New Hampshire Fish and Game officials are satisfied with this year's deer hunting season, which ended with a preliminary tally of 10,390 deer killed across the state.
The number was down from the 2008 deer kill of 10,916. Meanwhile, New Hampshire's bear kill was the second highest in state history.
"You can't argue with the results — a season with a take of over 10,000 deer in New Hampshire is pretty good," said Mark Ellingwood, a wildlife biologist with the department.
Closer to home, 1,480 deer were taken in Rockingham County — about 500 fewer than in 2008.
Last year, Rockingham County led all counties with 1,990 deer taken, trailed by Grafton County's 1,780 and Hillsborough County's 1,564.
This year, Rockingham trailed Hillsborough County's 1,919 deer and Grafton County's 1,758 deer.
The state has an estimated deer population of about 85,000, with the 2009 kill representing about 12 percent of the total.
The season ended Dec. 15, the final day for bow hunting.
Deer hunters in New Hampshire fared well this year, considering the state was rebounding from two difficult winters, Ellingwood said. Winter plays an integral role in the survival and abundance of the deer herd in New Hampshire.
"It's consistent with what we've seen and we're pretty happy," he said of the deer kill.
New Hampshire's bear hunting season spiked this year with 755 bears killed, the second-highest number ever. There were 439 bears bagged in 2008.
Most of the increase in bears taken were in the state's three northern-most management regions, which saw poor beechnut production and inconsistent acorn production, said Andy Timmins, Fish and Game's Bear Project Leader.
"When fall food is scarce, bears become more vulnerable to hunting as they forage over greater distances and become easier to pattern at local food sources," Timmins said.
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