Delaware County, Iowa: deer harvest and public hunting land
Delaware County covers 579 square miles around Manchester. Hunters reported 1,732 deer here in the 2025 season, 562 of them antlered bucks, through the DNR's harvest reporting. That is up 2% from 2024, and the most in the 5 years shown. 1.7% of Delaware County is public land open to the public, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (4,298 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 atlasNational wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areasOther DNR landState parks and recreation areasCounty conservation board and city landLand trusts and other open landIHAP landDelaware CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 370,509 acres (579 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer reported, 2025 | 1,732 (562 antlered bucks, 161 button bucks, 970 does and doe fawns) |
| Deer zone (2026) | Zone A |
| Public land | 1.7% (6,233 acres) |
| Hunting areas | 21 (4,296 acres inside Delaware County) |
| IHAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Manchester, Edgewood, Delhi, Worthington, Dyersville and New Vienna |
How many deer are harvested in Delaware County?
Hunters reported 1,732 deer in Delaware County in 2025: 562 antlered bucks, 161 button bucks, 970 does and doe fawns and 39 bucks that had shed their antlers.
| Season | Deer reported | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Doe fawns | Shed-antler bucks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,732 | 562 | 161 | 893 | 77 | 39 |
| 2024 | 1,700 | 567 | 182 | 855 | 70 | 26 |
| 2023 | 1,591 | 559 | 154 | 802 | 56 | 20 |
| 2022 | 1,578 | 561 | 135 | 809 | 54 | 19 |
| 2021 | 1,390 | 512 | 139 | 685 | 40 | 14 |
Source: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons), Delaware County. Every county's numbers add up to the DNR's statewide row for each season shown.
How much public land is in Delaware County?
6,233 of Delaware County's 370,509 acres are public land open to the public (1.7%). The biggest share is public hunting areas on the DNR atlas: 4,298 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Delaware County |
|---|---|---|
| Public hunting areas on the DNR atlas | 4,298 | 1.2% |
| State parks and recreation areas | 1,639 | 0.4% |
| County conservation board and city land | 254 | 0.1% |
| Other DNR land | 42 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 6,233 | 1.7% |
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 Delaware County
Public hunting areas in Delaware County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Buffalo Creek: 1,026 acres
- Ram Hollow Wildlife Area: 737 acres
- Retz Memorial County Park: 425 acres
- Brayton Memorial Forest: 307 acres
- Fountain Springs Creek Park: 244 acres
- Turtle Creek Park: 208 acres
- Backbone State Forest: 183 acres
- Shearer Wildlife Area: 151 acres
- Twin Bridges Park and Wildlife Area: 127 acres
- Indian Hills Wildlife Area: 122 acres
- Backbone State Park: 121 acres
- Pin Oak Wildlife Area: 103 acres
- Milo Forest: 102 acres
- Morris Wildlife Area: 84 acres
- Buffalo Wildlife Area: 80 acres
- Bailey's Ford Park: 74 acres
- Silver Creek Wildlife Area: 71 acres
- Kuhlman Wildlife Area: 53 acres
- Hardscrabble Wildlife Area: 42 acres
- Gaffney Archery Range: 27 acres
- Bunting Wildlife Area: 9 acres
How do you get to Delaware County?
Highways through it: US 20 (about 47 miles inside), IA 38 (about 29 miles inside), IA 13 (about 25 miles inside) and IA 3 (about 19 miles inside). Towns inside: Manchester, Edgewood, Delhi, Delaware, Hopkinton and Earlville. Nearby: Worthington (on the line), Dyersville (on the line), New Vienna (on the line) and Coggon (on the line).
Which counties border Delaware County?
Delaware 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 |
| Clayton County | 4,248 | 2025 | 4.6% | 4 |
| Dubuque County | 2,390 | 2025 | 3.1% | 1 |
| 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 Delaware County in 2025?
Hunters reported 1,732 deer: 562 antlered bucks, 161 button bucks and 970 does and doe fawns (DNR). In 2024: 1,700.
Is there public hunting land in Delaware County?
Yes. 6,233 acres, 1.7% 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 (4,298 acres). The DNR's atlas shows 21 public hunting areas here.
Does Delaware 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 Clayton County Dubuque County Fayette County Buchanan County