Illinois e-News Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, Oct. 17, 2025

Media contact: [email protected]



Illinois sets new record for youth deer season harvest

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois youth deer hunters set a new record for the season, harvesting a preliminary total of 4,714 deer Oct. 11-13. Top harvest counties include Randolph, 259; Pike, 164; Adams, 155; Jefferson, 155; and Marion, 135.

Comparatively, youth hunters took 4,097 deer during the season in 2024. 

Youth hunters with an unfilled, valid youth deer permit may still hunt with the permit during the upcoming firearm deer seasons Nov. 21-23 and Dec. 4-7. This is the first year that unfilled youth permits are valid for both segments of the firearm season. 

A table of preliminary Illinois firearm deer harvest totals by county for the 2025 youth deer season and comparable totals for the 2024 and 2023 seasons is below.


County

2025

2024

2023

Adams

155

147

153

Alexander

17

8

16

Bond

35

42

36

Boone

7

6

4

Brown

73

70

80

Bureau

31

22

32

Calhoun

46

39

64

Carroll

14

15

18

Cass

36

32

34

Champaign

17

13

17

Christian

29

42

34

Clark

64

50

58

Clay

92

73

88

Clinton

74

74

71

Coles

44

22

22

Crawford

56

44

42

Cumberland

71

66

68

DeKalb

4

2

2

DeWitt

20

14

16

Douglas

19

12

8

Edgar

36

26

28

Edwards

18

10

7

Effingham

118

98

105

Fayette

122

118

127

Ford

4

2

6

Franklin

49

45

50

Fulton

69

77

92

Gallatin

20

17

24

Greene

87

57

82

Grundy

8

8

11

Hamilton

54

56

61

Hancock

73

67

68

Hardin

20

19

26

Henderson

18

9

14

Henry

30

30

29

Iroquois

35

32

32

Jackson

94

77

90

Jasper

97

76

91

Jefferson

155

139

152

Jersey

41

39

36

Jo Daviess

53

46

58

Johnson

42

48

45

Kane

3

1

0

Kankakee

11

7

8

Kendall

2

2

2

Knox

31

35

37

Lake

0

1

0

LaSalle

29

24

23

Lawrence

25

17

40

Lee

33

31

33

Livingston

17

13

18

Logan

27

29

27

Macon

25

21

26

Macoupin

87

79

85

Madison

51

47

46

Marion

135

119

133

Marshall

33

18

25

Mason

24

26

32

Massac

16

24

22

McDonough

35

34

47

McHenry

4

5

6

McLean

42

28

29

Menard

16

20

25

Mercer

20

18

28

Monroe

79

76

74

Montgomery

84

88

84

Morgan

37

31

35

Moultrie

30

36

28

Ogle

26

16

22

Peoria

38

36

48

Perry

96

86

80

Piatt

13

6

5

Pike

164

147

172

Pope

39

31

37

Pulaski

22

18

35

Putnam

13

6

4

Randolph

259

211

227

Richland

38

36

22

Rock Island

26

16

25

Saint Clair

69

52

54

Saline

46

51

56

Sangamon

42

33

41

Schuyler

70

54

86

Scott

18

12

10

Shelby

100

75

90

Stark

5

11

5

Stephenson

18

6

11

Tazewell

39

34

32

Union

64

57

78

Vermilion

32

29

29

Wabash

17

8

14

Warren

14

8

16

Washington

91

60

64

Wayne

92

80

89

White

47

43

41

Whiteside

40

41

35

Will

8

7

12

Williamson

57

48

57

Winnebago

13

11

10

Woodford

55

49

59

Total

4,714

4,097

4,576



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