The Iowa DNR reported a 20% decline in relative white-tailed deer abundance in 2026, the lowest level since 2013, as hunters begin the muzzleloader season with colder, drier weather and harvested fields.
Cooler temperatures and already-harvested fields are welcome conditions for Iowa deer hunters, who have already started the season or are preparing to begin hunting, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The DNR monitors deer populations and hunting data throughout the year. Its 2026 spring spotlight survey, which tracks wildlife after sunset along rural roads across the state, observed the lowest relative abundance of white-tailed deer in more than a decade.
Jace Elliott, state deer biologist for the DNR, noted that the survey results match what the department hears from bow hunters, whose season began earlier this month. The early muzzleloader season begins Saturday.
“Bow hunters are our most dedicated hunting group, the ones who spend the most time in the field,” Elliott said in a DNR news release. “And what we've been hearing from them in recent years is that they are seeing fewer deer across much of the state.”
The spotlight survey showed that relative deer abundance fell 20% from 2025 and reached the lowest estimate since 2013. Populations declined in every region of the state, though Elliott said there “is evidence” that deer populations in western Iowa are beginning to recover.
As a result of the observed decline, the DNR implemented a new regional hunting zone this year in eight western Iowa counties —Crawford, Ida, Lyon, O'Brien, Plymouth, Shelby, Sioux and Woodbury— with limited quotas of county-specific licenses and a requirement to hunt antlered deer only. All other counties are considered part of Zone A and do not have the same restrictions, though there is an antlered-buck-only restriction in certain Zone A counties during the first firearms season.
The DNR recommended that hunters consult the department's hunting guide before heading out to their hunting stands.
According to the 2026 survey, the reasons for the decline in relative deer abundance “remain unclear.” Although deer continue to be exposed to epizootic hemorrhagic disease —often fatal and spread by small insects— reported mortality from these diseases was relatively low in 2025. The report noted that mortality rates from hemorrhagic diseases were higher in recent years, even though relative abundance remained stable.
The survey indicated that it is possible that unaccounted landscape or atmospheric conditions affected the count, and recalled that very low numbers were also observed in 2012, but that the following year they jumped to rates that were “biologically improbable.”
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) continues to affect Iowa's deer and the DNR tracks it with the help of hunters, although it was not cited as a cause of the statewide population decline. According to DNR data, 192 deer in 29 counties tested positive for CWD in 2025, with the highest concentrations in eastern and south-central Iowa. So far in the 2026-2027 season, the DNR's database shows more than 240 samples taken, but none confirmed positive for the disease, which is always fatal to deer.
In the 2025-2026 season, hunters harvested 101,919 deer, 1% more than the previous year, according to the latest DNR deer program report. While the firearms season harvest was about 5% lower than the year before, bow hunters harvested about 4% more. The department's management priorities for the current season are to maintain the deer population in most of the state and to increase it in western Iowa.
The DNR noted that “Mother Nature hasn't been cooperating” with bow hunters this fall, because of warmer weather and near-record rains in September. Elliott said bow hunters, whose first season runs through Dec. 4, “are getting excited” about colder temperatures and a break in the rain.
“Due to all the rain, natural forage has been very abundant this year and the deer seem to remain in the timber, where they have ample cover and food,” Elliott explained.
The drier conditions of the past two weeks allowed farmers to make progress on harvest, which Elliott considers beneficial for hunters as well. “Deer are still dispersed, but that can change as the crops come out and temperatures drop,” he added.
