With nearly 300,000 deer killed, the latest deer-hunting season ended slightly behind the previous year.
Preliminary data from Missouri Department of Conservation shows the total deer harvest for the season of 293,670. Out of that total were 143,049 antlered bucks, 26,599 button bucks and 124,022 does.
Top harvest counties for the overall deer season were Franklin with 6,392 deer harvested, Texas with 5,478 and Callaway with 5,452.
For the 2020-2021 deer hunting season, hunters killed 297,214 deer with 140,855 being antlered bucks, 28,652 being button bucks and 127,707 being does.
This harvest is slightly down and about three percent above the previous five-year average, said Jason Isabelle, MDC Cervid Program Supervisor.