Black Hawk County, Iowa: deer harvest and public hunting land
Black Hawk County covers 573 square miles around Waterloo. Hunters reported 938 deer here in the 2025 season, 411 of them antlered bucks, through the DNR's harvest reporting. That is up 2% from 2024, and the most in the 5 years shown. 3% of Black Hawk County is public land open to the public, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (6,566 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: the DNR's harvest reporting results, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's Hunting Atlas layer.
Public hunting areas on the DNR atlasOther DNR landState parks and recreation areasCounty conservation board and city landLand trusts and other open landBlack Hawk CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 366,471 acres (573 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer reported, 2025 | 938 (411 antlered bucks, 67 button bucks, 444 does and doe fawns) |
| Deer zone (2026) | Zone A |
| Public land | 3% (10,971 acres) |
| Hunting areas | 32 (6,562 acres inside Black Hawk County) |
| IHAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Hudson, Janesville, Jesup and Fairbank |
How many deer are harvested in Black Hawk County?
Hunters reported 938 deer in Black Hawk County in 2025: 411 antlered bucks, 67 button bucks, 444 does and doe fawns and 16 bucks that had shed their antlers.
| Season | Deer reported | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Doe fawns | Shed-antler bucks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 938 | 411 | 67 | 409 | 35 | 16 |
| 2024 | 916 | 440 | 63 | 383 | 27 | 3 |
| 2023 | 896 | 396 | 88 | 381 | 24 | 7 |
| 2022 | 714 | 318 | 66 | 306 | 17 | 7 |
| 2021 | 747 | 355 | 53 | 321 | 12 | 6 |
Source: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons), Black Hawk County. Every county's numbers add up to the DNR's statewide row for each season shown.
How much public land is in Black Hawk County?
10,971 of Black Hawk County's 366,471 acres are public land open to the public (3%). The biggest share is public hunting areas on the DNR atlas: 6,566 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Black Hawk County |
|---|---|---|
| Public hunting areas on the DNR atlas | 6,566 | 1.8% |
| County conservation board and city land | 3,106 | 0.8% |
| State parks and recreation areas | 1,219 | 0.3% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 56 | under 0.1% |
| Other DNR land | 24 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 10,971 | 3% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: DNR wildlife management areas and state forests are open to hunting unless posted as a refuge; Corps of Engineers lake land is open in many places under each project's own rules; national wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; county conservation boards set the rules on their own land; state parks are closed to most hunting.
Public hunting areas in Black Hawk County
Public hunting areas in Black Hawk County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Black Hawk Park: 1,021 acres
- Brett Kilma WMA: 930 acres
- Cedar River Natural Resource Area: 582 acres
- Cedar Island Wildlife Area: 538 acres
- Bruggeman Park: 509 acres
- Black Hawk Creek Greenbelt: 373 acres
- West Fork Access: 343 acres
- Fall's Access: 300 acres
- Spring Creek Flats: 282 acres
- Beaver Creek Access: 234 acres
- Railroad Lake Area: 184 acres
- Turkey Ridge Wildlife Area - Black Hawk: 142 acres
- River Birch Bottoms: 105 acres
- Sage Sanctuary: 101 acres
- Fisher Forest: 86 acres
- Rigdon Access: 80 acres
- Popp Access: 76 acres
- Bruce Child's Access: 75 acres
- Thunder Woman Natural Area: 74 acres
- McFarlane Park: 64 acres
- Fox Twp. Wildlife Area: 58 acres
- Twin Springs: 54 acres
- Wapsie Bluff Access: 54 acres
- Schaefer Natural Area: 47 acres
- Washington Union Access: 44 acres
- Wapsie Bend Access: 40 acres
- Franta Wildlife Area: 39 acres
- Sping Creek Geologic Area: 32 acres
- Potratz Natural Area: 32 acres
- Edgerton Reserve: 29 acres
- Wilson's Woods: 27 acres
- Crane Creek Access: 7 acres
How do you get to Black Hawk County?
Highways through it: US 20 (about 48 miles inside), US 218 (about 45 miles inside), I-380 (about 35 miles inside), US 63 (about 27 miles inside) and IA 58 (about 18 miles inside). Towns inside: Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Hudson, Evansdale, La Porte City and Raymond. Nearby: Janesville (on the line), Jesup (on the line), Fairbank (2 miles) and Denver (2 miles).
Which counties border Black Hawk County?
Black Hawk County touches 7 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | IHAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tama County | 1,239 | 2025 | 2.2% | |
| Benton County | 1,060 | 2025 | 1.2% | |
| Bremer County | 1,254 | 2025 | 3.3% | |
| Butler County | 1,211 | 2025 | 2.8% | 1 |
| Grundy County | 143 | 2025 | 0.3% | |
| Fayette County | 2,128 | 2025 | 1.8% | 5 |
| Buchanan County | 1,032 | 2025 | 1.1% | 1 |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Black Hawk County in 2025?
Hunters reported 938 deer: 411 antlered bucks, 67 button bucks and 444 does and doe fawns (DNR). In 2024: 916.
Is there public hunting land in Black Hawk County?
Yes. 10,971 acres, 3% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (6,566 acres). The DNR's atlas shows 32 public hunting areas here.
Does Black Hawk County have IHAP land?
Not on the DNR's IHAP layer.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting area boundaries. public hunting areas: Iowa DNR public hunting areas (Hunting Atlas layer). IHAP land: Iowa DNR Iowa Habitat and Access Program (IHAP) tracts.
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from the DNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Iowa hunting Tama County Benton County Bremer County Butler County Grundy County Fayette County Buchanan County