IRON MOUNTAIN — Firearm deer harvests are up from a year ago in Dickinson, Iron and Menominee counties as the 2024 season comes to a close, according to a Michigan Department of Natural Resources online harvest summary.

In Dickinson County, as of 7 p.m. Friday, the harvest total from this year’s firearm hunt stood at 1,144, up from the 2023 total of 994. The 2024 firearm total includes 887 antlered deer, up from 730, while the antlerless count was at 257, down from 264.

The final day of the 16-day season is today. Hunters have 72 hours to report a harvest online, or before they transfer the deer to someone else, such as a pror or taxidermist.

Iron County as of Friday night showed a firearm harvest of 1,046, including 769 antlered and 277 antlerless. The 2023 total was 958, which included 681 bucks and 277 antlerless.

Menominee County will again be among the leaders in Michigan, showing a 2024 firearm count of 3,226, which includes 2,382 antlered and 844 antlerless. The 2023 total was 3,037 — 2,172 bucks and 865 antlerless.

So far, only Sanilac County in Michigan’s Thumb region shows a higher firearm season total than Menominee — as of Friday night, 3,679 deer, including 2,436 antlered.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has not updated its harvest numbers since Tuesday when preliminary data showed the opening weekend harvest in the northern forest zone was down 14%. The DNR said the drop was not unexpected, given the late opening date relative to the peak of the breeding season. Wisconsin’s nine-day gun hunt runs through Sunday.

A 10-day muzzleloader season in Michigan opens Friday. Wisconsin’s muzzleloader hunt starts Monday, also going for 10 days.

While Wisconsin’s gun deer harvest is generally down, the state’s bear kill was up markedly this year. Hunters took 4,285 bears during the five-week season, a rebound from the below-average harvest of 2,922 bears taken in 2023.

“In 2023, we saw an incredible amount of acorns and other natural food production,” said Randy Johnson, DNR large carnivore specialist. “This reduced the effectiveness of baits and translated to a historically low harvest. This year, anecdotes from bear hunters and harvest data suggest less natural food availability than last year. Additionally, last year’s low harvest, coupled with bears entering dens in excellent body condition last fall, likely contributed to an increase in the number of bears on the landscape this fall.”

In Zone B, which covers the state’s northeastern corner, the hunter success rate was 59%. The preliminary harvest total was 898, somewhat above the harvest target of 850. Harvest targets are readjusted each year to increase, decrease or stabilize population trends.