Wisconsin deer research / Waupaca County
Waupaca County, Wisconsin Deer Hunting Research
Provisional FDR Deer Herd Index 47.5 Provisional, ranked #51 of 61 ranked Wisconsin counties. Built from Wisconsin DNR county registrations, 1960–2025 plus public-land access.
C - Above AverageWhat drives the Waupaca County index
Provisional components, each scored 0–100 against the ranked Wisconsin counties. Provisional.
Buck Index
94→ out of 100. How this county ranks on the Buck Index against every county we cover. 100 is the top. Land is measured as what a hunter can actually hunt (10 m estimate).
Hunting pressure
Pressure Index 9.6 / 10 (Higher). About 18 deer hunters per square mile of huntable land: 96th percentile of 3,051 rated counties in 48 states, 96th percentile within Wisconsin. How often deer run into people, 0 to 10 on one scale across every rated state; 10 is the most crowded county in the country.
Modeled. Wisconsin does not publish hunter numbers by county, so FDR places this county within Wisconsin from deer harvest per huntable acre (2021 to 2025 seasons) and population density. The model was checked against agency hunter counts in Michigan, Indiana and Missouri, and against agency hunter surveys by hunting unit in 10 more states. It estimates crowding; it is not a hunter count. Wisconsin averages 13.5 deer hunters per square mile of huntable land (National Deer Association Deer Report, 2024 season).
1960–2025 harvest trend
| Season | Total harvest |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 10,740 |
| 2024 | 10,349 |
| 2023 | 9,097 |
| 2022 | 10,370 |
| 2021 | 9,347 |
| 2020 | 10,315 |
| 2019 | 9,153 |
| 2018 | 11,079 |
| 2017 | 11,386 |
| 2016 | 13,075 |
| 2015 | 11,428 |
| 2014 | 11,589 |
| 2013 | 12,074 |
| 2012 | 12,281 |
| 2011 | 11,417 |
| 2010 | 9,910 |
| 2009 | 8,747 |
| 2008 | 13,308 |
| 2007 | 15,959 |
| 2006 | 16,723 |
| 2005 | 15,398 |
| 2004 | 18,630 |
| 2003 | 14,758 |
| 2002 | 12,032 |
| 2001 | 12,233 |
| 2000 | 14,592 |
| 1999 | 13,525 |
| 1998 | 11,226 |
| 1997 | 11,702 |
| 1996 | 12,797 |
| 1995 | 11,167 |
| 1994 | 11,541 |
| 1993 | 9,670 |
| 1992 | 11,322 |
| 1991 | 12,729 |
| 1990 | 12,351 |
| 1989 | 12,242 |
| 1988 | 11,629 |
| 1987 | 11,418 |
| 1986 | 12,161 |
| 1985 | 12,785 |
| 1984 | 11,153 |
| 1983 | 10,105 |
| 1982 | 8,897 |
| 1981 | 7,929 |
| 1980 | 6,400 |
| 1979 | 4,205 |
| 1978 | 6,062 |
| 1977 | 5,198 |
| 1976 | 5,733 |
| 1975 | 6,428 |
| 1974 | 4,903 |
| 1973 | 4,675 |
| 1972 | 4,220 |
| 1971 | 3,858 |
| 1970 | 3,716 |
| 1969 | 4,931 |
| 1968 | 5,991 |
| 1967 | 6,228 |
| 1966 | 5,311 |
| 1965 | 3,726 |
| 1964 | 3,026 |
| 1963 | 1,527 |
| 1962 | 1,285 |
| 1961 | 1,259 |
| 1960 | 875 |
Harvest totals from Wisconsin DNR county registrations, 1960–2025. WDNR reports totals by county and season; archery / firearm splits are not broken out in this dataset.
See full Waupaca County harvest charts →
Harvest composition
WDNR reports each deer as antlered or antlerless. In 2025, the Waupaca County harvest was 5,202 antlered and 5,538 antlerless deer.
| Season | Antlered | Antlerless | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5,202 | 5,538 | 10,740 |
| 2024 | 5,192 | 5,157 | 10,349 |
| 2023 | 4,315 | 4,782 | 9,097 |
| 2022 | 4,556 | 5,814 | 10,370 |
| 2021 | 4,454 | 4,893 | 9,347 |
| 2020 | 4,466 | 5,849 | 10,315 |
| 2019 | 3,960 | 5,193 | 9,153 |
| 2018 | 4,429 | 6,650 | 11,079 |
| 2017 | 4,731 | 6,655 | 11,386 |
| 2016 | 5,183 | 7,892 | 13,075 |
| 2015 | 5,295 | 6,133 | 11,428 |
| 2014 | 5,044 | 6,545 | 11,589 |
| 2013 | 4,830 | 7,244 | 12,074 |
| 2012 | 5,442 | 6,839 | 12,281 |
| 2011 | 4,981 | 6,436 | 11,417 |
| 2010 | 4,760 | 5,150 | 9,910 |
| 2009 | 4,142 | 4,605 | 8,747 |
| 2008 | 3,743 | 9,565 | 13,308 |
WDNR's antlerless category includes does AND button bucks (male fawns); it is not a doe-only count. Table shows the most recent 18 seasons; the full 1960–2025 series (66 years) drives the chart.
See full Waupaca County composition charts →
Herd & land detail
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Latest season (2025) | 10,740 deer |
| Harvest per sq mi | 14.36 |
| Antlered harvest | 5,202 |
| Antlerless harvest | 5,538 |
| County land (sq mi) | 747.70 |
| Public-land acres | 10,585 |
Methodology
Provisional index. Provisional index: herd, harvest, the Buck Index, and roadway (exposure-normalized deer-vehicle crash rate) components; habitat/age-structure partial where the state does not publish them.. FULLY DRAWN RESEARCH · Wisconsin DNR (WDNR) PROVISIONAL COUNTY DEER INDEX
Informational only. Built from public-record Wisconsin DNR (WDNR) county harvest data, US Census TIGER county land area, the Buck Index, and exposure-normalized deer-vehicle crash rates where published. Provisional index; some components partial or pending. Not a prediction or guarantee. Verify with the Wisconsin DNR (WDNR).
See Waupaca County on the map
Parcels with owner & acreage, public hunting land, leaf-off imagery, and this research, together on one hunting map.
Nearby counties
Frequently asked questions
Is Waupaca County, Wisconsin good for deer hunting?
Waupaca County scores 47.5 of 100 on the provisional FDR Deer Herd Index (C - Above Average), ranked #51 of 61 ranked Wisconsin counties. The provisional index is built from WDNR public harvest records, the Buck Index and deer-vehicle crash data; some components are partial, as noted in the methodology.
How many deer were harvested in Waupaca County last season?
WDNR records show 10,740 deer harvested in Waupaca County, Wisconsin in 2025, the most recent reported season.
Cite this
Fully Drawn Research. "Waupaca County, Wisconsin deer hunting research." County page. https://www.fullydrawnresearch.ai/research/wi/waupaca. Accessed Nov 1, 2026.
Data and charts from this page are free to use with attribution. See the Content Lab.