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Area deer hunters have successful first weekend of firearm season

Area hunters had another successful deer hunting weekend as state numbers showed a significant increase over last year.

Numbers released by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources show that throughout the state, hunters bagged 58,836 deer in the first weekend of Illinois Firearm Deer Season on November 16-18. During the first weekend of firearm hunting last year, only 51,450 deer were taken in.

Several counties in the area showed increases in deer harvested. This year, Knox County hunters nabbed 862 head of deer in the first firearm weekend. Last year, hunters only brought in 701 in the first weekend.

Increases were also seen in Fulton County, which has the highest numbers of deer harvested in the area with 1,329. An increase of 60 deer from last year.

Hunters in Warren County nabbed 347 head of deer, up from 329 last year, McDonough County hunters harvested 607, up from 526, and Peoria County hunters bagged 589, up from 527.

Henry and Stark counties saw slight decreases from last year. Henry County hunters bagged 346 deer, ten fewer in 2018 than in 2017. In Stark County, hunters harvested 132 deer this year, compared to last year where 135 were hunted.

The second Firearm Deer Season will conclude November 29 through December 2. Muzzleloader-only Deer Season runs on the weekend of December 7-9. Archer Deer Season continues through January 20, 2019

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