Deer hunting on WMAs

Scouting is the key to successfully hunting SC’s public lands

Deer hunting seasons on the Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) are not as liberal in South Carolina as what’s found on the state’s private lands. But WMAs provide excellent deer hunting opportunities. The harvest rate on many WMAs is comparable to that enjoyed on private land hunting. 

Hunters who don’t own large tracts of land to manage and hunt deer, or belong to hunt clubs with hunting leases, utilize WMAs as their primary avenue to hunting deer.

In South Carolina, more than 1.1 million acres of WMA hunting lands are available to hunters. All you need is a hunting license, a WMA permit, knowledge of the rules and regulations for the specific WMAs hunted, and to go hunting.

But it helps to have some information and a plan of action before you go.

Scout it out

WMA hunting season isn’t open in August, but now is a good time to consider your options, scout, and learn the WMAs in your area to begin to pattern deer movements.

In the Upstate and Piedmont areas of South Carolina, a major public WMA hunting opportunity is the Sumter National Forest. 

Charles Ruth, Big Game Program Coordinator for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), said in mountainous areas in Game Zone 1, the harvest rates are not as high as many other areas. But the area does offer unique hunting opportunities.

“The habitat is not as conducive to large numbers of deer as many other WMAs in the state,” he said. “By having a lower deer density, it does have the capability to produce quality bucks, a prime incentive for many hunters. Just because harvest rates are not as high as some other areas, that doesn’t mean hunters aren’t successful, because they are. And I see some positive, intangible benefits from hunting the mountains.” 

Ruth said hunters can enjoy a type of hunting unique in the state. The rugged mountain area offers a unique ‘big-woods’ environment. And with reasonable legwork, hunters can usually find remote areas that are not often hunted, with good odds for success.

Ruth said the Sumter National Forest also offers WMA lands available for deer hunting in the Central and Western Piedmont areas of the state, and these huge WMAs often have harvest rates comparable to private land hunting.

The Central Piedmont Hunt Unit, with the Sumter National Forest WMA comprising a big portion, provides excellent deer hunting with harvest rates typically comparable, or higher, than the statewide average. The Western Piedmont is also productive, and both areas have substantial public land acreage and can accommodate many hunters.

In the lower part of the state, the Francis Marion National Forest is a popular choice for WMA hunting. It consists of more than 258,000 acres of lands located in Berkeley and northern Charleston counties, and is owned by the U.S. Forest Service. It’s segmented into five separate WMAs. 

Ruth said the five sub-units are the Santee, Hellhole, Northampton, Wambaw, and Waterhorn WMAs. 

They’re all different

“Different areas may have special uses,” Ruth said. “Special seasons for archery and muzzleloader deer hunting may occur in a specific unit. Always check WMA regulations prior to hunting, in case changes were made from the previous year.”

Ruth said deer hunters statewide typically make good use of public land hunting opportunities. In addition to these major WMAs, many smaller named areas exist throughout the state. Check out a complete listing of WMAs at https://www.dnr.sc.gov/mlands/wmaprogram.html. These WMAs often provide very good hunting. Hunters should always check for specific regulations for each WMA. They’re not all the same.

Harvest numbers vary by the type of WMA, he said. 

“Deer harvest figures for coastal WMAs are taken from check stations and are presented only for those WMA properties that have a deer check-in requirement,” Ruth said. “Deer harvest figures for upstate WMAs, the Mountain, Central, and Western Piedmont Hunt Units, were estimated by extrapolating the county deer harvest rates, specifically the deer per square mile, to the acreage of WMA land that falls within the respective counties comprising the WMA. This assumes that hunters on WMA lands exhibit effort and deer harvest patterns like those of the general licensee database that was surveyed.” 

The 2023 deer harvest data for WMAs estimates that 4,017 bucks, 3,219 does, and 40 deer of unknown sex were harvested. This represents a 5.2 percent decline from the 2022 harvest. 

Harvest rates fluctuate

Ruth said some harvest variation is normal, and because of the previous two years of data showing significant harvest increases, this decline is not a big concern. 

The WMA deer harvest data from the 2022 season was up from the 2021 season by 16 percent, a significant harvest increase. Plus, the 2021 WMA harvest was up over the 2020 harvest by 11 percent. 

