Whitetail Hunting Still Strong In Mississippi

While the deer hunting season in most of Mississippi comes to an end Jan. 31, that’s not the case for Southeast Mississippi hunters. Hunters in the Southeast Deer Management Zone are still able to hunt Feb. 1-15 during open primitive weapon, archery, crossbow, and youth gun seasons. The Southeast Deer Management Zone includes all private and open public lands south of U.S. Hwy 84 and east of MS Highway 35. During these February seasons, adults may harvest legal bucks only on private land and open public land. For adults, legal bucks are defined as having either a minimum inside spread of 10 inches or a minimum main beam length of 13 inches. Youth are allowed to harvest either sex, and are not restricted by antler criteria. The bag limit on antlered buck deer is one buck per day, not to exceed three per license year.

The bag limit on antlerless deer is one per day, not to exceed five per license year. “Later deer breeding dates in Southeast Mississippi allow for the extended season, and we hope that hunters will take advantage of this opportunity to get in on the late season rutting activity,” says Southeast Deer Program Biologist Justin Thayer. Deer breeding dates in Mississippi follow a general trend of early to late beginning in early December in Northwest Mississippi to mid-February in the far southeastern region. “Hunting seasons are established around those breeding dates so hunters in every part of the state have an opportunity to hunt during periods of greatest activity,” says Thayer. For more information regarding deer or deer hunting opportunities in Mississippi, visit  www.mdwfp.com/deer or call us at 601-432-2199. Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mdwfpor on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MDWFPonline. —courtesy Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks