Holiday antlerless deer season brings Christmas cheer to hunters in Oklahoma

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          Christmas family traditions range from eating out and attending services on Christmas Eve to giving out gifts and stockings filled with treats. But in Oklahoma, families can even go deer hunting over the Christmas holidays.

            This year the holiday antlerless deer gun season will be open for 10 days starting Dec. 16 and running through Dec. 25 in open areas.

            Most of the state will be open to antlerless hunting those days, except for the majority of the Panhandle and portions of southeast Oklahoma. All public hunting areas and private lands in southeast Oklahoma’s zone 10 are closed to the holiday antlerless deer gun season. Seasons on public lands may vary from statewide season dates. For a map of Oklahoma’s antlerless deer hunt zones and to see which counties will be open for the holiday antlerless deer gun season, consult page 25 of the current “Oklahoma Hunting Guide,” as well as the “Public Hunting Lands” section on page 48 of the guide for seasons on specific public areas.

            Last year almost 40,000 hunters participated in the holiday antlerless deer season.

            “A good number of those hunters were successful with 4,377 deer being checked during that season,” said Jerry Shaw, big game biologist for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. 

            According to Shaw, high doe harvests help accomplish several important management benefits such as preventing localized overpopulations, improving buck:doe ratios for a more healthy herd, reducing competition for forage to promote greater antler growth in bucks, reducing the potential for deer/vehicle collisions, and lessening the extent of potential crop depredation.

            To participate in the holiday antlerless deer gun season, resident hunters must possess a valid hunting license and a holiday antlerless deer gun license, unless exempt. Resident youth hunters 16 or 17 years old must purchase a hunting license and a $10 youth holiday antlerless deer gun license, unless exempt. Youth under 16 are not required to purchase a hunting license but they must possess a $10 youth holiday antlerless deer gun license.

            Although nonresident deer hunters are exempt from a hunting license while hunting deer, they must possess a nonresident deer gun license.

            Hunters age 8-30 who have not completed the Wildlife Department’s hunter education class may still hunt during the holiday antlerless deer gun season, but their licenses will have an apprentice designation, and the hunter must be accompanied by a qualified adult hunter who remains within arms reach of the apprentice hunter while hunting. For details, consult the current “Oklahoma Hunting Guide” online at wildlifedepartment.com.
           
           In addition, hunters participating in the holiday antlerless deer season must comply with the hunter orange requirements for the regular deer gun season. Archery hunters and those hunting most other species in open holiday antlerless zones must wear either a hunter orange hat or upper garment while hunting.
           
   To learn more about this year’s antlerless deer season, consult the current “Oklahoma Hunting Guide” or log on to wildlifedepartment.com.

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OK Deer gun season at a glance

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Deer gun season runs Nov. 19 through Dec. 4 — a full 16 days of long-awaited and long-celebrated tradition in which more than 156,000 hunters participate every fall, making it one of the largest sporting events in the state.
            Since 1933, deer gun hunters have been making their way into the woods and fields of Oklahoma for hunting season, and this year looks to be no different. In the early part of the last century, when deer populations were down to just a few hundred animals, hunters and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation took up the call to once again have healthy deer populations across the state. Part of this conservation effort began with the historic deer trap-and-transplant projects of the mid-1940s, ‘50s and ‘60s. Today, Oklahoma can boast having deer in every county and a whitetail population in excess of 500,000 animals. Hunters have generous harvest limits and expansive opportunities statewide for hunting deer.
            To hunt deer in Oklahoma, residents much have a hunting license or proof of exemption, as well as a deer gun license (antlered or antlerless) for each deer hunted or proof of exemption. Resident youth hunters 16 or 17 years old must purchase a hunting license but can purchase a youth deer gun license for each deer hunted that costs only $10. Nonresident deer hunters are exempt from a hunting license while hunting deer, but they must possess a nonresident deer gun license or proof of exemption. Holders of nonresident lifetime hunting and lifetime combination licenses are not exempt from purchasing deer licenses.
            Antlerless deer may only be harvested on specified days and in zones open to antlerless harvest. A map showing the antlerless days and zones is available on page 25 of the current “Oklahoma Hunting Guide,” available online at wildlifedepartment.com.
            The deer gun limit is one antlered and two antlerless deer (at least one antlerless deer must be harvested from Zone 2, 7 or 8). The harvest of antlerless mule deer is prohibited during deer gun season, and deer taken by hunters participating in deer gun season are included in the hunters’ combined season limit of six.
            Resident hunters who do not harvest an antlered deer during deer gun season may use their unfilled deer gun antlered license to harvest an antlerless deer on the last day of the deer gun season, but they must still comply with the limit restriction of no more than two antlerless deer during deer gun season.
            Seasons on public lands may vary from statewide season dates. For full details and regulations, consult the “Oklahoma Hunting Guide” online at wildlifedepartment.com.

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