Tennessee’s deer hunting season gets underway this weekend.
TWRA’s Casey Mullen said the traditional archery hunt begins Saturday. Mullen said the juvenile hunt will be in late October. Muzzle loader season will start in November with rifle hunting beginning around Thanksgiving.
“We really want people out there hunting,” Mullen said. “It’s a great way to fill the freezer with lean wild game that you know exactly where it came from. A lot of people get to hunt, they’re fortunate enough they can hunt on their own property so they may basically raise these deer on their property.”
Mullen said deer are a home-grown source of protein that can often times be found in the backyard. Mullen said the TWRA is encouraging hunting because it is a measure of population control. Unlike in years past, Mullen said there is an abundance of deer.
Mullen said deer harvesting is much easier than in years past. Mullen said they can adapt to just about any environment, so they can be found. Mullen said without hunting, the population could grow out of control.
“We’ve already had a lot of issues with vehicle collisions and deer getting into crops and gardens and things such as that,” Mullen said. “So, we’re charged as an agency with the management of all game species, all wildlife species in Tennessee. So it’s just one more, that hunters are a great tool to help us manage those pouplations.”
Mullen said this year, there are no major changes to hunting regulations. The regulations were changed last year, and TWRA intends to keep them the same for the next five years. Mullen said last year, TWRA began using adaptive harvest management.
“It’s a big formula that kind of helps us, based on a lot of parameters, know where to set the harvest at,” Mullen said. “And the season and season lengths and things like that.”
Mullen said the change was in the works for years before it was implemented. Mullen said keeping major changes limited to every five years makes it easier for TWRA to manage the population.
Mullen said this year, TWRA will allow each hunter to harvest up to three deer per day.
Mullen said scouting is a great way to improve hunting success, and people should keep an eye out for deer food source. Mullen also reminds people to use a fall restraint device if hunting from a tree stand.