The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department has released preliminary numbers for the 2016 deer hunting seasons - and things look good.
The preliminary numbers have been tallied, and Vermont hunters harvested a total of 16,160 deer during the 2016 seasons - making it the second-highest total on record since 2002.
Here is a breakdown of the numbers:
- Archery Season - 3,447
- Youth Season - 1,438
- Rifle Season - 7,725
- Muzzleloader Season - 3,350
The 16,160 deer equates to 3 million venison meals.
"The increased harvest was primarily due to the exceptionally mild winter of 2016 which allowed more deer to survive. Additionally, the department issued nearly twice as many muzzleloader antlerless deer permits this year to provide more harvest opportunity and to limit population growth in some parts of the state."
Hunters also submitted more than 2,700 teeth from rifle season bucks. These will be used to gathering a better understanding of bucks in the state.
The final report will be released in early February 2017 and can be found here.
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