By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – Halfway through Illinois’ firearm deer season, hunters are slightly ahead of last year’s pace.

For Nov. 19-21, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources reports a preliminary total of 50,300 deer “harvested,” compared to 47,147 for the first weekend of 2020’s season.

That difference of just over 3,000 is “not terribly significant,” said DNR spokesman Tim Schweizer. “A lot of it depends on hunter effort, whether bow hunters are grabbing a shotgun during the firearm season, or whether they are just waiting for the bow season to resume. It’s really up to hunter choice, and what we are hoping is that hunters do the job that they are enlisted to do, and that is to help us manage the deer population as best as possible.”

Plus, Schweizer says, venison is tasty.

Randolph County led the state with 1,503. Ten others also had more than 1,000: Adams, 1,352; Fayette, 1,154; Fulton, 1,176; Hancock, 1,013; Jackson, 1,325; Jefferson, 1,293; Macoupin, 1,038; Marion, 1,022; Pike, 1,016; Williamson, 1,148.

The firearm season continues for a four-day weekend, Dec. 2-5.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]