notice the the amount the hunters alone do for this state&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
CONTACT:
Kent Gustafson: (603) 271-2461
Jane Vachon: (603) 271-3211
December 19, 2006
2006 New Hampshire Deer Harvest Highest in Recent Years
CONCORD, N.H. -- New Hampshire's estimated 2006 hunter harvest of 11,745 deer was the highest in recent years and, when verified, will likely be the highest kill since 1997, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department wildlife biologist and Deer Project Leader Kent Gustafson said today. This represents an 11% increase from 2005. "It is noteworthy that the 2006 harvest was the second-highest deer harvest in 38 years -- since 1968," Gustafson said. New Hampshire has an estimated population of about 85,000 deer. The deer hunting season officially closed in the state on December 15, the final day of the archery deer season.
For the unofficial deer kill for New Hampshire's 2006 season by county, with comparisons to the previous 6 years, click here. Please note that these numbers are estimates based on the number of deer reported as being registered in each county (not necessarily killed in that county) and may not represent complete data.
"It was a good year for deer hunters," said Gustafson. "We had expected that the 2006 harvest would again increase from 2005, as our deer populations continue to increase after some severe winters in the recent past. The increase in harvest for 2006 is the third year in row that the kill has gone up and reflects Fish and Game's attempts to meet the deer population management objectives in much of the state by encouraging deer population growth, helped out by recently mild winters."
Final numbers from the 2006 hunting season, including detailed analysis of the sex, age and distribution on a Wildlife Management Unit basis, will be available in the 2006 New Hampshire Wildlife Harvest Summary, which will be published in late March or early April of 2007 and posted on this website at that time.
The successful 2006 deer hunting season is a reminder that hunters spend more than $71 million dollars in New Hampshire in hunting-related expenses, providing an important boost for the state's economy.
The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department is the guardian of the state's fish, wildlife and marine resources and their habitats.
