. "Achieving this objective is an important component of the DEC's goal to maintain deer populations at desired levels in New York.

The 2003 total harvest of 253,088 deer was well above the previous 10-year average of 239,000. As a result of winter mortality in 2002-03 and reduced deer numbers in many WMUs, the DEC issued fewer deer management permits (DMPs) during the 2003 season, resulting in a lower overall harvest. DMPs are valid only for the taking of antlerless deer and serve as the cornerstone for statewide deer management efforts.

Next came three counties from Region 9: Cattaraugus County was second with 15,606 deer, followed by Allegany County (14,680 deer) and Chautauqua County (10,628). The fifth best county was St. Lawrence County (9,070 total) from Region 6. Those same counties were also the top five harvest counties in 2002, and historically they rank among the best.

Most anticipate excellent hunting again this year. Here's what regional wildlife managers had to say about last fall's results and the prospects for 2004:

Region 9 includes Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Allegany, Erie, Wyoming and Niagara counties. All but Erie and Niagara produced at least 10 deer per square mile for hunters last fall. Cattaraugus and Allegany counties were bested only by Steuben County in total deer killed. Hunters killed 55,341 deer in Region 9 during the 2003 season and 72,021 deer the previous year.

"Some of our management units are carrying populations of 35 to 40 deer per square mile," said Russ Biss, a Region 9 wildlife manager. He generally recommends wildlife management units 9H, 9P and 9J, where hunters bagged more than 24,000 deer during the 2003 season. Unit 9Y is usually a good bet as well.

There are some promising public-hunting areas in the region. They include Rattlesnake Hill Wildlife Management Area in WMU 9P, which stretches across the border between Allegany and Livingston counties west of Dansville; the Keaney Swamp WMA in the town of Birdsall; and nearly 29,000 acres of state forests. Unit 9Y includes parts of the 2,709-acre Phillips Creek State Forest and the 2,384-acre Vandermark Forest north of Wellsville off county Route 10.

Region 8 stretches from Lake Ontario south through the Finger Lakes to the Pennsylvania border. It includes Orleans, Monroe, Wayne, Genesee, Livingston, Ontario, Yates, Seneca, Steuben, Schuyler and Chemung counties. Seven of the 11 counties in the region gave up more than 10 deer per square mile to hunters during the 2002 season.

Last year, the Region 8 harvest added up to 64,846 deer, including 23,482 bucks. That total was down from 2002's total of 77,894 deer (27,615 antlered bucks), but the harvest decreased in all WMUs in the region except 8C and 8K.

There is reason to be optimistic about 2003. This region contains three of the top seven counties in the state in terms of total deer harvest over the last two years. The mild winter following the 2003 season should produce excellent opportunities for private-land hunters, as well as hunters venturing into any one of the 16 WMAs in the region.

Leading the way, as always, was Steuben County. You can't go wrong on public or private land anywhere in this county. The best WMUs include 8G, H, N and X, all of which produced over 6,000 deer last year. WMU 8P, in the northern part of the county, is always a good bet, including the 998-acre Pigtail Hollow State Forest and 2,690-acre Urbana State Forest, both east of Stickney.

DEC Region 7 includes Oswego, Cayuga, Onondaga, Madison, Tompkins, Cortland, Chenango, Tioga and Broome counties. The region had a mediocre season in 2002, and every WMU finished slightly worse in 2003. The region-wide harvest of 34,735 deer was down nearly 10 percent compared to 2002.

On the bright side, the disappointing take by hunters in 2002 and 2003 means deer numbers are still higher than DEC managers would prefer in some Region 7 management units, and ample numbers of antlerless deer permits should be available this fall.

Recently Region 7's hottest deer-hunting area is Tioga County. Hunters bagged 6,408 deer there in 2003, including 2,415 bucks (4.6 per mile), and has one of the better buck densities in the state.

Steuben County boasts about 8,000 acres of state land. One of the better spots is Michigan Hill State Forest, a 1,209-acre tract between Route 38 and Michigan Hill Road in the town of Richford. Tompkins County hunters posted a harvest of over 5,400 deer, with 4.5 bucks per square mile.

