Photo by Billkenney.com

It is only reasonable to think that, sooner or later, we would reach a point where we simply couldn't kill any greater a number of deer in Illinois.

Logic dictates that at some point in the future we would have to reach the top of our potential but, thus far, it is anyone's guess where that place will be. Deer harvests continue to break record after record, and that maximum -- the pinnacle of harvest capacity -- is nowhere to be seen.

Not only are hunters filling more tags, they are increasing the take in huge leaps over previous years. During the 1996 combined archery and firearms seasons, sportsmen and sportswomen killed 128,397 deer. Only seven years later the harvest total had climbed to 162,073. That represents a 26.2 percent increase!

What is really surprising is the impact bowhunters have made on the total whitetail harvest as compared with that of firearms hunters. Over the same period of time, shotgunners increased their take by 11.9 percent while archers increased their contribution to herd management by a whopping 64 percent. This dynamic has had a huge influence on how counties rank for deer hunting potential.

While all deer hunters are seeing increased opportunities, it is primarily bowhunters who are moving the various counties up, down, on and off our annual list of top 20 picks.

Those counties that have previously worn the crown of top deer producers are now getting a run for their money.

THE TOP 20 PRODUCERS
The list of our top 20 producing counties was established using the total number of deer taken during a nine-year period.

Over the long haul, these counties have given up more deer than anywhere else in our state, so obviously, we would anticipate these places offering your best potential for the near future.

However, being a top-producing firearm county doesn't necessarily equate to holding a similar archery position. Jo Daviess County, for example, holds the fourth-highest number of deer killed by firearms but, because of its lower standing in the archery column, the total kills only qualifies it for eighth position on our list.

Randolph County produced the fifth-highest number of deer taken by firearms, but was outdone by eight other counties in the archery column. Nonetheless, the total kills qualify it for the sixth position on our top 20 list.

The same can be said in reverse. Jefferson County holds the second-highest number of recorded bow kills in the state over the last nine years. However, because gun hunters didn't perform to this same level, their over-all ranking was "only" fifth.

Fulton County did very well by archers as well, holding the third-highest number of recorded bow kills in Illinois over the last nine years. However, gun hunters could rise no higher than fifth in the firearms total and, thus, their overall ranking was fourth.

The apparent conflict in the way these numbers fall can be attributed to a wide variety of influences. A particular county may be better suited for archery hunting because of factors such as land ownership, topography, regulations, access issues or something as subtle as the preferences and routines of the hunters who stomp those particular woods.

It is these types of things that are changing the shape of our list for hunting potential. If you compare the two lists, you will find that most of the names are the same but none maintained their position -- other than Pike and Adams in the two top spots. This second list was established using the total number of deer taken during only the last three years for which data was available.