Officials warn of peak season for Oklahomans hitting deer November 12, 2022 Oklahoma, KOKH

... The Oklahoma Highway Safety Office says 836 cars struck deer in 2021, but most deer impacts aren’t reported, so the true number is much higher ...

New Oklahoma hunting, fishing licenses will be good for one year from purchase October 24, 2022 The Oklahoman

... Oklahoma's severe drought actually can be beneficial to deer hunters in the short term, but it's not good for the future of deer hunting, said Dallas Barber, big game biologist for the Wildlife Department...,

These folks are on track October 14, 2022 Oklahoma, Muskogee Phoenix

.... Oklahoma is in its seventh year allowing the use of canines to find downed animals.  “We’ve received over 112 calls so far this season and recovered 55 deer during the first 10 days of the Oklahoma archery season,” ...

Man selling deer skull art says it was confiscated by Oklahoma game wardens October 7, 2022 KOKH

... He says he gets the skulls off the road or in the woods in different parts of the country ... Oklahoma wildlife officials say you can't sell an animal skull with antlers in Oklahoma if it isn't documented...

Officials: Chronic wasting disease found in deer near Oklahoma border September 9, 2022

kfor.com

... The deer was found about 2.5 miles south of the Oklahoma border in the western Panhandle ... the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation has activated the next stage of the CWD Response Plan ..,

'Something that can't be replaced': What a turnpike project could mean for Oklahoma wildlife August 18, 2022 NPR

... residents who regularly see deer grazing in their yards and eagles soaring overhead are also wondering, what’s going to happen to all the wildlife and the facility that takes care of them? And how far does the law go to protect them? ...

Air powered arrow rifles legalized for hunting in Oklahoma August 7, 2022 Yahoo

... on Monday approved emergency rules for use of air powered arrow rifles during big game rifle seasons.  The air guns are also commonly called air bows, but they will be illegal to use in Oklahoma during archery and muzzleloader seasons...

How will weather affect Oklahoma's deer population? Bucks could have smaller antlers this fall July 30, 2022 Yahoo! Sports

... Most fawns are dropped in late May and Oklahoma was still green and flush in the first few critical weeks of their lives this spring, Barber said. However, fawns born late or that become ill will have a harder time surviving the summer's heat and drought ..,

OKC Fire uses jaws of life to rescue fawn with head trapped in fence July 13, 2022 Oklahoma's News

... The fawn was weak and had some abrasions on its neck but mom was just inside the treeline waiting ...

'It takes so much effort to get a law changed': Why the Wildlife Department wants authority over licenses, fees January 30, 2022 Oklahoma, Yahoo

... the only way to change licensing and fees is through the legislative process... Senate Bill 1709 ... and House Bill 4086 ... are essentially identical bills requested by the Wildlife Department that would give the agency the authority to establish licenses and set prices...

'A great year regardless:' Oklahoma deer hunters fall short of last season's record January 21, 2022 Yahoo! Sports

... Oklahoma hunters killed 117,638 deer this past season, short of last season's record total of 126,290... The total population of deer in Oklahoma is estimated to be 750,000 or more ... Dallas Barber, big game biologist ..,

Friends of deer named Christmas mourn after white doe turns up at processor December 30, 2021 Oklahoma, Tulsa World

...  someone has killed Christmas — and on Christmas Day, no less.  Christmas, a pure-white white-tailed deer popular with residents of the Cleora area near Grand Lake for many years, apparently was killed ... she adopted a herd of cattle as a fawn ...

Gov. Kevin Stitt won't renew hunting, fishing compacts with OK tribes December 13, 2021 Oklahoma, The Oklahoman

... Leaders of Oklahoma’s two largest tribes said Monday that they would issue their own hunting licenses to citizens...

Northwestern Oklahoma's mule deer are prone to stotting ... Huh? November 29, 2021 The Oklahoman

... Stotting is that peculiar thing in which a mule deer jumps into the air with all four feet off of the ground. It's as if the mule deer is locomoting along with the aid of a pogo stick...

Trap and transplant: How work in the 1940s led to Oklahoma's huge deer population today   November 17, 2021 The Oklahoman

...When Oklahoma became a state in 1907, the total deer population was estimated at 500. Today, the state has an estimated deer population of 750,000..,

Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Deer Season Update November 10, 2021 

... For the entire state deer harvest last year, 43 percent were antlerless deer, the greatest percentage since 2010. And it was the first time since 2015 that Oklahoma’s antlerless harvest met the goal of 40 to 45 percent set by biologists... Again this year, the bag limit for deer gun season is four, with only one of those being antlered. Additional antlerless harvest is encouraged by increased antlerless harvest opportunities within some Antlerless Deer Zones. “Doe harvest is critical to keeping a herd healthy,” ..,

Oklahoma Department of Wildlife: Some whitetail deer test positive for COVID-19  November 10, 2021 Oklahoma's News

... Every year, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife conducts a health study on a sample population of deer. Recently, some of those deer have come back as having COVID-19...