Region 6 includes Jefferson, St. Lawrence, Lewis, Oneida and Herkimer counties. Jim Farquhar, the DEC's Region 6 biologist for the Tug Hill plateau, the upper St. Lawrence River valley and the western foothills of the Adirondacks, predicted last year that hunters in his area might kill fewer whitetails in 2003 than in 2002, and he was right, to the tune of about 5,000 deer.

In some parts of northern New York, deer-car collisions increased, while farmers complained about deer-damaged crops. The DEC gradually reduced such problems by expanding early-season muzzleloading opportunities and making antlerless deer permits available in some areas previously closed to doe hunting.

St. Lawrence County cemented its reputation as a deer-hunting destination in 2002 and 2003, finishing in the top five counties in the state for total deer harvested both years. In 2003, hunters bagged 9,070 deer, including 4,516 bucks.

Jefferson County is also outstanding, with a top 10 harvest for all counties in the state. The buck-per-square-mile harvests in both of these counties are much lower than the other top producers.

Although the majority of deer taken by hunters in Region 6 come from private lands, some good public-hunting opportunities exist at the Ashland Flats WMA in Jefferson County, the Upper and Lower Lakes WMA in St. Lawrence County and at the many state forest parcels scattered throughout the region.

Region 5 includes lands in the eastern half of New York's Northern Zone hunting area, including most of the Adirondacks and Champlain valley. Franklin, Clinton, Essex, Hamilton, Warren, Fulton, Saratoga and Washington counties make up this region.

Hunters bagged 10,236 deer in 2003, compared to more than 15,000 in 2002. This was a significant decline, and the numbers in every WMU were down. This was not unexpected, however, because the winter that followed the Northern Zone's 2002 season was harsh, particularly in the central Adirondacks. The good news is that conditions were much better this past winter. So, there is reason to be optimistic in 2004.

Although it saw a huge decline in 2003, there's no doubt about the prime hunting in Region 5. Washington County gave up approximately one-third of the regional whitetail harvest for the last two seasons, and produced a quarter of the area's buck kill as well. In 2003, the total harvest was highest in the region.

Reed said most of those deer come from fertile farmlands and other private properties in the southern half of the county. Franklin and Saratoga counties are also good destinations, with harvests generally around 2,000 animals.

Jeff Piel, the principal deer manager in Region 4, said that in some management units the new special-season permits for bowhunters and blackpowder hunters introduced two years ago played a key role.

In Region 4, hunters had outstanding results in Otsego, Delaware and Columbia counties, all of which produced over 5,000 deer during 2003, and have led the region's total take in each of the last two seasons. This region also includes Montgomery, Schoharie, Schenectady, Albany, Greene and Rensselaer counties. The total harvest for Region 4 was 28,981 deer (including 13,425 bucks).

Region 3 includes Sullivan, Ulster, Orange, Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester counties. Orange County led the way with the ninth best harvest in the state in 2003 (7,417 deer). Sullivan County was second in the region at 5,546, followed closely by Dutchess (5,514) and Ulster (5,452) counties.

The 7,100-acre Bear Spring Mountain WMA, southeast of Walton, is a good place to sample Delaware County's deer-hunting potential. Orange County hunters do well at Stewart State Forest near Newburgh and on the 10,000-acre West Point Military Reservation.

For details on these areas, contact the Region 3 DEC office in New Paltz at (845) 256-3161; or Jim Beemer, West Point's wildlife manager, at (845) 938-3857.

Deer hunts are carefully regulated on Long Island in Suffolk County, but hunters are often rewarded with some nice deer. Last season's kill of 2,456 deer was one of Suffolk County's best ever, and exceeded the 2002 kill of 2,148 - one of the few counties in the state that improved in 2003.

Most of the deer taken on Long Island fall to bowhunters during Suffolk County's Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 archery season. But hunters may also take a crack at Suffolk County deer during a three-week, weekdays-only firearms season, provided they have the required special permits and written permission from property owners. Almost 750 bucks were taken in this county during the 2003 seasons.

For details on Long Island's deer- hunting regulations, contact the DEC office at (631) 444-0280.