ESPN Hunting

Season dates:

• Archery: Oct. 1-Jan. 15 (Jan. 1-15 is antlerless only)
• Muzzleloader: Oct. 22-30.
• Youth/disabled: Oct. 14-16.
• Firearm: Nov. 19-Dec. 4.
• Special antlerless: Dec. 16-18 and Dec.30-Jan. 1 (check regulations for open areas).

Resident license fees: Hunting license is $20 and a deer tag is $20.

Nonresident license fees: Individual tags cost $201. A combination tag is available for $251 and is good for one antlered and one antlerless deer.

Bag limit: Total bag limit for all seasons combined is six (6) deer which may include no more than three (3) antlered deer. Individual season bag limits are as follows: archery = four (4) deer, which may include no more than two (2) antlered deer; muzzleloader = one antlered and one (1) antlerless deer with proper tags; gun = one (1) antlered deer and in open zones one (1) antlerless deer; youth = one antlerless deer; special antlerless season = one (1) antlerless deer. (Note: this is a "bonus" deer and does not count against regular season limit according to Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation deer biologist and wildlife research supervisor Mike Shaw.)

Hunter education/bowhunter education required? Yes, hunter safety education is required for anyone born after Dec. 31, 1971 that hunts during a firearm season. Bowhunter safety education is not required.

Population for 2005: 475,000.

Season forecast: Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation biologist and wildlife research supervisor Mike Shaw says that deer hunting prospects for the 2005/2006 deer season are excellent in the Sooner State.

With the longest archery season in state history, the third year of the 16 day gun season about to occur, and additional antlerless days in some zones across the state, Oklahoma deer hunters have more opportunity than ever during the 2005 whitetail hunting campaign.

The longer seasons have provided additional benefits by allowing hunters to be more selective when harvesting bucks. According to Shaw, the percentage of bucks harvested in the yearling age class continues to decrease in Oklahoma, indicating that the state's deer hunters are doing a better job of passing up younger deer. Another mild winter last year was followed by an unusually dry spring, but Shaw indicates that recent rains have spurred plenty of good quality forage and early indications are fawn production has been excellent.

According to Oklahoma's head deer man, the preseason population in the state is looking about the same as it did last year. All things being considered, that should produce a statewide harvest of around 100,000 deer.

2004 harvest: 94,689 deer.

Bow harvest: 14,639 deer.

Muzzleloader harvest: 21,317 deer.

Firearm harvest: 58,733 deer.

Number of licensed deer hunters: 174,732.

Deer hunter success rates: 25 percent.

Number of bowhunters: 81,083.

Bowhunter success rates: 18 percent.

Number of muzzleloader hunters: 106,395.

Muzzleloader success rates: 20 percent.

Number of firearm hunters: 158,572.

Firearm success rates: 37 percent.

Top counties/regions: Shaw pinpoints Osage, Cherokee, Pittsburg, Craig, and Delaware counties as the top choices across the Sooner State.

Top public-hunting spots: Three Rivers, Ouachita, and Honobia Creek Wildlife Management Areas.

Testing conducted for chronic wasting disease?: Yes.

Units/areas that tested positive for chronic wasting disease: None. Shaw indicates that 1,268 samples were tested from throughout the state in 2004 and none tested positive for CWD. Over 4,200 samples have been tested since 1999 with none positive. (Note: While CWD has not been found within Oklahoma's wild whitetail deer or elk herd, the Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance Web site and the ODWC Web site confirm that the disease has been discovered in captive elk in central Oklahoma.)

State record typical: 185 6/8 inches, taken by bowhunter Larry Luman in Bryan County in 1997.

State record non-typical: 248 6/8 inches, taken by Michael Crossland in Tillman County in 2004.

State record archery typical: 185 6/8 inches, taken by bowhunter Larry Luman in Bryan County in 1997.

State record archery non-typical: 232 4/8 inches, taken by Brett Brame in Pushmataha County in 2000.

More information: Log onto the ODWC Web site or call (405) 521-2739. To report a poacher, call Operation Game Thief at (800) 522-8039.

Did you know? With more than a 100 day long archery season, more than 81,000 bowhunters, and a bow harvest that represents a full 16 percent of the statewide harvest, bowhunting is as big a deal in Oklahoma as OU Sooner and OSU Cowboy college football is … With few exceptions, the majority of Oklahoma's more than 75 public wildlife management areas are open to deer archery hunters for all or part of the season … The Sooner State is a sleeper for top-end trophy bucks. Need proof? Well, the overall state record typical, a 1997 Bryan County whitetail arrowed by Atoka archer Larry Luman, ranked as high as 40th all-time according to the 2nd edition of the Pope & Young Club's "Bowhunting Records of North American Whitetail Deer." The massive southern Oklahoma buck sports a gross score of 208 0/8 inches and a net score of 185 6/8 inches … More proof? Well, Oklahoma's top Cy Curtis Award program non-typical is a newly crowned 248 6/8 inch buck taken in Tillman County last season by Michael Crossland. The deer, which has 24 scorable points, was at the center of a legal dispute that was recently dismissed. The deer was scored and crowned the Cy Curtis No. 1 at the first ever Oklahoma Wildlife Expo held in late August … The Cy Curtis Award program was established in 1975 to recognize trophy deer taken throughout Oklahoma. Deer scoring 135-inches or better (as scored by either an ODWC employee, a Boone & Crockett measurer, or a Pope & Young measurer after a 60-day drying period) are eligible for the program, an awards certificate, and inclusion into the state record book … Like many other states, Oklahoma's deer herd has come a long way since the early 1900s when as few as 500 whitetails roamed the state. Oklahoma wildlife officials began to change that trend in 1944 when they initiated a deer relocation program. Among other places, deer were trapped at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge near Lawton and at the McAlester Army Ammunition Depot. The deer were then transported to other parts of the state where suitable habitat existed and released. Today, the herd stands strong at nearly 475,000 deer and record statewide deer harvests are becoming almost an annual occurrence. In fact, Oklahoma biologists are now trying to keep the growing herd under control with more antlerless hunting opportunities … The overall economic impact of deer hunting on the Oklahoma economy is more than $600 million … White-tailed deer may consume more than 600 types of plants and plant products, but mast producing trees, browse and cool season forage are considered as some of the most important assets of quality deer habitat in Oklahoma … According to the ODWC Web site, in accordance with recent legislation, Kansas residents may now buy deer hunting licenses and hunt deer and other big game in Oklahoma … During the youth antlerless deer gun, deer muzzleloader, deer gun and special antlerless deer gun seasons, hunters are allowed to carry both archery equipment as well as other methods of take legal for that season according to the Web site … The ODWC Web site that there have been some questions concerning the use of mechanical or "open upon impact" broadheads. They are legal to use in Oklahoma as long as they are at least 7/8 inches wide when they open on impact.