Ruth said the big increase in WMA harvest during the previous two years indicates the small decline in 2023 is likely a normal harvest fluctuation. 

One way to analyze the harvest numbers when looking for prime deer hunting is the deer harvest per square mile number. Ruth said this method is favored by wildlife managers because it represents an ‘apples-to-apples’ type comparison. Looking at simple harvest data doesn’t consider the size of the area.

For the three major Sumter National Forest WMA Hunt Unit, the Mountain, Central Piedmont, and Western Piedmont, the deer harvest in all three was good, Ruth said. The Central Piedmont, with 159,793 acres, had an 11.4 deer per square mile harvest to lead by a respectable margin. The Western Piedmont, covering 119,077 acres, had an 8.2 deer per square mile harvest rate. The Mountain Unit, the largest of the three with 193,566 acres, had a 6.4 deer per square mile harvest rate.

The combined harvest rate of 8.5 deer per square mile for all three units is considered good deer hunting, Ruth said.

The statewide harvest per square mile, including public lands in 2022, was also 8.5 deer per square mile.

Go small

Ruth points to a couple of positive reasons to hunt the smaller individual areas of these three large Sumter National Forest WMAs.

“The WMA lands of the Sumter National Forest are literally interspersed with private lands in all three areas,” he said. “This means that hunting the WMAs is like hunting private lands. Also, with more than 400,000 acres of public hunting land available, hunters can scout and locate prime localized hunting.”

Ruth offered some cautionary advice, too. 

“This intermingling with private lands does provide more habitat diversity for deer, but WMA hunters have the responsibility to not hunt on private lands,” he said. “Know the boundaries and respect them. Modern hunting apps are available that can also help.” 

Wildlife Management Area boundaries are indicated with yellow Management Area signs.

The Francis Marion WMA was the exception to this data trend of good harvest figures for WMAs. The harvest data showed a very low 0.5 deer per square mile harvest rate.

According to Ruth, this doesn’t depict a totally accurate assessment of deer hunting in the Francis Marion National Forest.

“The harvest data for this WMA relies on hunters to report their harvest by taking the deer to a check station, or they have the option to call and report the harvest,” Ruth said. “At a 2022 public meeting regarding deer hunting the Francis Marion National Forest, hunters attending the meeting said since only a few check stations were available in that huge area, it was often inconvenient to take deer to check-in sites. Plus, some admitted they did not call it in either.”

Don’t rely on luck

Ruth said the low harvest data is not a true representation of the potential for deer hunting in the Francis Marion area because of this lack of reporting. 

“Overall, the truth is some of the habitat at Francis Marion is not great for high numbers of deer,” he said. “A lot of older, open pine areas exist that are not conducive to high deer populations. But some natural areas exist that are dense and hold plenty of deer. And areas where management practices have altered habitat, via timber harvest for example, the resulting re-growth creates a prime, but localized, opportunity for deer hunting.”

Ruth’s assessment is that with appropriate legwork and scouting, the Francis Marion WMA can provide successful hunting for those living in the area with time to scout and learn the areas with better deer density.

Ruth said harvesting a buck, regardless of weapon of choice or whether hunting WMA or private lands, is usually not a factor of luck. It’s how much time hunters spend with boots on the ground before opening day. And for hunters across the state, that means doing different things in preparation of the WMA season opening. 

Ruth said WMAs are managed in various forms, and the habitat can change annually via timber harvests, controlled burns, wildfires, food plots and other management practices. 

With WMAs located throughout the state in different game zones, the WMA seasons for hunting, deer limits and other regulatory information varies. It’s detailed in the Rules and Regulations books, available where licenses are sold. And complete details are on the SCDNR website at www.dnr.sc.gov. 

“Scout the areas prior to hunting because prepared hunters can enjoy consistent success,” he said. 

Be ready for the WMA season opening before hunting pressure begins to impact deer movements. But while scouting, it’s a good idea to locate the habitat that deer will prefer during the rut, and then into late-season, so you’ll have a plan when deer patterns change.

It’s August, but fast-forward your thinking to hunting season by scouting the WMAs you plan to hunt. Hunters can factor in any habitat changes from previous years to plan a season-long strategy.