The West Virginia DNR reports a decline in the 2012 buck harvest in West Virginia.
A preliminary check of game tags from the two week buck firearms season in the state finds hunters killed 56,173 bucks from November 19-December 1. The figure is a seven percent drop from the 2011 harvest figure of 60,157.
The top ten counties for buck hunters were Preston County with a total of 2,108 bucks, Greenbrier County 1,907, Randolph County, 1,792, Mason County, 1,667 and Jackson County at 1,662 bucks. Rounding out the top ten were Hampshire, Monroe, Ritchie, Wetzel, and Hardy Counties.
The harvest dropped in four of the six DNR districts. The largest percentage decrease came in the western and central counties of the state. The harvest ranked 27th all time for antlered buck firearms season.
DNR Biologists collected a wide range of data from 24 West Virginia counties at check stations this year. Their preliminary analysis finds the health of the deer and antler development was good. Dry weather on the first three days enabled hunters to participate for a longer period of time than last year. DNR officials say the deer densities were more in balance with habitat in many areas and the better-than-average acorn crop kept deer in the woods more than in open fields.