According to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), 15,383 whitetail deer were harvested by Delaware hunters during the 2021/22 hunting season. Although the total harvest was nearly 11% lower than the 17,265 deer harvested in 2020/21, it was the state’s third highest deer harvest and the ninth consecutive year that Delaware hunters harvested at least 14,000 deer.
As Delaware hunters must report deer harvests along with harvest method, DNREC announced the following harvest statistics during the April 26 meeting of the Delaware Advisory Council for Wildlife and Freshwater Fish:
- Handgun: .3%
- Straight-wall pistol caliber rifles: 33%
- Muzzleloader: 9%
- Shotgun: 37%
- Archery: 20% (66% crossbow, 34% vertical bow)
As in previous years, the majority of deer (8,622) were harvested in Sussex County, followed by Kent (4,334) and New Castle (2,427) Counties.
More than 40% of the deer were harvested during the November shotgun season, and 86% of the deer were harvested on private property. Does accounted for 55% of the total harvest, although nearly 71% of the total harvest consisted of antlerless deer (which included juvenile bucks).
In addition to whitetail deer, 4 sika deer were harvested during the 2021/22 deer hunting season, including one in New Castle County.