Rifle use among Illinois deer hunters appears set to make a major jump.
Preliminary data from the youth deer season (Oct. 12-14) makes that a bullet point in the second full year for select single-shot centerfire rifles being allowed in deer hunting. We'll know soon.
The first part of Illinois' firearm deer season opened Friday and runs through Sunday, Nov. 24; the second part is Dec. 5-8.
"In 2023, in the regular firearm season, hunters reported that approximately 19% of the deer taken were killed with rifles," emailed Dan Skinner, forest wildlife program manager for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. "But when we looked at just the youth season, that number was much higher – closer to 34%. This is not surprising, given many centerfire rifle proponents are quick to tout their lighter recoil when compared to slug guns, so it seems predictable that youth hunters would adopt rifles at a rate higher than the overall average.
"Preliminary data from the 2024 youth season shows a significant jump in rifle use; approximately 52% of successful youth deer hunters used rifles this year. This surge in youth rifle usage coupled with the fact that I cannot walk into a sporting goods store’s hunting section in Illinois without walking past a wall of Buckhammers, Blackouts, Legends and the like lead me to believe that we will see use of rifles in the 2024 firearm season continue to increase."
Under the regulations (effective Jan. 1, 2023) allowing select rifle use in Illinois deer hunting, the single-shot centerfire rifles are legal with "a bottleneck centerfire cartridge of .30 caliber or larger with a case length not exceeding one and two-fifths inches, OR a straight-walled centerfire cartridge of .30 caliber or larger. Both must be available as a factory load with the published ballistic tables of the manufacturer showing a capability of at least 500-foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. Full-metal jacket bullets may not be used to harvest deer."
Richard Music was an early one who took advantage of the new regulations on opening day last year in Jo Daviess County to take a double-beam buck at 110 yards with a Ruger American .450 Bushmaster.
"Hoping for another just like him Friday morning for the '24 opener," he messaged.
The big advantages over shotgun slugs are accuracy and distance and, as Skinner mentioned, the lighter recoil compared to a slug gun.
Alexa Tazelaar, then 9, bore that out on opening day of the youth season last year in Peoria County.
“Recoil is a major win with the .350 Legend, and my daughter shot it with ease," her dad Ron explained. "But also the ballistics and accuracy are very appealing, as well as its popularity, making ammo readily available. They are also very affordable.”
As somebody also considering buying a crossbow, I'll second his last sentence.
