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Taney County, Missouri: deer harvest and public hunting land

Taney County covers 652 square miles around Branson. Hunters checked 2,452 deer here in the 2025 season, 1,327 of them antlered bucks, by MDC's harvest summary. That is up 19% from 2024. 24.7% of Taney County is public land open to the public, the largest share national forest (66,872 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.

Map of Missouri's Taney County: public land by manager, the counties around it, highways US 65, US 160 and MO 125; towns: Branson, Hollister, Forsyth, Saddlebrooke and Indian Point

MDC conservation areasNational forestFederal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakesState parks and historic sitesCounty, city and regional landTaney CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway

Taney County at a glance
Size417,015 acres (652 square miles)
Deer checked, 20252,452 (1,327 antlered bucks, 186 button bucks, 939 does)
Firearms and archery, 20251,922 by firearms, 530 by archery
Public land24.7% (103,205 acres)
MDC lands6 (29,500 acres inside Taney County)
MRAP landNone mapped this year
Towns in and near itBranson, Hollister, Forsyth, Saddlebrooke, Indian Point and Blue Eye

How many deer are harvested in Taney County?

Hunters checked 2,452 deer in Taney County in 2025: 1,327 antlered bucks, 186 button bucks and 939 does. By method: 1,922 by firearms (1,303 of them in the November portion) and 530 by archery; the rest came on managed hunts.

SeasonDeer checkedAntlered bucksButton bucksDoesFirearmsNovember portionArchery
20252,4521,3271869391,9221,303530
20242,0571,0141748691,6371,198420
20232,8051,4631971,1452,3431,669462
20222,2251,0991969301,8061,518419
20212,2141,0832129191,720493

Source: MDC deer harvest summaries (2021 to 2025 seasons), Taney 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 Taney County?

103,205 of Taney County's 417,015 acres are public land open to the public (24.7%). The biggest share is national forest: 66,872 acres.

ManagerAcresShare of Taney County
National forest66,87216%
MDC conservation areas29,9357.2%
Federal land, mostly Corps of Engineers lakes6,1181.5%
County, city and regional land2500.1%
State parks and historic sites26under 0.1%
Land trusts and other open land4under 0.1%
All public land open to the public103,20524.7%

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 Taney County

MDC lands in Taney County, largest first, with the acres of each inside it:

Other large public areas here, by PAD-US: Mark Twain National Forest (66,872 acres), Bull Shoals Recreation Area (22,795 acres) and Table Rock Recreation Area (5,200 acres).

How do you get to Taney County?

Highways through it: US 65 (about 48 miles inside), US 160 (about 43 miles inside), MO 125 (about 16 miles inside), MO 465 (about 12 miles inside) and MO 265 (about 9 miles inside). Towns inside: Branson, Hollister, Forsyth, Merriam Woods, Kirbyville and Rockaway Beach. Nearby: Saddlebrooke (on the line), Indian Point (2 miles), Blue Eye (3 miles) and Reeds Spring (4 miles).

Which counties border Taney County?

Taney County touches 4 other counties. Their latest MDC harvest and public land, for comparison:

CountyDeer harvestedYearPublic landMRAP land sites
Ozark County2,819202514.1%
Stone County2,137202516.5%
Douglas County3,69520258.3%
Christian County2,458202515.5%

Questions hunters ask

How many deer were harvested in Taney County in 2025?

Hunters checked 2,452 deer: 1,327 antlered bucks, 186 button bucks and 939 does (MDC). In 2024: 2,057.

Is there public hunting land in Taney County?

Yes. 103,205 acres, 24.7% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and MDC conservation area boundaries, the largest share national forest (66,872 acres). MDC's map shows 6 conservation areas here.

Does Taney County have MRAP land?

Not on MDC's MRAP layer of tracts open to hunting.

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Where these numbers come from

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 Ozark County Stone County Douglas County Christian County