Taberville Prairie Conservation Area: hunting and access
Taberville Prairie Conservation Area is 1,693 acres of MDC land in St. Clair County, 4 miles from Rockville. MDC lists deer hunting here (muzzleloader and archery, antlerless permits allowed). Hunters checked 3,383 deer in St. Clair County in 2025.
Data updated October 2026. Area facts: MDC's conservation area data, read 2026-10. Harvest: MDC deer harvest summaries, 2021 to 2025.
MDC conservation areasNational wildlife refugesTaberville Prairie Conservation AreaCounty lineLakeHighway
| Size | 1,693 acres |
|---|---|
| County | St. Clair County |
| Deer harvest unit | St. Clair County |
| MDC lists for hunting | Deer, Bear, Turkey, Rabbit, Dove and Quail |
| MDC area number | 6124 |
| MDC region | Kansas City |
| Nearest towns | Rockville (4 mi), Schell City (6 mi) and Appleton City (9 mi) |
What is Taberville Prairie Conservation Area like?
Taberville Prairie is a remnant of the prairie ecosystem that once covered more than one-quarter of Missouri. It is also home to plants and animals that are specially adapted for life on the open prairie. Less than one-half of one percent of original prairie remains in Missouri making some of these species increasingly rare.
Managers use prescribed burning, grazing, and other tools to simulate historic disturbances that maintain healthy grasslands and limit the negative impacts of invasive plants, including trees, which were historically uncommon here. Management priorities include providing nesting and brood-rearing habitat for Greater prairie-chickens, bobwhite quail, and grassland birds such as Henslow's sparrow and upland sandpiper. Monitoring and management for a number of lesser known species is also important. Some species may include: Mead's milkweed, Geocarpon, prairie mole crickets, Regal fritillary butterflies, northern crawfish frog, slender glass lizard, blacknose shiner, grasshopper sparrow, Loggerhead shrike, short-eared owl, and Northern harrier.
In MDC's words, from the Taberville Prairie Conservation Area page.
What can you hunt on Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
MDC's page for Taberville Prairie Conservation Area lists: Deer: muzzleloader and archery, antlerless permits allowed; Bear: archery and firearms; Turkey: archery and firearms; Rabbit; Dove; Quail.
What are the rules on Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
MDC's standard conservation area rules (Chapter 11 of the Wildlife Code) apply; the area's rules on MDC's site list any it adds.
How many deer are taken around Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
Taberville Prairie Conservation Area lies in St. Clair County. Hunters checked 3,383 deer in St. Clair County in 2025, against 3,309 in 2024.
| County | Taberville Prairie Conservation Area acres in it | Deer, 2025 | Deer, 2024 | Deer, 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Clair County | 1,693 | 3,383 | 3,309 | 3,990 |
Harvest for the whole county, not the conservation area alone: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons).
How do you get to Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
MDC's directions: From El Dorado Springs, take Route H north 12 miles.
Nearest towns: Rockville (4 miles), Schell City (6 miles), Appleton City (9 miles) and Roscoe (9 miles).
What other public land is near Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
MDC lands within 10 miles:
- Schell-Osage Conservation Area: 8,654 acres, 2.5 miles away
- Linscomb Wildlife Area: 2,422 acres, 3.5 miles away
- Wah'Kon-Tah Prairie: 3,563 acres, 7.6 miles away
- Truman Reservoir Management Lands (Salt Creek): 3,708 acres, 7.9 miles away
- Lichen Glade Conservation Area: 34 acres, 9.1 miles away
Public land within 3 miles of Taberville Prairie Conservation Area
Counting Taberville Prairie Conservation Area itself, 2,261 of the 33,994 acres within 3 miles of its boundary are public land open to the public (6.7%), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries.
| Manager | Acres within 3 miles |
|---|---|
| MDC conservation areas | 2,102 |
| National wildlife refuges | 159 |
Questions hunters ask
Where is Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
In St. Clair County, 4 miles from Rockville.
Can you deer hunt on Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
Yes, by MDC's page: muzzleloader and archery, antlerless permits allowed.
How much public land is around Taberville Prairie Conservation Area?
2,261 acres within 3 miles of its boundary, Taberville Prairie Conservation Area included, by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries. The closest other MDC area is Schell-Osage Conservation Area (2.5 miles).
Get a Missouri hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Missouri are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Missouri included.
Where these facts come from
- Area description, species, rules and directions: MDC, Taberville Prairie Conservation Area; MDC conservation area boundaries.
- Boundary and acres: MDC's map layer above. Surrounding public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries.
- Deer harvest: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons).
FilledTag is not part of the Missouri Department of Conservation. Check MDC's rules and posted signs before you go.