2026-27 · 100 counties

North Carolina Hunting by County

All 100 North Carolina counties with their NCWRC region and district, deer zone group, bear unit, CWD status, duck zone, 2025-26 reported deer, 2025 bears, spring 2026 turkeys and game land acres. Type a county, zone or region to narrow the table.

All 100 in a table Three NCWRC regions Top deer counties

100Counties

199,770Deer 2025-26

11 countiesCWD areas

25,034Turkeys 2026

Photo: flamesworddragon (CC BY-SA 2.0)

North Carolina counties side by side

Each county page carries its deer zone dates and antlerless days, the local acts the digest prints for it, seven seasons of deer harvest with weapon splits, bear and spring turkey harvest, CWD tests, public land with acres, its district biologist, towns and nearby services. Deer zone groups link to their own pages.

County	Region	District	Deer zone	Bear unit	CWD area	Duck zone	Deer 2025-26	Bears 2025	Turkeys 2026	Game land ac
Alamance	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,769	0	149	—
Alexander	Mountain	7	Northwestern	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,255	1	50	—
Alleghany	Mountain	7	Northwestern	Mountain	None	Inland	2,585	13	194	879
Anson	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	4,254	0	269	3,006
Ashe	Mountain	7	Northwestern	Mountain	None	Inland	2,793	34	337	7,189
Avery	Mountain	8	Western A	Mountain	None	Inland	1,325	48	122	33,156
Beaufort	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 3	None	Coastal	2,746	257	434	10,893
Bertie	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 3	None	Coastal	3,085	117	556	30,132
Bladen	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	2,597	197	530	49,681
Brunswick	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	2,141	53	470	33,197
Buncombe	Mountain	9	Western B	Mountain	None	Inland	1,626	148	387	32,441
Burke	Mountain	8	Western A	Mountain	None	Inland	2,161	69	213	63,336
Cabarrus	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,030	1	173	—
Caldwell	Mountain	8	Western A	Mountain	None	Inland	1,668	68	212	66,373
Camden	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 2	None	Coastal	345	111	82	14,091
Carteret	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	944	52	171	60,593
Caswell	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,920	8	315	18,215
Catawba	Mountain	8	Northwestern	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,429	0	242	—
Chatham	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,481	4	236	41,273
Cherokee	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	1,339	49	178	97,277
Chowan	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 2	None	Coastal	588	18	171	33
Clay	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	711	57	83	66,615
Cleveland	Mountain	8	Northwestern	Mountain	None	Inland	3,948	4	345	3,023
Columbus	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	2,921	34	568	15,788
Craven	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 3	None	Coastal	3,034	172	424	81,099
Cumberland	Coastal	4	Southeastern CWD MA	Coastal Zone 5	Management	Inland and Coastal	1,103	35	192	2,225
Currituck	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 2	None	Coastal	391	51	110	15,991
Dare	Coastal	1	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 1	None	Coastal	103	28	5	48,381
Davidson	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,527	1	328	5,136
Davie	Mountain	7	Northwestern	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,222	0	115	2,429
Duplin	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	2,821	46	853	6,732
Durham	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	927	0	58	18,289
Edgecombe	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	Surveillance	Coastal	2,845	19	513	1,337
Forsyth	Mountain	7	Northwestern CWD MA	Piedmont	Management	Inland	1,475	0	141	181
Franklin	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,411	2	415	2,370
Gaston	Mountain	8	Northwestern	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,019	0	142	—
Gates	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 2	None	Coastal	1,325	107	275	24,080
Graham	Mountain	9	Western D	Mountain	None	Inland	168	34	55	115,303
Granville	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,125	14	328	9,243
Greene	Coastal	2	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	None	Coastal	1,249	14	177	—
Guilford	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,251	0	244	—
Halifax	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	Surveillance	Inland and Coastal	3,657	20	727	16,074
Harnett	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland and Coastal	1,871	0	305	69
Haywood	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	767	139	158	75,049
Henderson	Mountain	9	Western B	Mountain	None	Inland	944	68	138	26,721
Hertford	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 3	None	Coastal	1,597	59	382	9,647
