Guthrie County, Iowa: deer harvest and public hunting land
Guthrie County covers 593 square miles around Guthrie Center. Hunters reported 1,613 deer here in the 2025 season, 641 of them antlered bucks, through the DNR's harvest reporting. That is down 9% from 2024, and the fewest in the 5 years shown. 3.2% of Guthrie County is public land open to the public, the largest share public hunting areas on the DNR atlas (6,706 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 atlasState parks and recreation areasCounty conservation board and city landLand trusts and other open landGuthrie CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 379,557 acres (593 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer reported, 2025 | 1,613 (641 antlered bucks, 127 button bucks, 833 does and doe fawns) |
| Deer zone (2026) | Zone A |
| Public land | 3.2% (12,019 acres) |
| Hunting areas | 18 (6,705 acres inside Guthrie County) |
| IHAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Guthrie Center, Panora, Casey, Stuart, Adair and Linden |
How many deer are harvested in Guthrie County?
Hunters reported 1,613 deer in Guthrie County in 2025: 641 antlered bucks, 127 button bucks, 833 does and doe fawns and 12 bucks that had shed their antlers.
| Season | Deer reported | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Doe fawns | Shed-antler bucks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,613 | 641 | 127 | 798 | 35 | 12 |
| 2024 | 1,775 | 655 | 148 | 898 | 57 | 17 |
| 2023 | 2,113 | 777 | 220 | 1,044 | 60 | 12 |
| 2022 | 2,232 | 778 | 193 | 1,171 | 63 | 27 |
| 2021 | 2,032 | 739 | 180 | 1,035 | 63 | 15 |
Source: Iowa DNR harvest reporting (2021 to 2025 seasons), Guthrie County. Every county's numbers add up to the DNR's statewide row for each season shown.
How much public land is in Guthrie County?
12,019 of Guthrie County's 379,557 acres are public land open to the public (3.2%). The biggest share is public hunting areas on the DNR atlas: 6,706 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Guthrie County |
|---|---|---|
| Public hunting areas on the DNR atlas | 6,706 | 1.8% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 4,121 | 1.1% |
| State parks and recreation areas | 780 | 0.2% |
| County conservation board and city land | 394 | 0.1% |
| Other DNR land | 16 | under 0.1% |
| National wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas | 2 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 12,019 | 3.2% |
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 Guthrie County
Public hunting areas in Guthrie County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- Elk Grove Wildlife Area: 1,600 acres
- Bays Branch Wildlife Area: 1,123 acres
- Middle Raccoon River WMA: 966 acres
- Springbrook Wildlife Area: 675 acres
- Lenon Mill Wildlife Area: 493 acres
- Lakin Slough: 317 acres
- Bays Branch WPA: 276 acres
- Montieth Wildlife Area: 232 acres
- Bennie Hall Wildlife Area: 219 acres
- Seeley Creek Timber: 201 acres
- Marlowe Ray Wildlife Area: 185 acres
- McCord Pond: 112 acres
- Se Robinson Wildlife Area: 104 acres
- Springbrook Rec Area - Hasty Tract: 77 acres
- Jamaica Trail Spur: 54 acres
- Lakin Slough WPA: 25 acres
- Sheeder Prairie State Preserve: 24 acres
- Middle Raccoon River Easement: 22 acres
Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Guthrie County Waterfowl Production Area (303 acres).
How do you get to Guthrie County?
Highways through it: IA 25 (about 30 miles inside), IA 44 (about 24 miles inside), IA 141 (about 21 miles inside), IA 925 (about 20 miles inside) and IA 4 (about 12 miles inside). Towns inside: Guthrie Center, Panora, Casey, Menlo, Bayard and Jamaica. Nearby: Stuart (on the line), Adair (on the line), Linden (on the line) and Dexter (on the line).
Which counties border Guthrie County?
Guthrie County touches 7 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | IHAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cass County | 298 | 2025 | 0.5% | 3 |
| Adair County | 679 | 2025 | 0.6% | |
| Dallas County | 1,172 | 2025 | 2.3% | |
| Greene County | 351 | 2025 | 1.7% | 1 |
| Audubon County | 204 | 2025 | 0.2% | 6 |
| Carroll County | 199 | 2025 | 0.9% | |
| Madison County | 2,470 | 2025 | 1.4% | 1 |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Guthrie County in 2025?
Hunters reported 1,613 deer: 641 antlered bucks, 127 button bucks and 833 does and doe fawns (DNR). In 2024: 1,775.
Is there public hunting land in Guthrie County?
Yes. 12,019 acres, 3.2% 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 (6,706 acres). The DNR's atlas shows 18 public hunting areas here.
Does Guthrie 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 Cass County Adair County Dallas County Greene County Audubon County Carroll County Madison County