"We definitely knocked the population back in the counties most affected by EHD," Ratajczak said.

Unit L counties, which have the densest deer populations, were hit hardest. Ratajczak said some of the hardest hit places in Middle Tennessee were Hardin, Lewis, Maury and Williamson counties. In comparison, Unit L counties may have seen a 2,000-deer loss, while counties in Unit B may have only seen a 200-deer loss.

The effects of EHD were widespread, not only in deer that were lost to the disease, but by the anxiety it put in deer hunters' minds as well. Like Ratajczak said, nobody wants to eat a sick animal. Although Middle and West Tennessee were hardest hit, the data collection on the outbreak showed the closer the county was to the Mississippi River, the least it was affected.

In the summer of 2007, Ratajczak said the summer deer surveys were tough because you would run into a wall of stench from dead deer. Fortunately, this past summer has been a relief, and the surveys turned up more deer than expected. Ratajczak also said this year's hunting guide will feature an educational section on EHD and a map with counties in red that were significantly affected last year and why.

Also, last fall's weather, which often has a major effect on the deer harvest, was better than normal. Heck, it was good -- there just wasn't as much hunter participation as in the past. The effects of the disease itself, as well as the scare, can be readily seen in the harvest figures.

Of our 95 counties statewide, only 19 of them had a harvest increase in 2007 over the 2006 season. In addition, the totals for every weapon category were decreased: On the gun hunts, muzzleloader dates, archery and crossbows seasons, hunters took fewer deer across the board. The wildlife management area (WMA) hunts, which help add to the overall harvest, were also down significantly due to lack of hunter participation and EHD. In 2006, we took more than 7,000 deer on WMA hunts, but that number fell to just less than 6,000 last season. Every WMA weapon category harvest was decreased as well.

Opening weekend success was also down across the board in each region of the state. The opening weekend harvest in 2006 was 24,372 whitetails, whereas the 2007 opening weekend total was 17,564 deer. The biggest decreases were seen in Region I and Region II, where EHD had the biggest effect on a denser deer population. The Region I opening weekend harvest was down by slightly over 2,000 deer, while the Region II harvest decreased by well over 3,000 whitetails.

THE TOP COUNTIES
For years, Hardeman County and Henry County hunters have battled it out for the top spot among the state's best deer producers. Hardeman County has held that distinction for back-to-back seasons. Last season, Hardeman County still held onto the title of whitetail king, according to harvest figures, but Henry County made a definite drop, falling all the way to the fourth position among top counties for the first time ever. Ratajczak said Henry County's fall can be readily equated to the EHD outbreak. He said Henry County was hit harder than Hardeman County, and the harvest figures show it.