At press time, 2007 harvest records were unavailable, but approximately 700 to 800 whitetails are taken here by a combination of lottery (gun), blackpowder, physically challenged and archery efforts each season. Efforts-per-harvest ratios tend to be near five to eight efforts per deer.

Biologists in the past have designed timber management prescriptions as local hunters have the ongoing perception of less deer available as compared to previous seasons.

Lottery gun hunts here permit 2,500 hunters for either-sex deer hunts offered during two separate weekends. For certain, less than 2,500 chosen applicants actually show up for the lottery weekends.

The lottery gun hunts here were scheduled during the first and third weekends of December in 2007. The muzzleloader segment is usually slated for early January, and the balance of the season remains for archery-only pursuits.

For more information, contact the Tensas River NWR at (318) 574-2664.

Further down the Mississippi River in Concordia Parish, both Three Rivers and Red River WMAs hold good concentration of alluvial wetland whitetails. Poorly drained bottomland hardwoods comprising nearly 70,000 acres have offered good diversity in plant browse species along with good mast production over the years.

Three Rivers WMA's name reflects its proximity to the Mississippi, Red and Atchafalaya rivers.

In 2007, managed hunts at both WMAs resulted in 346 whitetails taken by 3,662 hunting efforts for 10.6 efforts per deer.

At these combined tracts, deer numbers are above average and hunters usually score on quality bucks sporting 8 to 10 points.

THE BEST (AND WORST) OF LOUISIANA'S MANAGED DEER HUNTS Based on either-sex harvest totals for managed hunts during the 2007-2008 seasons.
BEST OF THE BAYOU
RANK	LOCATION	EFFORTS	KILLS	EFFORTS/KILL
1.	Ouachita	355	80	4.4
2.	Sicily Island Hills	203	45	4.5
3.	Camp Beauregard*	433	90	4.8
4.	Fort Polk**	941	193	5.0
5.	Big Lake	720	122	5.9
6.	Buckhorn	534	89	6.0
7.	Boeuf	1,538	253	6.1
8.	Russell Sage	535	83	6.4
9.	Loggy Bayou (estimate)	450	67	6.7
10 (T).	Bayou Macon ***	293	39	7.5
10 (T).	Union (18 Days Managed)	1,775	238	7.5
12.	Jackson-Bienville***	933	123	7.6
13.	Maurepas Swamp (self-clearing)	512	86	7.8
14.	Sherburne	1,179	139	9.0
15.	Sabine	207	24	8.6
BOTTOM OF THE BARREL
5.	Clear Creek**	1,727	92	18.8
4.	Tunica Hills*	279	14	19.9
3.	West Bay	438	14	13.3
2.	Pearl River	318	8	39.8
1.	Sandy Hollow	105	2	52.5
*= Muzzleloader Only, **=Oct. 27-28, ***=Nov. 17-18

The either-sex gun hunt is usually scheduled the two days following Thanksgiving with a bucks-only segment slated in late December and early January. The primitive weapons hunt usually falls in early January.

For more information, contact the LDWF at its Ferriday office at (318) 757-4571.

Farther south, both Sherburne WMA and the Atchafalaya NWR team up to provide some 44,000 acres of bottomland hardwoods and swamps to those hunters pursuing deer in the Atchafalaya Basin. Both of these public parcels occupy portions of Pointe Coupee, St. Martin and Iberville parishes.

The gun seasons here usually begin the weekend after Thanksgiving, with three additional either-sex days in December. A bucks-only season is usually scheduled in late December through mid-January. Moderate to high numbers of whitetails can be experienced, and the youth gun hunts here scheduled before the regular gun opener are very popular as a result.

Last season, hunters harvested 256 whitetails here for approximately 10.5 hunter efforts per deer on managed either-sex hunts.

According to LDWF biologist manager Tony Vidrine, conditions are optimal for another good season on these lands, which have historically held numerous white-tailed deer.

For more information regarding maps or any other concerns, contact the LDWF Region 6 office at (337) 948-0255.

NORTH-CENTRAL LOUISIANA
Large tracts of pine and mixed hardwoods forests are managed for white-tailed deer on numerous private leases in north-central Louisiana.

Much of the private land in this area is under prescribed management strategies under the state's Deer Management Assistance Program, where landowners and lessees obtain assistance and advice from the LDWF.