Charleston County deer harvest: South Carolina, 2019 to 2024
SCDNR's 2024 Deer Harvest Report puts Charleston County's harvest at 2,905 deer: 1,431 antlered bucks, 149 button bucks, 1,173 does and 153 of unknown sex, reported through SC Game Check and corrected by SCDNR for hunters who did not report. That is 6.4 deer per square mile of deer habitat. Ordered by SCDNR's 2024 harvest figures, the county is 36th of 46 by total deer and 36th by deer per square mile. About 5,044 deer hunters spent 57,410 days hunting deer in the county. SCDNR's survey estimates for 2019 to 2023 run from 3,924 (2022) to 5,679 (2023). The county is in Game Zone 3.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: SCDNR Deer Harvest Reports, 2019 to 2024. Seasons: SCDNR's 2026-27 deer seasons on private lands.
Charleston CountySCDNR WMAsNational forestNational wildlife refugeLake or riverHighwayCounty line
| Deer, 2024 season | 2,905: 1,431 antlered, 149 button bucks, 1,173 does, 153 unknown |
|---|---|
| Per square mile of deer habitat | 6.4, 36th of 46 |
| Place by SCDNR's total, 2024 | 36th of 46 counties |
| Deer hunters, 2024 | 5,044 (13th of 46), 11.4 days each on average |
| Days of deer hunting, 2024 | 57,410 (18th of 46) |
| Hogs taken by deer hunters, 2024 | 1,101 (2.4 per square mile) |
| Coyotes taken by deer hunters, 2024 | 462 |
| Game zone | Zone 3 |
| Deer habitat (SCDNR) | 288,732 acres |
| Public land mapped here | 4 WMA properties with a page, 92,243 acres; 70,560 acres of national forest; 49,911 acres of national wildlife refuge. The WMA acres include national forest land that is also a WMA, so the figures overlap and do not add up |
| Towns | Charleston, North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Hollywood and Meggett |
How many deer are killed in Charleston County each season?
| Season | Deer | Bucks | Does | Per sq mi of habitat | How SCDNR counted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2,905 | 1,580 | 1,173 | 6.4 | Reported (SC Game Check, corrected) |
| 2023 | 5,679 | 2,831 | 2,848 | 12.6 | Survey estimate |
| 2022 | 3,924 | 1,993 | 1,931 | 8.7 | Survey estimate |
| 2021 | 4,367 | 2,286 | 2,081 | 9.7 | Survey estimate |
| 2020 | 4,092 | 2,170 | 1,922 | 9.1 | Survey estimate |
| 2019 | 4,181 | 1,853 | 2,328 | 9.3 | Survey estimate |
Source: SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 1 (county harvest) and Table 1 of the 2019 to 2023 reports (SCDNR deer harvest reports). In 2024 SCDNR moved from a hunter survey to mandatory reporting through SC Game Check, so compare 2024 with the years before it with care. 2024 bucks are antlered and button bucks added together by FilledTag; the 153 deer of unknown sex are in the total only. Per square mile is SCDNR's own figure, on the forest and crop land it counts as deer habitat.
How many people hunt deer in Charleston County?
SCDNR estimates 5,044 people hunted deer in Charleston County in the 2024 season, 13th of 46 counties, averaging 11.4 days each for 57,410 days in all (18th of 46).
The same report estimates deer hunters took 1,101 wild hogs (2.4 per square mile) and 462 coyotes (1 per square mile) in the county in 2024.
Source: SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 5 (hunters and days by county); SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 10 (hogs and coyotes by county). These are survey estimates.
When is deer season in Charleston County?
Charleston County is in Game Zone 3. Game Zone 3 is Aiken, Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Calhoun, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Hampton, Jasper, Lexington, Orangeburg and Richland counties.
Game Zone 3, private land
| Archery and gun hunts | Aug. 15-Jan. 1 (Aug. 15-Sept. 14 buck only) |
|---|---|
| Youth deer days | Aug. 8 (antlered only, 1 deer); Jan. 2 (either sex, 2 deer) |
| Antlerless limit | 2 a day, 9 total all seasons and methods |
Dogs are allowed for deer on private land in Game Zone 3. Baiting deer is allowed on private land statewide and Sunday hunting is allowed on private land. WMAs set their own dates.
Source: SCDNR 2026-27 deer seasons on private lands.
Where is the public hunting land in Charleston County?
| WMA property | Acres in Charleston County | First deer hunt, 2026-27 | Deer reported, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Francis Marion National Forest WMA | 70,410 | Sept. 11-12 (dog drive hunt, Santee WMA) | 857 |
| Santee Coastal Reserve WMA | 17,934 | Sept. 15-Jan. 1 (archery) | 4 |
| Botany Bay Plantation Heritage Preserve WMA | 3,167 | Sept. 15-Oct. 10 (archery) | 24 |
| Dungannon Plantation Heritage Preserve WMA | 732 | Sept. 15-Jan. 1 (archery) | 2 |
70,560 acres of national forest and 49,911 acres of national wildlife refuge lie in the county, measured on the federal maps. The national forest WMA in the table above is on that same land, so the two acreages overlap rather than add up.
Acres measured by FilledTag on SCDNR Public Lands property boundaries, U.S. Forest Service land ownership and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundaries. WMA harvest: SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 4 (WMA harvest).
How does Charleston County compare with its neighbors?
| County | Deer, 2024 | Antlered bucks | Per sq mi of habitat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston County | 2,905 | 1,431 | 6.4 |
| Berkeley County | 5,557 | 2,597 | 6.3 |
| Colleton County | 6,136 | 2,716 | 7.8 |
| Dorchester County | 3,530 | 1,581 | 7.5 |
| Georgetown County | 3,845 | 1,777 | 6.2 |
All from SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report, Table 1 (county harvest).
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were killed in Charleston County, South Carolina last season?
2,905 in the 2024 season, by SCDNR's Deer Harvest Report: 1,431 antlered bucks, 149 button bucks, 1,173 does and 153 of unknown sex. These are SC Game Check reports corrected by SCDNR for hunters who did not report.
How does Charleston County's deer harvest compare with other South Carolina counties?
SCDNR puts Charleston County's 2024 harvest at 2,905 deer, 6.4 per square mile of deer habitat against 8.7 statewide. Ordered by SCDNR's harvest figures, that is 36th of 46 counties by total deer and 36th by deer per square mile.
When is deer season in Charleston County?
On private land: Game Zone 3, archery and gun hunts Aug. 15-Jan. 1 (Aug. 15-Sept. 14 buck only). WMAs set their own dates.
Is there public hunting land in Charleston County?
Yes. SCDNR's map puts Francis Marion National Forest WMA (70,410 acres in the county), Santee Coastal Reserve WMA (17,934 acres in the county), Botany Bay Plantation Heritage Preserve WMA (3,167 acres in the county) and Dungannon Plantation Heritage Preserve WMA (732 acres in the county) in Charleston County.
Can you hunt deer with dogs in Charleston County?
Yes, on private land, as the Game Zone 3 seasons allow. On WMAs, only on the dog drive hunt dates an area lists.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest, hunters, days, hogs and coyotes: SCDNR 2024 Deer Harvest Report and earlier reports (SCDNR deer harvest reports).
- Seasons and rules: SCDNR 2026-27 deer seasons on private lands. Public land: SCDNR Public Lands property boundaries. Counties, highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 county boundaries; U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer.
FilledTag is not part of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from SCDNR and the Census Bureau or measured from public maps; nothing here is estimated by FilledTag.
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