Dec 26, 2013 02:01 PM EST By Staff Reporter, UniversityHerald Reporter

The late muzzleloader deer season, during which hunters must use a front-loaded firearm, began in Iowa on Monday, the Sioux City Journal reported. As one of the state's last hunting periods of the season (besides the January antlerless season that runs from Jan. 11 to Jan.19), it's expected to equal last year's participation of 30,000 people.

Hunters are advised to communicate with local landowners and target areas with high numbers of deer-sightings. They should also report their kills within twenty four hours for the sanctity of data collection, according to the Sioux City Journal.

Many hunters interested only in the antlers donate the meat to community groups, such as Iowa's Help Us Stop Hunger program, which received over 5,000 carcasses in the 2012-13 seasons, according to the Associated Press. The program inspired a recent undertaking in Nebraska, The Hungers Helping the Hungry Program.

"A lot of hunters just want the antlers," said Steve Burnett, owner of a meat processing plant that lends its services to the project. "To them, it's good to have some place for the meat to go."

Launched in 2012, Nebraska's program has already exceeded last year's numbers only a few days into this season, according to the Associated Press. It has collected 236 deer since Monday compared to 213 all of last year, which was significantly reduced by an infection limiting the number of available deer, according to the AP.

"It helps a lot, because as a very rural area, we don't always get a lot of donations of meat products," said Pam Armknecht, a community services director at the Southeast Nebraska Community Action Partnership. "This was great. It's something that people can use in place of hamburger. I know that people, from what I heard, were very appreciative of it."

The late muzzerloader season ends on Janurary 10 and the anterless season ends on Jan. 19, at which point deer are safe until September. 

By most accounts, deer meat is pretty good and relatively healthy.

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