Hoke	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	646	0	116	3,731
Hyde	Coastal	1	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 1	None	Coastal	955	301	102	32,705
Iredell	Mountain	7	Northwestern	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,133	0	130	—
Jackson	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	759	66	140	80,705
Johnston	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland and Coastal	2,716	2	295	—
Jones	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 3	None	Coastal	1,882	274	285	40,827
Lee	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	704	0	74	1,417
Lenoir	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 4	None	Coastal	1,594	67	286	—
Lincoln	Mountain	8	Northwestern	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,092	0	168	—
Macon	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	1,232	82	160	158,920
Madison	Mountain	9	Western A	Mountain	None	Inland	1,963	83	330	56,290
Martin	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 3	Surveillance	Coastal	2,065	57	305	10,182
McDowell	Mountain	8	Western B	Mountain	None	Inland	1,027	151	194	73,484
Mecklenburg	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	697	0	16	—
Mitchell	Mountain	8	Western A	Mountain	None	Inland	1,277	45	136	20,432
Montgomery	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,984	0	222	43,819
Moore	Piedmont	6	Southeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,360	0	279	4,628
Nash	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	None	Inland and Coastal	1,990	0	360	1,125
New Hanover	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	183	6	26	2,294
Northampton	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	None	Inland and Coastal	3,683	21	598	5,214
Onslow	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	2,378	105	418	7,078
Orange	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,886	1	82	584
Pamlico	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	1,063	81	122	5,341
Pasquotank	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 2	None	Coastal	396	35	110	—
Pender	Coastal	2	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Coastal	3,271	132	595	99,150
Perquimans	Coastal	1	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 2	None	Coastal	694	20	237	—
Person	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,604	9	229	7,590
Pitt	Coastal	2	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	Surveillance	Coastal	2,899	59	510	—
Polk	Mountain	9	Northwestern	Mountain	None	Inland	1,376	27	127	12,853
Randolph	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	5,349	0	301	10,528
Richmond	Piedmont	6	Southeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	2,270	0	131	38,567
Robeson	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 5	None	Inland and Coastal	2,004	6	294	253
Rockingham	Piedmont	5	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	4,033	9	444	1,733
Rowan	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,203	0	291	5,707
Rutherford	Mountain	8	Northwestern	Mountain	None	Inland	3,802	53	347	15,549
Sampson	Coastal	4	Southeastern CWD MA	Coastal Zone 5	Management	Coastal	1,942	69	543	195
Scotland	Coastal	4	Southeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,215	1	125	27,077
Stanly	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,371	1	231	1,232
Stokes	Mountain	7	Northwestern CWD MA	Piedmont	Management	Inland	3,192	10	283	190
Surry	Mountain	7	Northwestern CWD MA	Mountain	Management	Inland	3,094	15	226	1,894
Swain	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	386	30	74	26,974
Transylvania	Mountain	9	Western C	Mountain	None	Inland	763	65	80	113,784
Tyrrell	Coastal	1	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 1	None	Coastal	479	203	56	47,859
Union	Piedmont	6	Central	Piedmont	None	Inland	3,783	0	166	—
Vance	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,398	4	247	863
Wake	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,900	1	146	22,272
Warren	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Piedmont	None	Inland	1,476	12	374	13,441
Washington	Coastal	1	Southeastern	Coastal Zone 3	None	Coastal	934	116	93	4,325
Watauga	Mountain	7	Northwestern	Mountain	None	Inland	2,142	20	167	1,131
Wayne	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	None	Coastal	2,236	4	243	—
Wilkes	Mountain	7	Northwestern CWD MA	Mountain	Management	Inland	3,328	26	393	9,799
Wilson	Piedmont	3	Northeastern	Coastal Zone 4	None	Inland and Coastal	1,611	6	237	—
Yadkin	Mountain	7	Northwestern CWD MA	Piedmont	Management	Inland	2,099	0	73	—
Yancey	Mountain	8	Western A	Mountain	None	Inland	1,758	68	245	38,969

Zones and units from the 2026-2027 Season Dates at a Glance; CWD areas from the NCWRC CWD special regulations; deer, bear and turkey from the NCWRC harvest statistics; game land acres from the NCWRC boundary layer (GIS). Checked October 25, 2026.

