Texas Deer Population:  Good rainfall in 2018 and 2019 allowed for an increase in the population to about 5.4 million deer.  Up from nearly 4.6 million in 2018, and about 4.3 million deer in 2017 when there was a dry summer for much of the state.    An estimated 4.2 million deer in 2016 and 4 million in 2015, up from about 3.95 million deer in 2014 as result of significant rainfall.  The 1989 estimated deer population was 3.5 million. First case of chronic wasting in a wild white-tail deer reported in 2017.  Herd analysis at right. 

Texas Deer News

...  A year after a video of deer trapping in Lakeway went viral and sparked public outrage ... leaders also voted to extend that trapping suspension until Jan. 31, 2020...
     Lakeway adopts deer program to 'manage impact of the herd' August 20, 2019 Texas, Austin American-Statesman
... “Despite 15 years of trapping and killing the deer to control the deer population, that number (of deer carcasses picked up) has not changed,” Windecker said. “So, trapping and killing the deer or trapping and taking them somewhere else isn’t solving that problem at all.” ...  

Texas hunters and anglers in for big rule changes August 14, 2019 Houston Chronicle
... The liberalization of antlerless deer harvest in the 41 counties comes as the deer population there has expanded steadily over the past two decades, growing almost 5 percent a year in the Blackland Prairies counties.  The limited harvest of antlerless deer under previous rules resulted in a population heavily skewed to does. In the Blackland Prairies region, antlerless deer outnumber bucks almost 4 to 1 ..,

...  about 5.4 million animals, which equals about 48 deer per 1,000 acres... one deer for every 21 acres of monitored deer range...  fall rains drenched much of the state and turned the landscape ripe with valuable forage that lasted well into spring with mild winter conditions... 700,000-plus whitetail hunters ..,
...  Anthrax is ... responsible for the deaths of at least 10 livestock and deer this year...“We have not seen an outbreak of this size in over a decade,” ...

Rains fuel boom year for Texas whitetail deer July 13, 2019 Houston Chronicle
... Texas, has a bumper crop of whitetail fawns... Texas has had an unusual stretch of wet weather that began early last autumn and has persisted into summer... flourishing habitat also greatly benefited does, allowing them to maintain excellent body condition as they carried this year’s fawns..,

Court rules deer are wildlife July 8, 2019 Texas, Victoria Advocate
... an appeal filed by two deer breeders claiming that breeder deer are, or became, private property and asking to invalidate Texas Parks and Wildlife Department rules requiring breeders to test for chronic wasting disease... “We conclude breeder deer are public property ...

... Prior to the 1960s, Texas had less than a million deer statewide. In 1961, the number climbed to 2 million and by 1965, it was 2.25 million, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department..,

... Tewes argues the ocelot's best hope lies in expanding habitats on private ranches in Willacy County, where development pressure is low and where he says ranchers have a natural goal to preserve ocelot habitat, which is also ideal for lucrative quail and deer hunting leases...

Changing times April 16, 2019 Texas, Wilson County News
... The infamous drought of the ’50s caused a roughly 100,000-deer die-off in the Hill Country. After that, allowing the shooting of female deer sounded outrageous..,

... Texas Parks and Wildlife is expanding doe days in 20 counties from four to 16 days ...  after several years of whitetail population growth within these ecoregions, combined with a relatively conservative doe harvest...

... HB 3396 introduced by Cyrier and SB 733, jointly sponsored by Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, and Sen. Pete Flores, R-Pleasanton — would allow the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to charge a fee for participation in the agency’s Managed Lands Deer Program...

Drought-Proofing Mule Deer Herds in Texas March 14, 2019 Texas, Land.com
...  the Lone Star State is also home to roughly 200,000 mule deer. The Trans-Pecos region supports the highest number ... what we can do to “drought-proof” these mule deer herds? The simple equation to the solution involves water, appropriate grazing practices, predator control and supplemental feed..,

Texas Parks and Wildlife Proposes Hunting and Fishing Changes for 2019-2020 February 21, 2019 News/Talk 790 KFYO... In Lynn County, a new mule deer restriction ... "An experimental 20-inch minimum antler spread restriction ... implementation and expansion of white-tailed deer “doe days,” ... Public comments concerning the proposed changes can be made online through March 19, 2019 ...

