Scott County, Missouri: deer harvest and public hunting land
Scott County covers 426 square miles around Sikeston. Hunters checked 900 deer here in the 2025 season, 399 of them antlered bucks, by MDC's harvest summary. That is down 3% from 2024. 0.7% of Scott County is public land open to the public, the largest share MDC conservation areas (1,560 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: MDC's deer harvest summaries, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and MDC's conservation area and MRAP layers.
MDC conservation areasCounty, city and regional landScott CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 272,588 acres (426 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer checked, 2025 | 900 (399 antlered bucks, 80 button bucks, 421 does) |
| Firearms and archery, 2025 | 714 by firearms, 186 by archery |
| Public land | 0.7% (1,792 acres) |
| MDC lands | 6 (1,560 acres inside Scott County) |
| MRAP land | None mapped this year |
| Towns in and near it | Sikeston, Scott City, Miner, Bertrand, Morehouse and Delta |
How many deer are harvested in Scott County?
Hunters checked 900 deer in Scott County in 2025: 399 antlered bucks, 80 button bucks and 421 does. By method: 714 by firearms (559 of them in the November portion) and 186 by archery; the rest came on managed hunts.
| Season | Deer checked | Antlered bucks | Button bucks | Does | Firearms | November portion | Archery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 900 | 399 | 80 | 421 | 714 | 559 | 186 |
| 2024 | 930 | 421 | 83 | 426 | 729 | 589 | 201 |
| 2023 | 914 | 414 | 72 | 428 | 729 | 629 | 185 |
| 2022 | 815 | 389 | 74 | 352 | 635 | 548 | 180 |
| 2021 | 695 | 347 | 59 | 289 | 535 | 159 |
Source: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons), Scott County, from the county tables of each season (all methods, firearms, archery and the November portion). The 2021 summary has no separate November table.
How much public land is in Scott County?
1,792 of Scott County's 272,588 acres are public land open to the public (0.7%). The biggest share is MDC conservation areas: 1,560 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Scott County |
|---|---|---|
| MDC conservation areas | 1,560 | 0.6% |
| County, city and regional land | 229 | 0.1% |
| State parks and historic sites | 3 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 1,792 | 0.7% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: MDC conservation areas allow the hunting each area's page lists; national forest is open; Corps of Engineers lake land is open to hunting in many places under each project's own rules; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; the Ozark National Scenic Riverways allows hunting under state rules while most other national park land is closed; state parks and city and county land are closed to most hunting.
MDC lands in Scott County
MDC lands in Scott County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:
- General Watkins Conservation Area: 1,115 acres
- Sand Prairie Conservation Area: 198 acres
- Tywappity Community Lake: 119 acres
- Tywappity Towersite: 62 acres
- Cape LaCroix Bluffs Conservation Area: 60 acres
- Sikeston (Sikeston Recreation Complex Lake): 6 acres
How do you get to Scott County?
Highways through it: I-55 (about 53 miles inside), US 61 (about 33 miles inside), MO 77 (about 30 miles inside), US 62 (about 7 miles inside) and MO 91 (about 7 miles inside). Towns inside: Sikeston, Scott City, Miner, Chaffee, Oran and Morley. Nearby: Bertrand (on the line), Morehouse (on the line), Delta (2 miles) and Bell City (3 miles).
Which counties border Scott County?
Scott County touches 4 other counties. Their latest MDC harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land | MRAP land sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stoddard County | 1,935 | 2025 | 4.3% | |
| New Madrid County | 323 | 2025 | 1.5% | |
| Mississippi County | 282 | 2025 | 2.6% | |
| Cape Girardeau County | 3,186 | 2025 | 2.3% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Scott County in 2025?
Hunters checked 900 deer: 399 antlered bucks, 80 button bucks and 421 does (MDC). In 2024: 930.
Is there public hunting land in Scott County?
Yes. 1,792 acres, 0.7% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries, the largest share MDC conservation areas (1,560 acres). MDC's map shows 6 conservation areas here.
Does Scott County have MRAP land?
Not on MDC's MRAP layer of tracts open to hunting.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and MDC conservation area boundaries. conservation areas: MDC conservation area boundaries. MRAP land: MDC Missouri Recreational Access Program (MRAP) lands.
- 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 Missouri Department of Conservation. Numbers are copied from MDC and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Missouri hunting Stoddard County New Madrid County Mississippi County Cape Girardeau County