Regulations
34 results
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesMinnesota firearms deer opens Nov. 7, CWD rule narrowsYour 2026 firearms close is Nov. 15, Nov. 22 or Nov. 29 depending on the permit area. CWD sampling is mandatory opening weekend only in the surveillance block.
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlines2026 Wisconsin gun deer season is Nov. 21 to 29DNR lists the nine-day gun season as Nov. 21-29, 2026, with muzzleloader through Dec. 9 and a holiday hunt in 48 farmland counties. Collar data put the breeding peak earlier.
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesThree Sundays fall in Pennsylvania's Nov. 28 to Dec. 13 deer seasonRegular firearms deer runs Nov. 28 through Dec. 13 and includes Nov. 29, Dec. 6 and Dec. 13. Migratory birds stay closed on Sunday, and twelve WMUs got more antlerless licenses.
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesIowa shotgun deer seasons open Dec. 5 and Dec. 12Gun 1 is Dec. 5 through Dec. 9 and gun 2 is Dec. 12 through Dec. 20. Late bow and muzzleloader start Dec. 21, and both January antlerless seasons end Jan. 24, 2027.
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseDeer with CWD shed prions in urine, and lure rules differ by stateLab studies found prions in urine from CWD-infected whitetails, with detection tied to genotype and disease stage. Virginia and Vermont ban natural urine lures, and Pennsylvania lifted its outdoor ban for 2026-27.
- Regulations · Draws and tagsMinnesota Bear Hunting: 2025 Permit Results, Food Surveys and a Dated Bait RuleReading permit-area results alongside the natural-food survey and bait rules.
- Regulations · Rules and policyWhat Collision Data Tell Us About Deer Hunting Near CitiesAcross six counties near Chicago, deer-vehicle crashes per billion vehicle miles dropped 25% to 57% during 36 years; Illinois' median county finished 4% above its starting rate. Those figures cannot explain the decline's cause, but they give towns five questions for evaluating local deer management.−57%McHenry County deer-collision rate, 1989 to 1993 against 2020 to 2024
- Regulations · Rules and policyThree Counts of Indiana Deer Hunters in One Season: 128,732 to 204,160For 2024, Indiana's DNR gives three different deer-hunter totals. Hunters outside the annual-license tally accounted for a quarter of registered deer. National totals also differ according to what they count.128,732to 204,160: three counts of Indiana deer hunters in one season
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseAmong Wisconsin's 21 Counties Without a CWD Detection, Median Testing Was 60 Deer for 2025Since 1999, each county has tested at least 371 deer. During the 2025 CWD year, county samples ranged from 20 to 183. Ten missed the 59-deer cutoff for excluding 5% prevalence; all missed the 299 needed to exclude 1%.60median deer tested in 2025 in Wisconsin counties with no CWD detection
- Regulations · Draws and tagsColorado Elk and Deer Draws, 2023 to 2025: The Gaps in First-Choice OddsAmong Colorado adults applying as residents, first-choice hunts resulted in licenses at rates of 51.7% for elk and 53.1% for deer. Second-choice rates were 18.8% and 9.9%, while most combinations of hunt and year awarded resident adults no licenses at that choice.51.7%of Colorado resident adults drew a first-choice elk hunt, 2023 to 2025
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseCWD Areas: A Hunter's Plan for Cooling, Sampling, Transport and Carcass WasteWild CWD appears in the USGS county records for 37 states, including 76% of Nebraska's counties. Here is the sequence to follow after a kill, using agency-published timing and three studies that inform venison handling and carcass disposal.37states with wild CWD detections, per the USGS release
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseEHD and CWD: Recognizing the Differences in DeerThe time of year, physical signs and circumstances in which deer are discovered distinguish hemorrhagic disease from chronic wasting disease. County harvest figures cannot distinguish the diseases: decreases of at least 15% from the preceding season were about equally common in Wisconsin's 11 highest-CWD counties and the 50 other counties examined.63Illinois counties with a harvest drop of 15% or more in 2013
- Regulations · Rules and policyHow Antler Point Rules Altered Buck Harvests in Pennsylvania and MississippiThe harvested bucks became older in both states. Mississippi public hunting areas saw fewer bucks taken per 1,000 acres, along with lower gross antler scores among bucks of the same age. Because the studies followed different outcomes, their findings do not form a like-for-like scorecard.64%Pennsylvania yearling survival after antler point rules, up from below 20%
- Regulations · Draws and tagsThe Non-Resident Point Game: Building and Spending Points for Midwest WhitetailWestern big-game point tactics misread the drawings for nonresident whitetail hunters in two Midwest states: Iowa and Kansas. Learn to collect points and use them deliberately.6,000Iowa non-resident licenses, against more than 10,000 applications
- Regulations · Draws and tagsIowa's 2026 Nonresident Deer Draw: Gun Beat Bow in All 10 ZonesIn all 10 Iowa zones, the 2026 nonresident draw gave gun applicants a percentage point edge of 6.4 to 43.2 over bow. More important, a guaranteed draw required bow points of 2 to 6 versus gun points of 0 to 2.10 out of 10Iowa zones where gun applicants beat bow applicants on success
- Regulations · Draws and tagsOregon Elk Draw Odds, 2025: 73 of 152 Hunts Drew at 50% or Better, 10 Under 5%Among 152 Oregon elk hunts for any legal weapon with first-choice applicant pools of at least 100 during 2025, 73 had odds of 50% or higher; 16 gave everyone a tag. Another 10 fell below 5%, with 18,081 of 81,892 first-choice applicants.73 of 152Oregon elk hunts drew at 50% odds or better in 2025
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseTwo States, Opposite Bets: How Wisconsin and Missouri Manage CWDWisconsin ramps up CWD efforts with extensive sampling and generous antlerless harvest rules. For 2026 to 27, Missouri drops its CWD zone, antler-point limits and separate CWD firearms portion. Here is how their policies compare.83counties in Missouri's CWD zone for 2025 to 26
