Firearm deer hunters in Illinois harvested nearly 100,000 deer during the two weekend seasons, according to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
The 99,324 deer taken are 1,504 more than in 2011. The first season (Nov. 16-18) saw 72,111 deer killed, and the second season (Nov. 29-Dec. 2) added another 27,213 to the total.
There was a statewide increase of 5,610 deer killed in the first season, and a decrease of 4,046 in the second season.