Urban wildlife raise safety and environmental concerns in New Braunfels February 18, 2019 Texas, Community Impact Newspaper
... an ordinance that prohibits feeding wildlife  .. “Education is imperative in making sure the public knows what our local wildlife can and cannot eat, but government intervention is not necessary at all,” Botter said. “… making it a criminal act is just government overreach.” ...

... In the Blackland Prairie region, antlerless deer outnumber bucks almost 4 to 1, and antlerless deer make up only 41 percent of the annual deer harvest... TPWD’s proposal to liberalize antlerless harvest rules for those 41 counties...

Complaint: Lakeway deer-trapping program OK'd because of false statements January 16, 2019 Texas, Austin American-Statesman
... alleges ... false statements to the state Wildlife Department, saying the city “had a severe public safety problem with the overpopulation of whitetail deer” when it had not conducted a professional deer census to determine the population... told wildlife officials the city built a $65,000, three-mile fence to deter the deer from city limits when it was never installed...

No Cure For Chronic Wasting Disease, But Parks And Wildlife Is Confident About Containing It January 10, 2019 Texas, Texas Standard
... six new cases of chronic wasting disease had been discovered ... there isn’t really a cure for CWD, so most states have to have these containment zones to try to control the disease. “What we can do … is keep from inadvertently moving that disease out of that zone,” Wolf says...

Lake Fork, Deer netting operation underway in Lake Fork neighborhood January 8, 2019 Texas, KLTV
... “We trap the deer under nets,” Russell said. “They are taken out, put in a trailer and then transported to a processor.”...

Chronic Wasting Disease, Texas Parks and Wildlife: Cases of brain-eating disease in deer confirmed in state January 4, 2018 Times Record News
... Cases of disease have been found in three white-tailed deer in in Medina, Dallam and Hartley counties, and in three mule deer in Hudspeth, Hartley and El Paso counties..,
     Signs of chronic wasting disease in deer confirmed January 4, 2019 Texas, WOAI
... Last year, there were 49 confirmed cases ..,

... a four-months-and-counting siege of rains ... a flush of cool-season forbs and other vegetation that deer, turkey, quail and other wildlife need to maintain and build body conditions through the rest of winter..,

Mule deer easily mistaken for white-tailed cousins December 30, 2018 Texas, San Angelo Standard Times
... mule deer ... As late as the 1940’s  ... could only be observed spottily in the counties west of the Pecos River, in three counties of the Texas Panhandle and was absent entirely from the Edwards Plateau.  This decline in the population was due primarily to overharvesting and extended drought conditions...

Axis deer from India first brought to Texas in 1932 December 23, 2018 Texas, San Angelo Standard Times
... In 1932, the first axis deer were introduced into Texas [from India], and they flourished. It has been estimated that the current statewide population is well over 15,000 free-roaming individuals. Most ... within the confines of the Edwards Plateau ..,

Lawsuit blames East Texas deer deaths on natural gas pipeline December 19, 2018 Houston Chronicle
...  blames two emergency releases of natural gas along a major interstate pipeline for the deaths of nearly 40 trophy deer at a breeding facility near the Sam Houston National Forest... each with estimated worths in the tens of thousands of dollars ...

A rainy fall has helped the Texas deer season December 6, San Antonio Express-News
... both antler development and body weights of white-tailed deer bucks and does are above average ... the deer will have plenty of forage and water going into the winter after the rut and that could set us up for a really good season next year [Alan Cain, statewide program coordinator for white-tailed deer] ..,

   The fences will help prevent potentially affected deer from travelling into unaffected areas... will initially cover two miles, but if needed and funding is available, it could be expanded to cover up to 50 miles ...

Extra patrol on watch as mule deer hunting season begins this weekend  November 16, 2018 Texas, Amarillo Globe-News 
... a new antler restriction that make bucks with an antler spread smaller than 20 inches off-limits as a way to keep a healthy age ratio ... enforced in Briscoe, Childress, Cottle, Floyd, Hall, and Motley counties ...

When Whitetail and Mule Deer Clash November 16, 2018 Texas, fishgame.com 
... “Where mule deer and white-tailed deer coexist, interbreeding does occur. The long-term effects are unknown, and for most areas, the extent of hybridization is not known. The highest incidence of hybridization in the Trans-Pecos ... estimated that up to 15 percent of deer may be hybrids where both species occupy the same range...

