National Antlerless Deer Harvest Climbs, but Several States Still Lag Behind

The national doe-harvest conversation is finally moving in the right direction, but some states still need hunters to quit treating antlerless tags like an afterthought.

The National Deer Association’s latest look at antlerless whitetail harvest shows the national total increased 5% to 3,180,242 antlerless deer in the 2024-25 season. The Northeast led the way with a 12% jump, the Southeast increased 7%, and the Midwest slipped 0.4%.

That sounds like progress, and it is. But the bigger problem is that buck harvest is keeping pace. NDA counted the same number of states as last year taking more than one antlerless deer per antlered buck. In plain terms, a lot of places still are not putting enough daylight between doe harvest and buck harvest to meet herd and habitat goals.

The report put red flags on states including Michigan, Minnesota, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and South Carolina, while praising stronger antlerless efforts in places like Ohio, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Mississippi and Texas. Texas made the biggest raw jump, adding 96,500 more antlerless deer in 2024 after being called out the previous year.

This is not about killing does for the sake of killing. It is about balanced deer herds, healthier habitat, better fawn recruitment, less browse pressure and stronger hunting down the road. If your state biologists are asking for more antlerless harvest where you hunt, fill the tag, use the meat and be part of the fix.