Iowa deer harvest down 4,000

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)—Iowa environmental officials say deer hunters harvested about 4,000 fewer deer during the 2008-2009 season compared to the previous year.

According to a news release from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, hunters reported harvesting 142,194 deer during the most recent season.

The majority of the decrease was due to fewer antlered bucks and buck fawns.

Tom Litchfield, a state deer biologist, says the harvest is beginning to reflect deer herd analyses that show that the number of deer across Iowa has declined an estimated 25 percent.

He says hunters have responded to the need to harvest more does in areas where deer numbers are too high.

The release says during the 2008-2009 season, 74,758 does were harvested, compared to 51,710 antlered bucks and 15,726 button bucks.