Produced/Provided – The Times-Picayune:Some deer hunters enjoy sitting on a stand and seeing as many deer as possible. They keep mental track, and go back to the camp after a hunt to regale their fellow hunters about all the deer they watched feed, snort, fight and breed.
Other hunters like as much challenge as possible. They’re content to sit on a stand for hours and hours without seeing a deer, just as long as they know the right one could happen along at any moment.
Hunters in the former category looking for new land to hunt should scan the classifieds of Union Parish. The north-central Louisiana parish, which shares a border with Arkansas, produced the most deer for hunters during the 2015-16 season, according to data released by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
Union Parish hunters dropped 4,124 bucks and does, easily eclipsing the second most-productive parish, Bienville, which produced 3,167 deer.
Most of the parishes listed in the top 20 for productivity are located in North, Central or West Louisiana. The closest parish to greater New Orleans is Iberville, which produced 2,005 deer last season.
Here’s the complete list:
1. Union, 4,124
2. Bienville, 3,167
3. Vernon, 3,021
4. Claiborne, 2,971
5. Natchitoches, 2,519
6. Tensas, 2,280
7. Bossier, 2,110
8. Jackson, 2,104
9. Madison, 2,062
10. Winn, 2,030
11. Iberville, 2,005
12. Webster, 1,934
13. Avoyelles, 1,930
14. Rapides, 1,830
15. Beauregard, 1,714
16. St. Landry, 1,602
17. Sabine, 1,577
18. Morehouse, 1,541
19. DeSoto, 1,540
20. Grant, 1,515
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Todd Masson can be reached at tmasson@nola.com or 504.232.3054.