- Regulations · Rules and policyThe Rifle Line Falls: What SB 280 Changes for IndianaIndiana's 2025 law ended all rifle-cartridge limits and the public/private gun split. More reach in woods may boost harvest efficiency, which would pressure the one-buck rule, called social rather than biological by Indiana DNR..219-inchminimum bullet diameter for deer rifles under SB 280
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseThe Two-Disease State: Mapping Michigan's Bovine TB and CWDMichigan's fight against both deer diseases is rare among states: bovine tuberculosis is entrenched within its northeast Lower Peninsula, while chronic wasting disease surveillance spans the Lower Peninsula and the Upper Peninsula.18Michigan counties with confirmed CWD as of February 2026
- Regulations · Rules and policyThe Baiting Divide: One State, Two RulesBaiting is prohibited throughout Michigan's Lower Peninsula and permitted under restrictions in the Upper Peninsula. The Michigan DNR ties that divide to where disease occurs.2 gallonsbait cap per site in the Upper Peninsula
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseThe Density Paradox: Wisconsin's High-Harvest Farmland Is Its SickestWisconsin's Southern Farmland zone has high rates of harvest registration, and every license includes antlerless harvest authorizations at no cost for use in farmland zones. Southern Farmland is also the center of the state's CWD problem. That leaves a paradox: the land hunters want to hunt most is where Wisconsin most needs to reduce deer numbers.12.4deer registrations per square mile in Central Farmland, 2024
- Regulations · Draws and tagsKansas: The Permit Is the ProductKansas produces whitetails that rank among America’s largest, and non-residents must win a drawing for the chance to hunt them. Permits available only through the draw restrict non-resident access.$477.50approximate cost of a Kansas non-resident deer permit
- Regulations · Draws and tagsThe Non-Resident Scorecard: Where an Out-of-State Tag Actually PaysNine Midwest states and three questions: can you get a tag, how much does it cost, and does the state supply county-level data you can use to scout?4×spread in non-resident deer tag prices, Michigan to Nebraska
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesThe Season-Structure Atlas: How Nine States Actually Let You HuntBowhunting dates, gun seasons, legal weapon limits, and buck harvest caps across nine Midwest states, brought together for easy comparison, plus a look at which season choices quietly produce older bucks.Ninestates compared, with archery the longest season in every one
- Regulations · Rules and policyThe Straight-Wall Revolution: How Three States Rewrote the Gun LineIndiana, Michigan, and Ohio began replacing the eastern Corn Belt's shotgun-only firearm rule from 2014 to 2026. Straight-wall cartridges came first; two states went further and allowed full rifle use.2014year Ohio allowed straight-walled rifle cartridges
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseOne in Three: Wisconsin's CWD, RecalculatedWisconsin's headline figure puts lifetime positivity among tested deer at about 5%. Pooling twenty-six years masks a rising rate. In 2025 sampling-year tests, 11.1% were positive; roughly a third were positive in the southern core.35.7%CWD positivity in Richland County in 2025
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseMissouri's CWD Doesn't Creep. It Jumps.933 positive deer by kill section, 2011 to 2025. Three years: positives within half a mile of a Macon County spot. Most mapped positive counties (39 of 55) first detected CWD over 75 miles from origin; farthest about 240 miles.39 of 55mapped counties whose first detection landed over 75 miles from the start
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseThe On-Ramp: Captive Deer and the 69-County Watch ListDeer carry CWD a few miles yearly; people move it much farther. 58% of counties with infected captive facilities have wild CWD. April 2025 data record captive CWD but no wild detection in 69 counties. Start looking there.58%of captive-CWD counties also have wild CWD
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseThe Crash That Hasn't Come: CWD Prevalence vs. the Wisconsin HerdThrough 2024, Wisconsin's core had less decline in crashes than counties below 5% prevalence. Harvest dropped 7% against 3%, a small gap without a collapse. The lag still calls for caution.−6%median drop in collision rate in the highest-prevalence counties, 30% elsewhere
- Regulations · CWD and diseaseThe CWD Epicenter: Wisconsin's Southern Herd at the ThresholdDuring 2025 sampling, southern Wisconsin had 87% of CWD detections. Some southwest areas top 30% prevalence among adult bucks. DNR research sets the herd-decline threshold at about 29% in females. Spread north threatens northern herds.87%of Wisconsin's CWD detections come from the Southern Farmland zone
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesIllinois Deer Seasons and Deadlines, 2026 to 2027Illinois deer season dates, permit deadlines, and CWD zones for 2026 to 2027. Being checked against Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).Nov 20Firearm, 1st portion opens
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesWisconsin Deer Seasons and Deadlines, 2026 to 2027Wisconsin deer season dates, permit deadlines, and CWD zones for 2026 to 2027. Checked against Wisconsin DNR.Nov 21Firearm, 9-day gun opens
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesMissouri Deer Seasons and Deadlines, 2026 to 2027Missouri deer season dates, permit deadlines, and CWD zones for 2026 to 2027. Being checked against Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC).Nov 14Firearm, november (main) opens
- Regulations · Seasons and deadlinesMinnesota Deer Seasons and Deadlines, 2026 to 2027Minnesota deer season dates, permit deadlines, and CWD zones for 2026 to 2027. Checked against Minnesota DNR.Oct 15Youth opens