County rankings for the 2014 deer season are compiled by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources in two categories: total harvest and harvest by square mile. The data points hunters to areas that were productive last season and in seasons past.
An interesting note is that top counties are closely grouped in two distinct areas. In the Upstate, top producing counties are Greenwood, Spartanburg, Abbeville and Anderson. Only Spartanburg County does not border one of the others.
In the Lowcountry, Bamberg, Abbeville, Hampton, Orangeburg, Calhoun, Beaufort and Allendale counties are top-producing counties; all border at least one of the others.
Charles Ruth, SCDNR’s top deer biologist, said total harvest does not compensate for size differences between counties, and thus, they are not directly comparable, but it does remain a way to determine how a specific county fared from previous years’ harvest numbers for that county.
Ruth said that of the top counties last season, Colleton, Williamsburg and Berkeley counties showed increases in the harvest last year over 2013.
“Areas that are on both top 10 lists are potentially good targets for 2015 and include Bamberg, Orangeburg, Spartanburg and Hampton counties,” he said.
Top 10 South Carolina counties by harvest per square mile
Rank County Harvest per sq. mile
1. Bamberg 18.0
2. Greenwood 15.5
3. Spartanburg 15.2
4. Abbeville 14.6
5. Hampton 14.1
6 .Anderson 13.7
7. Orangeburg 13.0
8. Calhoun 12.2
9. Beaufort 12.2
10. Allendale 12.0
Top 10 South Carolina counties by total harvest
Rank County Bucks Does Total Harvest
1. Orangeburg 5,485 4,745 10,230
2. Colleton 4,530 4,132 8,662
3. Williamsburg 4,308 3,215 7,523
4. Hampton 3,122 4,055 7,177
5. Berkeley 3,787 2,583 6,370
6. Spartanburg 3,146 3,158 6,304
7. Newberry 3,081 2,676 5,757
8. Fairfield 3,191 2,539 5,733
9. Laurens 3,126 2,418 5,544
10. Bamberg 2,346 3,177 5,523
Be the first to comment