Tracking dogs recover deer October 7, 2021 Oklahoma, Sequoyah County Times

... if you have hunted long enough, you or someone you know has failed to recover a deer.  Oklahoma Blood Trackers can aid your efforts to find the animal.   ...“I have been on 38 tracks and fortunate to have found 12 so far this season with about a month and a half left to go, so my recovery rate is right at 31 percent,” ... 

Oklahoma archery seasons open Friday for deer, bear, elk and antelope September 27, 2021 The Oklahoman

... an increased participation in deer hunting, largely attributed to COVID-19 as the outdoors became one of the few safe places to be. A record 218,548 hunters participated in the deer gun season last year..,

Safeguard wildlife from aflatoxins in grain September 24, 2021 Oklahoma, Muskogee Phoenix

... Avoid grains with visible signs of mold growth, which might be an indicator that aflatoxins are present.  Do not buy grains that are clumped together ... Always purchase grain from reputable dealers ...Only purchase grain planned for use in the immediate future...

Oklahoma 2020-21 Big Game Harvest Report September 22, 2021  Outdoor Oklahoma Journal

... Deer season resulted in record-shattering numbers for hunter participation and harvest. Elk hunt­ing saw a substantial increase in har­vest... A total of 126,290 deer were har­vested during the 2020-21 seasons, the most ever. More importantly, antlerless harvest made up 43 per­cent of the total harvest, the highest since 2010 and a 5 percent increase from the 2019-20 season...

Heads up for hunters as deer wasting disease cases rise September 18, 2021 Oklahoma, Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise

.. "With CWD prevalence in surrounding states, it is likely that at some point we will detect it in wild deer [in Oklahoma]," said Dwight Elmore, an Oklahoma State University wildlife biologist ... it has only been detected in captive elk in Oklahoma ...

What is the future of hunting in Oklahoma? COVID-19 increased participation, but will it last? July 26, 2021 The Oklahoman

... the sale of resident archery deer licenses saw a 15% increase, and non-resident archery deer licenses had a rise of 28% percent.  Resident deer gun licenses were up 16% and licenses sold for the holiday antlerless deer gun season increased by 34%..,

CWD, Bluetongue disease outbreak killing deer July 2, 2021 Oklahoma, Muskogee Daily Phoenix

... In 1998, CWD was confirmed in a captive elk herd in Oklahoma County which had originally been imported from Montana... Oklahoma’s wildlife department has conducted CWD monitoring on hunter-harvested deer and road-killed deer and elk since 1999. CWD was not detected in laboratory testing of tissue samples from more than 10,000 wild deer and elk from throughout our state..,

Orphaned fawns overwhelm Green Country animal rescue: 'Leave fawns alone' June 11, 2021 Oklahoma, KJRH

... One clue to watch for are curled ears... “If the ears are curling like a flower that’s about to wilt, that means it’s dehydrated, and something possibly happened to the mother,” ... Another sign of danger are clusters of ticks around the eyes. That could mean blindness...

Oklahoma Wildlife Dept. hopes to bring elk back to Carter County May 28, 2021 KXII-TV

... Elk herds used to roam every county in Oklahoma, but along with bears, deer, and turkey, they began disappearing in the late 1800s and early 1900s as settlers moved westward..,

Elk in the Arbuckles? Wildlife Department may relocate elk to the mountain range May 16, 2021 Oklahoma, The Oklahoman 

... Eighty-seven percent of the landowners surveyed supported the Arbuckle project, with 70 percent indicating strong support, Holmes said. Only 5 percent of landowners in the Arbuckle area were opposed to it ..,

New wildlife laws proposed February 7, 2021 Oklahoma, The Lawton Constitution

...  COVID-19, it gave people more opportunities to hit the deer woods.  Hunters flocked to the woods so much that they broke the all-time deer harvest record, eclipsing the 120,000 mark for only the second time in Oklahoma deer season history... when everything is verified, hunters will have taken nearly 126,000 deer this year..,

Man allegedly and illegally hauls deer between states January 15, 2021 Oklahoma, Texarkana Gazette

... transported an eight-point white-tailed deer across state lines ...  violations of federal law and in violation of the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Code ...