Lakeway committee ramps up information-seeking campaign on deer November 11, 2018 Texas, Community Impact Newspaper
... Wildlife Advisory Committee ... voted 5-1 to conduct an additional spotlight survey ... “We know that 20 years ago we had 10 times as many deer here, and that was a problem because of the drought and starvation,”  [wildlife biologist Warren Bluntzer] ...

... combining breeding and hunting, is $1.6 billion annually, according to a study released by the Texas Deer Association. The number of permitted deer breeding facilities in the state also increased from 946 in 2006 to 1,257 in 2016..,

2018 Texas Deer Forecast November 5, 2018 Game & Fish
... “The statewide deer population is going to be right around that 4.3 million to 4.6 million range. If you look at statewide trends, it’s slowly creeping up each year,” [Alan Cain, the whitetail program leader] ... “It really has just been an inconsistent year for rainfall statewide... good fawn crops in 2010 and 2013 ..,

Promising deer season starts Saturday in Texas November 2, 2018 Abilene Reporter-News
... some 900,000 deer hunters in Texas ... 61 percent of them bagged at least a deer [last year] ... Texas is home to the largest herd of white-tailed deer, around 4.6 million, up from 4.2 million last year..,

... With plenty of vegetation, deer may not be seeking out corn feeders ... An abundance of new plant growth flooding the Texas landscape with green in the aftermath of the recent storms ..,

Dawning of deer season brings anticipation October 27, 2018 Texas, The Dallas Morning News 
... nearly 45 percent of the buck harvest over the last five years were 31/2- to 41/2-year-old animals, and close to 20 percent were age 51/2 or older ... antler restriction regulations currently in place in 117 counties have helped to improve the buck age structure... [TPWD estimates for eastern Texas 220,000 and 284,000 over the last five years, about 2.6 million in Edward's Plateau] ..,

Average white-tailed deer season expected across state October 24, 2018 Texas, Texas Farm Bureau
...  a good mesquite bean crop and a Texas persimmon crop in the southern areas of the state may have helped deer get through some of the dry times.  There’s plenty of white-tailed deer to pursue across the state, Cain said, noting the state’s white-tailed deer population is estimated to be around 4.6 million..,

There are a lot of deer around Goldthwaite in Mills County, Texas. Here's a few of them. - October 24, 2018 Texas Parks and Wildlife


Good year for deer, thanks to bountiful rainfall October 10, 2018 Texas, Wilson County News
... Texas has nearly 4.6 million deer, dispersed over most of the state, according to Cain’s TPWD surveys... the Hill Country, has the most, around 2.6 million ... Areas around Mason, Llano, and neighboring counties have the highest density. A good fawn crop in 2015 and ... 2013 ..,

October Deer October 5, 2018 Texas, KVEO-TV
...  Bountiful rains have the South Texas wildlands lush with greenery ... Fawn survival has been exceptional this year, as there was thick habitat to hide in when fawns were young, and does were able to produce plenty of milk..,

Mule deer antler restriction regulation take effect this hunting season September 28, 2018 Texas, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
... new regulation that will prohibit the harvest of any mule deer buck with a main beam outside spread of less than 20 inches. The goal of the regulation is to improve buck age structure by reducing excessive hunting pressure on younger bucks...

Recent Rains Provide Boost for Deer, New Challenges for Bowhunters September 26, 2018 Texas, El Paso Herald-Post 
... exceptional rainfall in September that has created a giant food plot of native forage across the state,” said Alan Cain, TPWD whitetail deer program leader... a robust white-tailed deer population of about 4.6 million ..,

Texas Crop and Weather Report September 25, 2018 Texas, AgriLife Today
...  Drought conditions throughout much of the state this summer likely will mean lower wildlife numbers ... deer, quail and turkey numbers would likely be affected..,

Spotlight counts provide information and are fun September 23, 2018 Texas, Tyler Morning Telegraph 
... the regional TPWD biologist who runs them through a computer program to determine a recommended harvest size, including how many bucks and does are to be taken. In an effort to go from a deer to an acre to a deer to 5 or 6 acres ... the count comes with a multiplier of 3.7 to determine an estimated herd size... 

New Experimental Regulations for Mule Deer Restrictions September 16, 2018 Texas, MyHighPlains.com
... in the Southeast Texas panhandle ... prohibiting the harvest of mule deer with a spread of antlers less than 20 inches... implementing the new experimental regulations in the hopes of improving buck's age structure and sex ratio ...

