Cedar County, Iowa: deer harvest and public hunting land
Cedar County covers 582 square miles around West Branch. Hunters reported 1,221 deer here in the 2025 season, 561 of them antlered bucks, through the DNR's harvest reporting. That is up 10% from 2024, and the most in the 5 years shown. 0.3% of Cedar County is public land open to the public, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (666 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 atlasFederal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakesOther DNR landCounty conservation board and city landLand trusts and other open landCedar CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 372,404 acres (582 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer reported, 2025 | 1,221 (561 antlered bucks, 106 button bucks, 540 does and doe fawns) |
| Deer zone (2026) | Zone A |
| Public land | 0.3% (1,246 acres) |
| Hunting areas | 8 (667 acres inside Cedar County) |
| IHAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | West Branch, Tipton, Durant, Wilton, New Liberty and Lisbon |
How many deer are harvested in Cedar County?
Hunters reported 1,221 deer in Cedar County in 2025: 561 antlered bucks, 106 button bucks, 540 does and doe fawns and 14 bucks that had shed their antlers.
| Season | Deer reported | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Doe fawns | Shed-antler bucks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,221 | 561 | 106 | 515 | 25 | 14 |
| 2024 | 1,113 | 497 | 92 | 478 | 27 | 19 |
| 2023 | 1,091 | 501 | 88 | 449 | 38 | 15 |
| 2022 | 1,095 | 472 | 87 | 511 | 19 | 6 |
| 2021 | 1,076 | 474 | 79 | 491 | 21 | 11 |
Source: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons), Cedar County. Every county's numbers add up to the DNR's statewide row for each season shown.
How much public land is in Cedar County?
1,246 of Cedar County's 372,404 acres are public land open to the public (0.3%). The biggest share is public hunting areas on the DNR atlas: 666 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Cedar County |
|---|---|---|
| Public hunting areas on the DNR atlas | 666 | 0.2% |
| County conservation board and city land | 398 | 0.1% |
| Federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes | 181 | under 0.1% |
| Other DNR land | 1 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 1,246 | 0.3% |
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 Cedar County
Public hunting areas in Cedar County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Townsend Wildlife Area: 179 acres
- Rock Creek Timber: 155 acres
- River Valley Wetland: 101 acres
- Mink Run Wildlife Area: 73 acres
- Cedar Valley Park: 54 acres
- Cedar Bluff Wildlife Area: 40 acres
- Mitzner Wildlife Area: 34 acres
- Rock Creek Island State Preserve: 31 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site (181 acres).
How do you get to Cedar County?
Highways through it: I-80 (about 49 miles inside), IA 38 (about 33 miles inside), US 30 (about 25 miles inside), US 6 (about 17 miles inside) and IA 130 (about 14 miles inside). Towns inside: West Branch, Tipton, Durant, Lowden, Mechanicsville and Stanwood. Nearby: Wilton (on the line), New Liberty (on the line), Lisbon (on the line) and West Liberty (2 miles).
Which counties border Cedar County?
Cedar County touches 6 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | IHAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linn County | 2,454 | 2025 | 3.6% | |
| Jones County | 2,022 | 2025 | 1.4% | 1 |
| Scott County | 830 | 2025 | 5% | |
| Clinton County | 1,414 | 2025 | 3.7% | 1 |
| Johnson County | 1,968 | 2025 | 9.9% | |
| Muscatine County | 1,393 | 2025 | 4.1% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Cedar County in 2025?
Hunters reported 1,221 deer: 561 antlered bucks, 106 button bucks and 540 does and doe fawns (DNR). In 2024: 1,113.
Is there public hunting land in Cedar County?
Yes. 1,246 acres, 0.3% 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 (666 acres). The DNR's atlas shows 8 public hunting areas here.
Does Cedar 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 Linn County Jones County Scott County Clinton County Johnson County Muscatine County