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PRESSREPUBLICAN.COM FEATURES EDITOR NATHAN OVALLE , 565-4138, NOVALLE@PRESSREPUBLICAN.COM SUNDAY, OC TOBER 21, 2018

Vermont sets dates for Youth Deer Hunt

Young hunters encouraged to participate in event on Nov. 3, 4
MONTPELIER, Vt. — to
Young hunters will have a
chance to hone their hunt-
ing skills by participating
in the Vermont youth deer
weekend Nov. 3 and 4.
They will also help Ver-
mont Fish and Wi l d l i f e
biologists by reporting their
deer at one of 24 biological
reporting stations around
the state.
Yo u t h deer hunting
weekend helps ensure that
young hunters get the qual-
ity training they need for
lifelong participation, and
it also provides biological
information needed to man-
ag e t h e d e e r p o p u l at i o n ,
a press release from the
Vermont Fish and Wildlife
Department said.
“ We e n c o u r ag e h u n t e r s
to bring their deer to one of
these biological reporting
stations so they can directly
contribute to deer manage-
ment in Vermont,” Vermont
Fish and Wildlife deer proj-
ect leader Nick Fortin said.
“Examining deer during
the youth deer hunting week-
end is our best opportunity
assess the deer herd
because yo u t h hunters
are allowed to harvest any
deer, including spike bucks.
Biologists will be able to col-
lect data on age, weight and
antler development to help
guide future deer manage-
ment decisions.”
T h e Ve r m o n t F i s h a n d
Wi l d l i f e D e p a r t m e n t w i l l
have personnel at 24 bio -
logical reporting stations
between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.
( u n l e s s t h e st o r e c l o s e s
earlier) for youth weekend,
November 3 and 4.
Along with having their
d e e r exa m i n e d a n d ag e d
by a b i o l o g i st , su c c e s s f u l
yo u t h h u n t e r s v i s i t i n g a
biological reporting station
will receive a 2018 Vermont
Hunter Cooperator Patch.
Anyone, resident or non-
resident, who is 15 years old
or younger on the weekend of
the hunt and who has success-
fully completed a hunter edu-
cation course must purchase
a hunting license and obtain
a free youth deer hunting tag.
The requirements apply to
all interested young hunters,
including the children of
landowners.
The young hunter must be
accompanied by an unarmed
adult over 18 years of age
who holds a Vermont hunt-
ing license.
The adult may accompany
up to two young hunters.
The law requires the adult
to have direct control and
su p e r v i s i o n o f t h e yo u n g
hunters, including the abil-
ity to see and communicate
without the aid of artificial
devices such as radios or
binoculars.
Landowner permission is
required to hunt on private
land during the youth deer
hunt weekend, and youth
are encouraged to secure
permission well in advance.
T h e yo u t h h u n t e r m ay
take one deer of either sex
on youth deer weekend, and
the antler restriction that
applies in other deer sea-
sons does not apply during
youth deer weekend.
Vi o l a t i o n o f t h e yo u t h who accompanies the youth. November 3 and 4: regulations and other help-
deer hunting law can result The biological reporting Fo r more information, ful information, on Vermont
i n a d o u b l e d f i n e t h at i s stations below will be open r e a d t h e Ve r m o n t ’ s 2 0 1 8 Fish and Wildlife’s website
assessed against the adult from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Deer Hunting Guide, with at vtfishandwildlife.com

New York
conducting WILDLIFE PHOTO GALLERY
black bear
survey
ALBANY (AP) — New York
environmental officials are
conducting a black bear sur-
vey in an effort to set appro-
priate population levels of the
animal for various parts of the
state.
Questionnaires are being
sent this fall to about 11,000
randomly selected landown-
ers across the state in both
rural and urban areas in an
effort to get a better handle
on the public perception of the
black bear population.
The questionnaire asks
about positive and negative
experiences people have had
with the bears, their percep-
tion of population trends, and
views on the potential ben-
efits of and disadvantages to
living among the animals.
The potential impact of
wildlife on people is a key part
of decision-making in wildlife
management.
The Center for Conserva-
tion Social Sciences at Cornell
University is a partner in the
survey.

Wardens ask for

help catching
poachers
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) —
Vermont state game wardens
are asking the public’s help in
stopping poaching during the
hunting season.
Vermont Fish and Wildlife
Col. Jason Batchelder says the
state has a “healthy popula-
tion” of people who shoot deer
at night or over bait.
He says baiting animals is
illegal, even for people who
aren’t hunting them.
Batchelder says anyone wit-
nessing poaching should call
their nearest State Police bar-
racks. He says details such as
names, vehicle descriptions
and direction of travel all
help.
The state offers rewards
for information leading to
arrests.
Poaching penalties include
hunting license suspensions
and fines.
Vermont’s archery deer
hunting season is underway
and runs through Nov. 2. The
state’s 16-day rifle hunting
season opens on Nov. 10, fol-
lowing by a second archery
season in early December.

PHOTO PROVIDED
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