Preliminary numbers are in and it looks like hunters harvested 2% more deer over the various seasons.

Hunters took 147,535 deer during the 2017-2018 season. 44% of the deer harvested were does and 56% were bucks. Illinois Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Ed Cross says now it’s time to start planning for the fall.

Cross notes the most popular season got off to a slow start, but rebounded well.

Illinois counties with the highest harvest totals include Fulton, Pike, Randolph, Adams and Jackson.