Deal Island Wildlife Management Area: deer harvest, hunting rules and map
Hunters reported 38 deer on Deal Island Wildlife Management Area in the 2025-26 season, 10 antlered and 28 antlerless, against 29 in 2024-25. It is a Maryland DNR wildlife management area of about 13,447 acres in Somerset County, in deer management Region B.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: Maryland DNR Annual Big Game Report 2025-2026, Appendix II. Area: Maryland DNR owned lands (Maryland iMAP); DNR's page for Deal Island WMA. Seasons: Maryland DNR Hunting Seasons Calendar for 2026-2027.
Wildlife management areaState forestDeal Island WMACounty lineHighway
| Size | 13,447 acres (measured from DNR's map) |
|---|---|
| County | Somerset County |
| Managed by | Wildlife and Heritage Service |
| Deer reported, 2025-26 | 38 (10 antlered, 28 antlerless) |
| Deer reported, 2024-25 | 29 |
| Sika among them, 2025-26 | 8 |
| Deer management region | Region B |
| Nearest towns | Chance (next to it), Mount Vernon (next to it) and Whitehaven (2 mi) |
How many deer are taken on Deal Island WMA each year?
| Season | Antlered | Antlerless | All deer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 10 | 28 | 38 |
| 2024-25 | 8 | 21 | 29 |
Source: the public land table (Appendix II) in DNR's report for each season (Maryland DNR deer and big game report archive). Totals include sika deer.
What is Deal Island WMA like?
DNR describes it: "Expanses of tidal marsh, frequently broken by open water, characterize most of the habitat of this WMA. The 13,000 acre property also contains forested wetlands and a 2,800-acre man-made pond or "impoundment." The water insects and crustaceans, as well as the abundance of wigeongrass, horned pondweed and other favorite waterfowl foods makes Deal Island one of the best places in Maryland to watch, photograph and hunt ducks and geese."
On hunting and other uses: "Waterfowl are the primary attraction for hunters in Deal Island. No other place in Maryland can boast the chance to see and hunt such large numbers of uncommon ducks like wigeons, pintails, gadwalls, green and blue-winged teal and shovelers in addition to the expected black ducks, mallards, scaup and Canada geese."
On wildlife: "Ducks! Geese!"
Quoted from DNR's page for Deal Island WMA.
What are the rules on Deal Island WMA?
- Use of the Deal Island WMA is generally permitted seven days a week throughout the year.
- Hunting is allowed in accordance with open seasons and shooting hours, unless otherwise noted.
- All State and Federal Hunting Laws and Regulations are applicable.
- Dove hunting is restricted to certain days and shooting hours.
- 3,426 acres of Deal Island WMA has been designated part of the MD National Estuarine Research Reserve System.
From DNR's page for Deal Island WMA.
When can you hunt Deal Island WMA in 2026-27?
Seasons follow Region B: archery September 11 to January 31 with breaks, early muzzleloader October 22 to 24, firearm November 28 to December 12 and January 8 to 10, 2027, late muzzleloader December 19 to January 2. Spring turkey runs April 19 to May 24, 2027.
| County | Deer, 2025-26 | Antlered, 2025-26 | Spring turkeys, 2026 | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Somerset County | 1,846 | 657 | 184 | 22.2% |
Seasons: Maryland DNR Hunting Seasons Calendar for 2026-2027. County harvest: Maryland DNR Annual Big Game Report 2025-2026.
How do you get to Deal Island WMA?
Highways within five miles: MD 363, MD 362, MD 352, MD 361, MD 349 and MD 627. Nearest towns: Chance (next to it), Mount Vernon (next to it), Whitehaven (2 miles) and Fairmount (3 miles).
Questions hunters ask
How many deer are taken on Deal Island WMA?
38 in 2025-26: 10 antlered and 28 antlerless (Maryland DNR Annual Big Game Report 2025-2026, Appendix II). In 2024-25: 29.
Do you need a permit to hunt Deal Island WMA?
DNR's page for Deal Island WMA says: "Use of the Deal Island WMA is generally permitted seven days a week throughout the year. 3,426 acres of Deal Island WMA has been designated part of the MD National Estuarine Research Reserve System."
What county is Deal Island WMA in?
Somerset County. Somerset County reported 1,846 deer in 2025-26, 657 antlered, and is in Region B.
What can you hunt on Deal Island WMA?
DNR: "Waterfowl are the primary attraction for hunters in Deal Island. No other place in Maryland can boast the chance to see and hunt such large numbers of uncommon ducks like wigeons, pintails, gadwalls, green and blue-winged teal and shovelers in addition to the expected black ducks, mallards, scaup and Canada geese."
Get a Maryland hunt plan when they open
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Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Maryland included.
Where these facts come from
- Deer by area: the public land tables in Maryland DNR deer and big game report archive. Boundary: Maryland DNR owned lands (Maryland iMAP).
- Seasons: Maryland DNR Hunting Seasons Calendar for 2026-2027; Maryland DNR: 2026-27 archery deer season opens September 11. County harvest: Maryland DNR Annual Big Game Report 2025-2026.
- Public land around it: Maryland DNR owned lands (Maryland iMAP) for state land; USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US 4.1) for federal land. 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 Maryland Department of Natural Resources.