The holiday antlerless deer gun season is Dec. 18-31. Hunters can harvest up to two antlerless deer, which don't count toward their regular combined season limit. Not only that, but several Wildlife Management Areas are open to the holiday antlerless season. You can even get a head start by e-scouting a WMA near you. In this clip from a previously aired Outdoor Oklahoma TV episode, ODWC Wildlife Biologist Chris Parker uses onX to take viewers through the simple but effective steps of e-scouting.
Scroll for map of open antlerless zones and WMAs. Holders of lifetime hunting, lifetime combination, senior citizen hunting, senior citizen combination or lifetime disabled veteran combination licenses are exempt from the purchase of annual deer licenses.
Resources for Antlerless Deer Hunters
Harvesting a doe during the holiday antlerless season can help improve what's called the buck-to-doe ratio in the deer herd. Improving the buck-to-doe ratio increases total nutrients available for deer; condenses the rut period for healthier bucks; leads to fawns dropping within a tighter time period, reducing the risk of predation; and makes for fewer late-born fawns, which face the risk of developmental challenges. What's more, even if you've harvested the maximum combined limit of six deer for the year’s regular deer seasons, you may still take two antlerless deer during the 14-day holiday antlerless season, as they are considered bonus deer. Unfilled resident youth deer gun season antlerless licenses are valid for the holiday season.
HUNTERS IN THE KNOW ANTLERLESS ZONE MAP HOLIDAY ANTLERLESS OPPORTUNITIES
After the Harvest
Stacking pound upon pound of high quality venison in the freezer ensures your adventure can be relived for months to come. A 120-pound, field-dressed deer can provide 168 servings of healthy protein for your family (or hungry families across Oklahoma). But first things first, you'll need to take care of tagging, checking and field dressing your animal. Upon harvesting a deer, hunters must immediately attach a "field tag" securely to the carcass that includes their name, customer ID or lifetime license number, and date and time of harvest. This field tag can be any item - so long as it displays the required information. Next, it's time to field dress and prepare the deer for processing, either at a commercial facility or at home. Check out this Beginners Guide to Butchering Deer series from our partners at Bowhunting 360 for great how-to videos on field-dressing and home-processing your deer. And finally, help prevent the spread of chronic wasting disease with these carcass disposal tips.
BIG GAME PROCESSORS HUNTERS AGAINST HUNGER
Speaking of e-scouting, the Wildlife Department has partnered with onX Hunt to get you 30% off the Hunt App. Created by hunters, for hunters, the Hunt App allows you to customize your map to fit each and every hunt with hundreds of layers and dozens of tools to help you find, hunt and harvest more game this fall. With onX, you get info on trees, crops and other cover; weather and optimal wind info; property sharing with your friends; saved maps and more! And when you buy using this link, a portion of proceeds will come back to the Wildlife Department for conservation efforts in Oklahoma!