Nothing like the rut to even up the harvest. Through Sunday, Illinois bowhunters have taken near the same number of deer as last year.
And the percentage of bucks in the overall harvest has jumped significantly.
Photo at the top is one of my most exciting and frustrating, watching those two bucks out of range for hours a few years ago.
Here is the latest from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources:
ARCHERY DEER Through Sunday, November 6, 2016, Illinois archery deer hunters harvested a preliminary total of 25,479 deer, compared to 25,677 for the same period in 2015. Harvest to date has consisted of 51% does and 48% males (13065: 12414), but harvest during the past week was 2/3 male as rutting activity increased. Top five counties were Pike (968), Fulton (679), Adams (598), Jefferson (579), and JoDaviess (541). A table of county results is attached. Up-to-date archery harvest figures (for either deer or turkey) by county/state sites can be tracked on the web at http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/hunting/Pages/IDNRHarvestQuery.aspx Paul Shelton, Manager Forest Wildlife Program
Here is the county-by-county breakdown:
| County | 2015 | 2016 |
| Adams | 527 | 598 |
| Alexander | 60 | 64 |
| Bond | 170 | 161 |
| Boone | 64 | 66 |
| Brown | 365 | 396 |
| Bureau | 319 | 311 |
| Calhoun | 325 | 278 |
| Carroll | 301 | 334 |
| Cass | 264 | 271 |
| Champaign | 152 | 163 |
| Christian | 216 | 231 |
| Clark | 274 | 330 |
| Clay | 206 | 249 |
| Clinton | 144 | 161 |
| Coles | 264 | 250 |
| Cook | 50 | 36 |
| Crawford | 323 | 356 |
| Cumberland | 165 | 193 |
| DeKalb | 85 | 86 |
| DeWitt | 266 | 239 |
| Douglas | 79 | 82 |
| Dupage | 12 | 9 |
| Edgar | 182 | 161 |
| Edwards | 90 | 77 |
| Effingham | 182 | 221 |
| Fayette | 291 | 336 |
| Ford | 23 | 26 |
| Franklin | 410 | 392 |
| Fulton | 757 | 679 |
| Gallatin | 111 | 83 |
| Greene | 282 | 328 |
| Grundy | 177 | 140 |
| Hamilton | 245 | 265 |
| Hancock | 327 | 331 |
| Hardin | 148 | 155 |
| Henderson | 119 | 106 |
| Henry | 236 | 234 |
| Iroquois | 170 | 163 |
| Jackson | 437 | 414 |
| Jasper | 196 | 220 |
| Jefferson | 589 | 579 |
| Jersey | 247 | 232 |
| JoDaviess | 584 | 541 |
| Johnson | 291 | 274 |
| Kane | 127 | 94 |
| Kankakee | 122 | 149 |
| Kendall | 92 | 91 |
| Knox | 474 | 425 |
| Lake | 158 | 93 |
| LaSalle | 370 | 357 |
| Lawrence | 178 | 201 |
| Lee | 223 | 222 |
| Livingston | 126 | 111 |
| Logan | 144 | 137 |
| Macon | 228 | 211 |
| Macoupin | 426 | 440 |
| Madison | 396 | 386 |
| Marion | 433 | 404 |
| Marshall | 164 | 181 |
| Mason | 153 | 150 |
| Massac | 92 | 101 |
| McDonough | 209 | 254 |
| McHenry | 275 | 274 |
| McLean | 243 | 237 |
| Menard | 173 | 146 |
| Mercer | 265 | 213 |
| Monroe | 142 | 146 |
| Montgomery | 310 | 294 |
| Morgan | 245 | 269 |
| Moultrie | 155 | 131 |
| Ogle | 388 | 383 |
| Peoria | 404 | 414 |
| Perry | 326 | 353 |
| Piatt | 67 | 65 |
| Pike | 984 | 968 |
| Pope | 280 | 295 |
| Pulaski | 83 | 85 |
| Putnam | 137 | 127 |
| Randolph | 449 | 439 |
| Richland | 129 | 167 |
| Rock Island | 363 | 358 |
| Saline | 193 | 160 |
| Sangamon | 326 | 318 |
| Schuyler | 392 | 402 |
| Scott | 91 | 84 |
| Shelby | 322 | 332 |
| St. Clair | 298 | 266 |
| Stark | 58 | 68 |
| Stephenson | 266 | 278 |
| Tazewell | 264 | 238 |
| Union | 334 | 311 |
| Vermilion | 407 | 399 |
| Wabash | 84 | 80 |
| Warren | 146 | 119 |
| Washington | 212 | 196 |
| Wayne | 343 | 351 |
| White | 180 | 175 |
| Whiteside | 245 | 269 |
| Will | 319 | 340 |
| Williamson | 452 | 404 |
| Winnebago | 247 | 245 |
| Woodford | 240 | 252 |
| Grand Total | 25677 | 25479 |
