REGIONAL— Deer registrations in northern St. Louis County continue on a pace to significantly exceed totals from the past two years, thanks to a growing deer population and historically mild conditions for hunters.

“Three factors are driving increased hunter success,” said Tom Rusch, DNR Tower area wildlife manager. “Higher deer numbers, more antlerless permits, and October-like weather which has made it easy for hunters to put in time on the stand.”

Across the Tower work area, the buck harvest was up sharply in eight of the nine permit areas, with increases ranging from 25-59 percent. Across the work area, hunters have registered 43 percent more deer than during the same period last year.

While hunters have registered a significant number of antlerless deer—at least compared to the past two years when most areas were limited to bucks only— this year’s buck harvest is also up 23 percent. “That’s the best indicator of the change in the deer population,” said Rusch.

Hunters continue to register the most deer on the southern and western end of the Tower work area, with the highest totals found in permit areas 176, 178, and 108.

Deer hunters reported seeing more sign of rut activity during the second weekend of the season. While rut activity should remain strong for the final weekend of the season, hunters may find significantly altered weather conditions. As of Wednesday, weather forecasters were predicting a significant snow event for Friday, with much colder temperatures for the weekend. Highs on Saturday and Sunday, the final two days of the regular firearms season, are currently forecast to reach the upper 20s, with lows in the low teens. Strong northwest wind is also expected to accompany those temperatures.