Alabama
Last year's poor season should be a boon to this year's hunters.
According to the state's Chris Cook, the Alabama deer herd remains stable. "Poor hunting conditions--abundant natural foods and warm weather--appear to have reduced deer activity and total deer harvest for the 2004-05 hunting season," says Cook. "More 21?2-year-old and older bucks should be available for hunters during the 2005-06 season." Data from this past season were not complete at this writing.

The southern half of the state continues to have the highest success rates, but Cook says the northern half is coming on strong. The Black Belt and the northwestern counties are good bets for trophy bucks; northwest Alabama can be considered a sleeper spot.

Cook reports several counties will have more either-sex days this gun season, which means more opportunities for hunters to take antlerless deer.

"Barbour County will have a county-wide antler restriction for buck harvest beginning with the 2005-06 hunting season," says Cook. "Bucks must have at least three antler points one-inch long or longer on at least one main beam to be legal.

Barbour County is the first county in the state of Alabama to have such a restriction.

Georgia
Try the coastal plain for big bucks.
The state's Kent Kammermeyer says three hurricanes, a huge acorn crop and warm weather contributed to a poor year in 2004. "WMA hunter numbers were down 11 percent, and kill numbers were down 21 percent. It was an awful season." But that should mean good things for the upcoming year. "We stockpiled quite a few deer from this past season," he says. With luck they can repeat the '03 season, which netted 484,000 animals, along with two that made the Boone and Crockett minimum.

The western Piedmont is always best for numbers, but the coastal plain will probably produce the best bucks. Metro Atlanta's bow season will run January 1-31, and the southern zone will extend its firearms season to January 15. The bag limit is now 10 antlerless and two antlered deer. Nonresident fees will increase.

Louisiana
The Mississippi flood plain holds the most promise.
The state's Emile P. LeBlanc says the bright spot is the reforested habitat along the Mississippi River's agricultural lands, where the population is increasing. The flood plain is where hunters often have the most success, although consecutive mild winters and abundant mast crops are environmental impacts that have affected hunters and deer movement.

For any deer, hunters should try the Sherburne and the Red River/ Three Rivers WMAs. For trophy animals, LeBlanc suggests the Mississippi flood plain areas and for sleeper spots says Avoyelles Parish (Lake Ophilia NWR) and Red River/Three Rivers WMAs have good potential.

No significant season changes from last year should be expected, and there are no changes in nonresident regulations.

Mississippi
Archery season has been extended to February 15.
The 2004-05 season was relatively poor because of an abundant mast crop and warm weather. But deer numbers remain high almost everywhere in the state.

Biologist William McKinley says youths under the age of 15 can take a spike or three-point as one of their three bucks at any time during the 2005-06 season. For adults, a buck must have four points to be legal.

Traditional hot spots for trophy deer have been along the Mississippi River, and in the central, west central, southwestern and east central regions. During archery season, bucks are legal from October 15-31 only on lands south of U.S. Hwy. 84 and east of MS 35. Either sex is permitted from November 1-18.

The primitive gun and archery seasons are extended to February 15 in that area.