... 16,000 acres ... The sale would keep virtually all the Big Bend portion of Rio Grande riverfront — habitat for big-horn sheep, mule deer and black bears — in a conservation-oriented state. Construction company CEMEX USA owns a large adjacent parcel and has pledged to keep it undeveloped...

... one of the most difficult situations that confronts Lakeway right now ... A program to trap and relocate the deer to Mexico was approved in 1999 after the herd was seen as growing too large, becoming a traffic hazard and nuisance. Two years later, Lakeway got approval to trap and kill deer in the city as a means of last resort. It started doing so in 2003...

... Texas Parks and Wildlife commission imposed rules restricting ranchers from moving these animals if they haven’t been tested, or if any deer in their facility have tested positive for CWD or come in contact with a deer testing positive for CWD.  Many Texas deer breeders feel the state’s rules unfairly target their industry...

Axle, They 'invaded.' They're destroying yards. But this Texas town says they can stay August 18, 2018 Fort Worth Star Telegram (blog)
... Residents and city officials say deer have always roamed Azle, but a recent homebuilding spree wiped out their habitat... Azle City Manager Tom Muir said he and Police Chief Rick Pippins will not recommend the city ban deer feeding...

The recent drought pushed them into heavily watered and landscaped Oak Harbor Estates, where some residents fed them ...
Wildlife Advisory Committee votes to recommend suspending deer program August 15, 2018 Texas, Austin American-Statesman
... nets are dropped electronically to capture deer. Deer antlers are then removed before moving the deer to a truck to be transported for euthanasia ... “It’s going to involve a lot of research into other methods that are humane in order to manage deer populations..."

... Following years of controversy ...  the committee voted unanimously to recommend the city suspend the trap, transport and process program ...

... While new people move in, one part of the population is slowly being forced out - deer. With nowhere to go, some residents are welcoming them with open arms, but others want them gone... 

... USDA declined an on-camera interview, but said in a statement, the population of ticks in the area have expanded in recent years, which resulted in them putting 90 deer and 3 nilgai down in June...

U.S. Department of Agriculture Puts Down 25% of Port Mansfield Deer for Tick Control July 20, 2018 Texas


Victoria County trapper program helps deer population July 15, 2018 Texas, Victoria Advocate
... From October to the end of May, the trapper program captured 151 coyotes and 207 feral hogs ... “From a visual perspective, at the Gordon Ranch, we’re not seeing or hearing coyotes, and we’re seeing a lot of fawns survive,” ... the fawn population looks good this year...

... The number of applications for about 4,800 permits doubled from 50,000 to 100,000 the first year the online application system was put in place. Last year, the program generated an all-time high 155,000 applications for the nearly 9,500 permits in 50 different categories...

USDA culls deer carrying ticks in Port Mansfield July 14, 2018 Texas, The Brownsville Herald
... , federal officials killed off 90 deer — about 25 percent of the area’s population — after the deer contracted cattle fever ticks ...   “USDA does not seek to eliminate the deer in that area,”  ...
     Where did Port Mansfield's deer go? July 14, 2018 Texas, Valley Morning Star 
... “A lot of people fed them ... All of them were like pets ... Once they start disappearing, people get upset,” ... So MacTavish started making phone calls to find out what was happening to the deer.

Fawn Time July 13, 2018 Texas, KVEO-TV
... It promises to be a very good year for fawn survival in deep South Texas as ranchlands have had sufficient rainfall to provide adequate cover for the newborns to conceal themselves and plenty of vegetation for them to browse...

Case of woman accused of interfering with deer trapping advances July 11, 2018 Texas, Austin American-Statesman
... Beck’s children were outside playing March 8 and ran into the house when they became upset by men who were hurting deer ... ran outside with her phone and took video of the trappers culling the deer ... then cut the net ... charged with the highest level of misdemeanor ..,

Pests got upper hand during Hurricane Harvey July 8, 2018 Texas, Brownsville Herald
... The swarms of mosquitoes, primarily the salt marsh variety, were so thick that hundreds of white-tailed deer died from asphyxiation after breathing in thousands of mosquitoes which obstructed their respiratory passages...

... the program offered about 4,800 permits and drew just under 50,000 applications.  In 2014-15, the program shifted to a wholly online system, saving the agency more than $100,000 in printing and postal costs ... Application fees for most of the drawings are $3 or $10 per person, although a handful of drawings have no application fee. In most cases, successful applicants pay a hunt fee of $80 to $130 ...