North Carolina counties by NCWRC region

NCWRC runs three wildlife regions: the Coastal Region (Districts 1, 2 and 4), the Piedmont Region (Districts 3, 5 and 6) and the Mountain Region (Districts 7, 8 and 9). Each county page names its district biologist and the nearest Commission depot or office.

Mountain Region (34)

34 counties in the mountains, deer zone groups Northwestern (12), Northwestern CWD Management Area (5), Western A (6), Western B (3), Western C (7), Western D (1). Hunters reported 61,858 deer here in 2025-26 and 1,473 bears in 2025; game land boundaries cover about 1,200,946 acres.

Alexander County

1,255 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Piedmont BMU

Alleghany County

2,585 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Mountain BMU

Ashe County

2,793 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Mountain BMU

Avery County

1,325 deer 2025-26

Western A · Mountain BMU

Buncombe County

1,626 deer 2025-26

Western B · Mountain BMU

Burke County

2,161 deer 2025-26

Western A · Mountain BMU

Caldwell County

1,668 deer 2025-26

Western A · Mountain BMU

Catawba County

2,429 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Piedmont BMU

Cherokee County

1,339 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Clay County

711 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Cleveland County

3,948 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Mountain BMU

Davie County

1,222 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Piedmont BMU

Forsyth County

1,475 deer 2025-26

Northwestern CWD Management Area · Piedmont BMU

Gaston County

2,019 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Piedmont BMU

Graham County

168 deer 2025-26

Western D · Mountain BMU

Haywood County

767 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Henderson County

944 deer 2025-26

Western B · Mountain BMU

Iredell County

3,133 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Piedmont BMU

Jackson County

759 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Lincoln County

2,092 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Piedmont BMU

Macon County

1,232 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Madison County

1,963 deer 2025-26

Western A · Mountain BMU

McDowell County

1,027 deer 2025-26

Western B · Mountain BMU

Mitchell County

1,277 deer 2025-26

Western A · Mountain BMU

Polk County

1,376 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Mountain BMU

Rutherford County

3,802 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Mountain BMU

Stokes County

3,192 deer 2025-26

Northwestern CWD Management Area · Piedmont BMU

Surry County

3,094 deer 2025-26

Northwestern CWD Management Area · Mountain BMU

Swain County

386 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Transylvania County

763 deer 2025-26

Western C · Mountain BMU

Watauga County

2,142 deer 2025-26

Northwestern · Mountain BMU

Wilkes County

3,328 deer 2025-26

Northwestern CWD Management Area · Mountain BMU

Yadkin County

2,099 deer 2025-26

Northwestern CWD Management Area · Piedmont BMU

Yancey County

1,758 deer 2025-26

Western A · Mountain BMU

Piedmont Region (32)

32 counties in the Piedmont, deer zone groups Central (19), Northeastern (11), Southeastern (2). Hunters reported 84,451 deer here in 2025-26 and 139 bears in 2025; game land boundaries cover about 273,663 acres.

Alamance County

2,769 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Anson County

4,254 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Cabarrus County

2,030 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Caswell County

2,920 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Chatham County

2,481 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Davidson County

3,527 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Durham County

927 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Edgecombe County

2,845 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Franklin County

2,411 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Piedmont BMU

Granville County

3,125 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Guilford County

2,251 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Halifax County

3,657 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Johnston County

2,716 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Piedmont BMU

Lee County

704 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Mecklenburg County

697 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Montgomery County

2,984 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Moore County

3,360 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Piedmont BMU

Nash County

1,990 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Northampton County

3,683 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Orange County

1,886 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Person County

2,604 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Randolph County

5,349 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Richmond County

2,270 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Piedmont BMU

Rockingham County

4,033 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Rowan County

3,203 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Stanly County

3,371 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Union County

3,783 deer 2025-26

Central · Piedmont BMU

Vance County

1,398 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Piedmont BMU

Wake County

1,900 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Piedmont BMU

Warren County

1,476 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Piedmont BMU

Wayne County

2,236 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Wilson County

1,611 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Coastal Region (34)

34 counties in the Coastal Plain, deer zone groups Northeastern (11), Southeastern (21), Southeastern CWD Management Area (2). Hunters reported 53,461 deer here in 2025-26 and 2,883 bears in 2025; game land boundaries cover about 683,649 acres.

