The Oklahoma state Legislature could soon hear arguments for lowering the antlered deer bag limit from two to one
If proposed Senate Bill 338 passes, Oklahoma hunters will be limited to one antlered deer per year. (Photo by Tom Tietz)
Oklahoma hunters may be limited to one antlered deer per year instead of two if a proposed senate bill is passed. According to The Oklahoman, Sen. Grant Green, R-Wellston, authored Senate Bill 338, which would drop the antlered deer bag limit from two to one in a year. Antlered deer includes any deer, regardless of sex, with at least 3 inches of antler length above the hairline on either side.
The Oklahoma state Legislature could soon hear arguments regarding the antlered deer bag limit.
Micah Holmes, Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation spokesperson, says the department works closely with the Legislature on anything wildlife related. He said most hunters don’t harvest two antlered deer a year.
According to Holmes, approximately 250,000 people hunt in Oklahoma, and about three out of four of those people have a lifetime hunting license. He says the agency has encouraged people to take more does in order to keep the deer population healthy. The goal is to provide as many hunting opportunities as possible without negatively impacting the resource.
“Oklahoma is a deer hunting destination. There's a lot of people that come here to go deer hunting, and so we want to do everything we can to keep that going,” Holmes said. “Keep Oklahoma a top 10 state when it comes to deer hunting.”
According to the department’s Big Game Report, hunters harvested 124,833 deer for all seasons in 2023-24, and about 44% were does.
Over half of hunters, or almost 150,000, hunt during gun season, while archery hunters make up about 28% of hunters, and muzzleloader hunters make up about 13%. During gun season, 74,137 deer were harvested and about 36% of those were does.
Local hunter Tom Kovacik said he doesn’t think the regulation change would limit any opportunities that hunters have to harvest a buck. He’s been hunting in east-central Oklahoma and in other parts of the state for 35 years.
He said the state should look at opportunities to improve the herd, such as charging an additional fee for the second buck tag.
Rick Nolan, president of the Oklahoma Hunters and Anglers organization, said he hasn't seen any data that would support lowering the antlered deer bag limit. But, he says if state biologists support it, then he supports it. He doesn’t believe the bill will substantially affect the overall harvest.