Texas’ deer population would welcome good soaking June 16, 2018 Houston Chronicle
... After a stretch of three — four, in some regions — consecutive years of adequate, abundant and often way-too-abundant rainfall, Texas has hit a dry spell... flooding inundated hundreds of thousands of acres of prime bottomland deer habitat .... Fawn survival in some pockets of East Texas was 25 percent or even lower ...

A central Texas woman freed deer captured by net. Now she's facing charges. June 7, 2018 Houston Chronicle
... They're hurting the deer!'" Beck wrote in a GoFundMe page to help cover her legal costs. "I ran outside and heard very loud, intense shrieks, similar to bleating sheep... I could see the blood and broken limbs," Beck continued. "Two deer were bleeding from their mouths, one from its eye, two other deer appeared dead ...

Texas to test mule deer antler restrictions starting this fall June 6, 2018 MultiBriefs Exclusive
... The overall health of the mule deer population in the Texas Panhandle has been in decline for the past few years. In an attempt to reverse this trend, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has instituted antler restrictions for mule deer season in six Panhandle counties starting this fall...
... I've never seen a group of eight or so deer under a net like that and I've never heard them scream as much as I heard on that video,” ... During the video, Ashlea can be heard pleading for the trappers to stop ... she was arrested on two Texas Parks and Wildlife warrants...

  Walden man rescues deer from drowning in Lake Conroe May 7, 2018 Texas, Click2Houston
...  manages to swim with the deer to a dock staircase, and -- with the help of authorities -- carries the exhausted animal to shore... deer walking a few steps and sitting down for a well-deserved rest...

... Among the changes announced by the TWPD are an early opener for dove season in the South Zone, a mule deer season in Lynn County, experimental mule deer antler restriction ...

TPWD Commission denies extended deer season for North Zone April 1, 2018 Texas, The Lufkin Daily News
... Citing the possibility of conflicts between white-tailed deer hunters and quail hunters in the Rolling Plains region, the Texas Parks Wildlife Commission recently nixed a wildlife staff proposal to extend the general deer season by two weeks ...

... The Chronic Wasting Disease containment area in the north western part of the Panhandle has been extended east ...

Refuge renews push to sow 'ocelot acreage' March 24, 2018 Texas, Brownsville Herald
... Last year, using innovative white plastic tree tubes to protect delicate seedlings from browsing animals like white-tailed deer and nilgai, the planting recorded a survival rate of 93 percent. Successful reforestation efforts without the tubes can be as low as 20 percent, or even zero percent...

... Citing potential conflicts between quail hunters and deer hunters in some counties in the quail-rich Rolling Plains, the Commission voted unanimously to reject a proposal that would have set standardized, statewide dates for the general white-tailed deer hunting season...

... on Thursday the commission was acting on staff recommendations to set an opening date for the first Saturday in November for the entire state and to push back the closing dates to the third Sunday in January in each county...

... Since 2012 when the state first discovered the disease among mule deer in a remote mountain area along the New Mexico border, Texas has recorded 100 confirmed cases of CWD. Of those, 64 were discovered in captive deer breeding pens, 11 were hunter harvested on breeder deer release sites ..,

Oilman was a winner with the horses March 17, 2018 Texas, Longview News-Journal
... Clifford Mooers ... His horses won 291 races ... relocated to Kendall County in the Texas Hill Country, establishing a deer sanctuary and a horse ranch near Boerne...

Lakeway, Billboard, video spurs effort to halt Lakeway deer-management program March 14, 2018 Texas, Austin American-Statesman
... A billboard recently installed at the intersection of Lohmans Spur and RM 620 by Citizen Advocates for Animals is taking issue with Lakeway’s deer-control program... “When you listen to this video, you will hear the crying of the deer — and it’s not pleasant.” ...
  Lakeway, Video of deer trapped in netting in Lakeway causes controversy March 14, 2018 Texas, KABB
... a video sent to their board of directors shows deer trapped in the net calling out in distress and panic, some bleeding from the mouth and nose, some with broken bones and one or two that appear to be dead... the city of Lakeway has hired a contractor to lure deer into the net traps and "truck them 80 miles away to be shot in the head and butchered." ...