Beaufort County

2,746 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

Bertie County

3,085 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

Bladen County

2,597 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Brunswick County

2,141 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Camden County

345 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 2

Carteret County

944 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Chowan County

588 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 2

Columbus County

2,921 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Craven County

3,034 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

Cumberland County

1,103 deer 2025-26

Southeastern CWD Management Area · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Currituck County

391 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 2

Dare County

103 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 1

Duplin County

2,821 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Gates County

1,325 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 2

Greene County

1,249 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Harnett County

1,871 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Piedmont BMU

Hertford County

1,597 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

Hoke County

646 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Piedmont BMU

Hyde County

955 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 1

Jones County

1,882 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

Lenoir County

1,594 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Martin County

2,065 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

New Hanover County

183 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Onslow County

2,378 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Pamlico County

1,063 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Pasquotank County

396 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 2

Pender County

3,271 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Perquimans County

694 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 2

Pitt County

2,899 deer 2025-26

Northeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 4

Robeson County

2,004 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Sampson County

1,942 deer 2025-26

Southeastern CWD Management Area · Coastal BMU Zone 5

Scotland County

1,215 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Piedmont BMU

Tyrrell County

479 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 1

Washington County

934 deer 2025-26

Southeastern · Coastal BMU Zone 3

Regions and districts from the NCWRC district biologist sheet; deer from the NCWRC harvest statistics. Checked October 25, 2026.

North Carolina counties with the most deer in 2025-26

Report card figures rank these eight counties first for 2025-26. Statewide, hunters registered 199,770 deer: 103,737 antlered bucks, 87,321 does and 8,712 button bucks. Guns took 150,949, blackpowder 21,360, bows 13,206 and crossbows 14,255; 7,325 came from game lands.

No. 1Randolph County2025-26: 5,349 deer No. 2Anson County2025-26: 4,254 deer No. 3Rockingham County2025-26: 4,033 deer No. 4Cleveland County2025-26: 3,948 deer No. 5Rutherford County2025-26: 3,802 deer No. 6Union County2025-26: 3,783 deerNo. 7Northampton County2025-26: 3,683 deerNo. 8Halifax County2025-26: 3,657 deer

North Carolina county questions

Does every North Carolina county have a page?

Yes, all 100. Each lists its deer zone dates and antlerless days, local laws, harvest by year, CWD status, public land, biologist and services.

How are deer zones assigned to counties?

By county lists in the 2026-2027 Season Dates at a Glance: Central (19), Northeastern (22), Northwestern (12), Northwestern CWD Management Area (5), Southeastern (23), Southeastern CWD Management Area (2), Western A (6), Western B (3), Western C (7), Western D (1).

Which county led the 2025-26 deer harvest?

Randolph County, with 5,349 reported deer, followed by Anson and Rockingham.

Which county reported the most bears in 2025?

Hyde County, with 301 of the 4,495 bears reported statewide.

Which county reported the most spring turkeys in 2026?

Duplin County, 853 of 25,034 statewide.

Which counties are in CWD areas?

Management areas: Cumberland, Forsyth, Sampson, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes and Yadkin. Surveillance areas: Edgecombe, Halifax, Martin and Pitt. NCWRC reports 67 positives in all years.

Which county has the most game land?

Macon County, about 158,920 acres inside game land boundaries by GIS measure.

Do all counties have local hunting laws?

No. The digest lists local acts for 94 counties; Forsyth, Graham, Lincoln, Montgomery, Swain and Yancey have none.

From the 2026-27 NCWRC digest, NCWRC harvest, CWD and land data cited above, checked October 25, 2026.

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