Explaining the mystery about mountain lions in Oklahoma January 17, 2021 The Oklahoman

... Seven sightings in Oklahoma last year of mountain lions ... were determined to be true... more sightings of mountain lions in Oklahoma in 2020 than any other year since the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation started keeping such data in 2002..,

2020 was an active year for spotting mountain lions in Oklahoma January 8, 2020, KOCO Oklahoma City

... This year, the department confirmed seven sightings, which is the most in a single year...  an uptick in sightings in the Panhandle, but there is a heavily established population there ... the increase in sightings in North-Central Oklahoma is different..,

Firearm season descends on hunters November 21, 2020 Oklahoma, Muskogee Daily Phoenix

... Oklahoma’s deer population is estimated at between 600,000 and 700,000.  Last year, firearms season saw 75,961 deer harvested... in 1964 the firearms season saw a harvest of only 3,368 deer..,

Oklahoma Deer season to begin Saturday November 15, 2020 Lawton Constitution

... A buck-to-doe ratio that is weighted heavily towards does also leads to females that remain unbred during the primary rut. As a result, a second, third, or even fourth breeding cycle can occur ...When this happens, bucks exert a tremendous amount of energy traveling great distances to rut for 2 to 3 months instead of 2 to 3 weeks...

Oklahoma's most popular hunting season set to open November 15, 2020 The Oklahoman

... In some deer hunting zones in the state, the antlerless bag limit for deer gun season was increased from two to four and in other zones from one to two. In the Panhandle (deer hunting zone one) and southeast Oklahoma (deer hunting zone 10),.,

Velvet found on antlers of whitetail buck, Oklahoma officials say. What causes it? November 3, 2020 Oklahoma, Kansas City Star

...  had velvet along its antlers, despite deer typically shedding their velvet in late August or early September ... is usually caused by a birth defect known as cryptorchidism. In extreme cases both testicles remain in the abdominal cavity and never descend into the scrotum...

White-tailed buck found headless in Wagoner County October 23, 2020 Oklahoma, KOKH – Oklahoma City

... The Oklahoma Game Wardens are asking for the public's assistance ... the deer had gunshot wounds and was believed to be killed between Wednesday night and Thursday morning...

Focus is on does as bowhunting season nears September 22, 2020 Oklahoma, Tulsa World

... Another mild and damp winter means deer had favorable breeding conditions ... The doe harvest failed again to reach that 40%-of-harvest goal.”  The doe report put the harvest at 37% ...

Deer season right around corner September 20, 2020 Oklahoma, The Lawton Constitution

... “Deer will be going into the winter in good shape this year,” ... With plenty of food and vegetation, deer stand a better chance of eating well and preparing for colder months ahead than they do when food is limited..,

Thinning forest canopy can pay off for landowners August 23, 2020 Oklahoma, Enid News & Eagle

... white-tailed deer can be found almost everywhere in North America, but they prefer to bed in areas with thick cover that provides protection from predators and the elements. Oklahoma deer prefer flowering plants but also forage on other types, including shoots, leaves and native grasses. They also eat acorns and fruit such as blackberries. Turning a forest into such a woodland is like opening a buffet line...

Deadly diseases around the country can impact deer population July 25, 202 Oklahoma, Muskogee Daily Phoenix

... No case of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has ever been confirmed in a free-ranging wild deer or elk in Oklahoma. In 1998, CWD was confirmed in a captive elk herd in Oklahoma County which had originally been imported from Montana.   In 2019, CWD was confirmed in one farmed Oklahoma elk in Lincoln County. ODWC announced it would step-up surveillance in areas ..,

State game wardens advise Oklahomans to not pick up young deer May 23, 2020 Oklahoma, Oklahoma's News

... Starting at birth, a fawn is left alone throughout most of the day while its mother is off feeding. The mother deer does this to reduce the chance of attracting a predator to the fawn... “Don’t be a fawn kidnapper,” ...

Wildlife commission approves changes for antlerless deer, waterfowl hunting May 9, 2020 Oklahoma, Tulsa World

... Chief of Wildlife Bill Dinkines told Commissioners antlerless harvest as a percentage of total deer harvest has decreased from 42 percent in 2014 to 36 percent in 2018... To promote antlerless deer harvest, a public information campaign will begin...

Wildlife Commission makes changes to deer, duck hunting seasons May 5, 2020 Oklahoma,  The Oklahoman

... State wildlife officials want to increase the antlerless harvest for better deer herd management. Does or antlerless deer represent only 36% of the total deer harvest during hunting seasons, down 5 to 6% from 2014...

'Many, many' public comments sink proposal to expand deer hunting season February 12, 2020 Oklahoma, Tulsa World

... Some deer hunters expressed concern about added pressure on bucks and increased kills. Bird hunters and others complained about an added week of potential conflict afield. Landowners and others generally were opposed to “another week of putting up with the headache,” ...

Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation scraps proposal to lengthen deer gun season February 9, 2020 The Oklahoman

... no long considering adding a week to the 16-day gun season as previously proposed. Instead, the agency is hoping hunters in the future will take more does through increased bag limits ...

Poachers killed an elk and dumped it in Tulsa; wardens are asking for help with clues January 4, 2020 Oklahoma, Tulsa World

...  A dead elk found outside the old Sears store ... Elk are not known to roam near Tulsa, so the poachers likely killed the cow elk, estimated to weigh about 200 pounds, many miles from where it ended up ...