TPWD proposes standardizing statewide white-tailed deer season March 10, 2018 Texas, Tyler Morning Telegraph
... The change would mark the first time since 2001 that hunters in the North Zone would have the same number of hunting days as those in the South. Prior to that time the seasons were staggered ...

... Ana Lisa Garza, a district court judge in Starr County, reported accepting at least 40 semen straws, doses valued at $51,000...

...  would prohibit the harvest of any buck mule deer with a less than 20-inch outside spread of the main beams. The goal is to allow younger bucks to mature after an excessive harvest of mule deer bucks over the years skewed the sex ratio and age structure of the herd ...

Texas deer breeders challenge ruling on state's disease regulations February 15, 2018 MyStatesman.com
... A court ruling last fall upheld the authority of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to enact rules to curtail chronic wasting disease ... A pair of deer breeders who challenged the agency’s regulations ... are appealing ...

Spring Branch, Neighbors divided over deer trapping and slaughtering February 2, 2018 Texas, WOAI
... managing the deer population by baiting, netting and slaughtering ... has been going on for close to a decade in this community, but it was only recently when a video was posted on youtube, that many of the homeowners began protesting it...

How Does Toxic Bait Affect Deer February 2, 2018 Texas,  Bowhunting
... The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not allow feeds testing more than 20 parts per billion of aflatoxins to be fed to dairy cattle or in grain products chosen for human consumption... grains exceeding those toxicity levels can be sold as wildlife feeds ... Texas A&M researchers tested 100 samples of such feeds, they found 44 percent contained aflatoxins exceeding 20 parts per billion, and 20 percent were at 100 parts per billion and higher...

... the environmental assessment proposes the use of ivermectin-treated corn for white-tailed deer treatment. A previous study conducted by USDA found negligible effects on the environment, and the medicated corn will kill ticks on white-tailed deer, one of the three major hosts for the tick. The treatment will not only improve the health of the deer population, but will prevent the deer from spreading ticks to adjacent properties...

Texas looking at new antler restrictions for mule deer January 24, 2018 MultiBriefs Exclusive
... According to TPWD mule deer program director Shawn Gray, the mule deer herd in the southeastern portion of the Texas Panhandle is in rough shape. Specifically, the mule deer herd has far too few bucks 3.5 years of age or older and a skewed doe-to-buck ratio of around 6 to 1.  TPWD thinks these problems are the result of hunters harvesting too many young bucks...

Chronic Wasting Disease in Deer and Other Cervids January 22, 2018 Texas, High Plains Observer
... CWD was found in Hartley County in a mule deer harvested during the 2015-2016 hunting season. Since then, a containment zone was set up ...A few new cases per year have been found in elk and mule deer within the containment zone since the first case was found... Just this year a free-ranging whitetail roadkill tested positive for the disease near the boundary of the containment zone..,

Orange County couple raises 'pet' deer on farm January 12, 2018 Texas, Beaumont Enterprise
... They have two main types of customers, he said - those who want pets and those who want to let the deer roam free on their ranches.  The couple has a yearlong waiting list for people wanting bottle-fed fawns to keep as pets...
... A white-tailed deer run over on U.S. Highway 87 between Dalhart and Hartley has tested positive for chronic wasting disease ... the first case in a Texas Panhandle white-tailed deer ..,

... considering extending the general deer season in the North Zone by an additional two weeks ... since bucks start shedding their antlers in late January and early February in Texas ... might potentially result in some hunters accidentally shooting bucks that have shed their antlers after mistaking them for does...

Tame doe visits area with her dog January 3, 2018 Texas, Texarkana Gazette
..."Rudolfina" the deer with a colorful collar  ... She comes out of the woods and will wait until her dog buddy gives the OK, then both of them will come forward to meet you and maybe take some food from your hand...

