Urbanization presents a challenge for managing white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) due to the constraints it imposes on traditional methods of deer population management. Specifically, hunting effectiveness can be diminished due to decreasing parcel size, loss of huntable land, shifting landowner values, and restrictive local policies. Given the potential negative outcomes of unmanaged deer populations as landscapes urbanize, our objective was to describe how deer harvest susceptibility varied along an urban to rural gradient. Specifically, we: 1) quantified harvest probabilities for deer, 2) evaluated how these probabilities varied along an urbanization gradient based on percent impervious surface, percent huntable lands, sex, and age of deer, and 3) identified how harvest susceptibility varied throughout the hunting season. From 2022-2024, we tracked 72 male and 95 female white-tailed deer in Durham County, North Carolina, along an urban-rural gradient. Using GPS data, we quantified percent impervious surface and huntable lands within each individual's calculated home range. Results indicate that males were harvested more frequently than females across the gradient, with adults (≥ 2.5 years) being more susceptible than yearlings (1.5 years). The majority of harvest occurred after the peak conception date in the study area. Additionally, harvest probability declined as urbanness increased, regardless of sex or age. These results provide insight for wildlife managers in determining when and where harvest occurs along an urban-rural gradient, and whether to adjust strategies to meet management goals in increasingly urbanized landscapes.