Texas Data:  A state estimate of 5.4 million deer in 2019 as a result of good rainfall and amble forage.  Over 700,000 hunters.  An estimate of nearly 4.6 million deer in 2018 following good rainfall in September and abundant food, although summer drought in some areas reduced populations.  A rough estimate of about 200,000 mule deer in 2019, many in the Trans-Pecos, a population generally in decline.  
     About 4.3 million deer in 2017, a dry summer following two years of widespread consistent rain and good habitat conditions. Good rainfall for 2018 in south Texas will increase fawn survival and provided good forage for deer in much of the state in the fall, with deer less likely to come to corn feeders.   Wild pigs continue to compete with deer, reducing populations.  The deer genome was sequenced at Baylor College.  About 6,000 Axis deer in the wild who have escaped from hunting ranches.  In 2018 TPWD estimates for eastern Texas 220,000 and 284,000 over the last five years, about 2.6 million in Edward's Plateau, 
     A total deer population estimated at 4.2 million in 2016, up from about 4 million in 2015 and  3.95 million deer in 2014, as result of significant rainfall.  The 2016 spring and summer was one of the wettest in decades.  Increased hunting recommended for 2016 in the western Panhandle and Post Oak Savannah region.  Prices for deer hunts plummeted in 2016, thought to be a result of a downturn in the oil industry who send executives and clients on corporate hunts.  For 2015 the mule deer population is estimated at 209,732.  South Texas had good rains and a mild summer in 2014 and 2015 with ample food that has increased fawn production. About 160,000 deer raised by 1,300 deer breeders in 2016. 2015 Hunting Forecast. About 700,000 deer hunters.  About 110,000 deer in 1265 captive breeding farms in 2016, up from 946 farms in 2006.
     An estimated 3.8 million white-tail deer in 2013 before deer hunting seasons, 39 deer per 1,000 acres on average.  About 3.7 million in 2012.  Little fawn production in 2011 as a result of the severe drought, almost as low in 2008-2009.   No fawn production in the panhandle in 2011 and 2012.  A hunting success rate of about 70 percent in 2013.  Antler restrictions were in place for 117 counties requiring at least a 13 inch inside spread.  An estimated $1.5 billion annually related to Texas deer hunts, $2.2 billion including deer breeding and tourism according to a Texas A&M study.
     The deer population trended upward from 2004 to 2010 with the white-tail population estimate of 3.46 million, a high point in 2005.  An estimate of four million deer in 2004.  The record setting drought that started in 2010 resulted in low fawn recruitment and the population dropped. Drought also into 2012, but a good acorn crop.  Improved weather in spring 2014 improved fawn survival and deer health. Generally good fawn recruitment, over 45 percent, in 2007, 2010, 2012, and 2013.   
     The Hill Country had the highest deer population in 2016, an estimated 2.2 million deer, or 118 deer per 1,000 acres, 76 per square mile.  The Cross Timbers region had about 600,000 deer or 56 deer per 1,000 acres.  Post Oak Savannah has about 400,000, 35 per 1,000 acres.  PIneywoods has a much lower estimated deer population, about 260,000 deer.  The state average is about 40 deer per 1,000 acres, about 26 per square mile.  Texas maintains good deer demographics, with over 60 percent of bucks killed 3.5 years or older.  Before antler restrictions, this group was only 30-35 percent of the harvest.  
     History    An estimated 232,000 deer in 1938.  Screwworms kept the population down in the 1950's and 60's with the population in 1955 estimated at about 500,000.  Screwworms were controlled by release of sterile males.  A severe drought in the 1950s killed about 100,000 deer in the Hill Country.  About two million deer in 1961 and 2.25 million in 1965.  The 1989 estimated population:  3.5 million.  An estimated 232,000 in 1938.
      Axis deer were Introduced in 1932 from southern India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.  About 15,000 wild Axis deer in 2018.
        Chronic Wasting Disease (Texas Updates) was first detected in far West Texas, the Trans-Pecos,  during the summer of 2012 in the remote far western reaches of El Paso and Hudspeth counties near the border with New Mexico. Many years ago in a effort to increase populations, mule deer were transported into New Mexico from norther Colorado -- ground zero for Chronic Wasting.  In 2015, a captive deer tested positive in a captive breeding ranch southwest of San Antonio in Medina county.   In 2017 the first wild white-tailed deer and elk tested positive.  In 2018 the first wild white-tail in the panhandle, 49 confirmed cases statewide.  And 2019.
    Elk, hunted to extinction in the early 1900's, previously found in the Trans-Pecos and western Panhandle.   In the late 1920's, 40 elk were transported from South Dakota and released into the Guadalupe Mountains.  Managed as livestock by the Texas Animal Health Commission.

Useful links:
- Texas Hunting Regulations 
- DeerAustin.Org for information on deer management in Austin, Texas 
- American Deer & Wildlife Alliance is a non-profit organization dedicated to the growth of the deer and wildlife industry, and to help educate the public and youth on conservation and wildlife issues.
- Texas Parks and Wildlife