HARRISBURG (PRNewswire) – Pennsylvania’s longest, uninterrupted big game season begins before daybreak Sept. 30, as bowhunters head into the hills, woodlots of suburbia and even up trees in pursuit of white-tailed deer, according to Pennsylvania Game Commission officials.
Thousands of archers will shoot a deer on the opening day, always the season’s most productive hunting day. But most of the state’s 300,000 bowhunters — roughly one in three of all hunters is a bowhunter — won’t.
It’s a feeling most archers are accustomed to; they know the action often can be slow in the six-week opportunity — Sept. 30 to Nov. 11 — that is Pennsylvania’s early archery deer season.
“Hunting with a bow-and-arrow is challenging and requires a tremendous commitment from a hunter if he or she wants to be successful,” explained Calvin W. DuBrock, Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Management Bureau director. “Bowhunters must be exceptional woodsmen just to get themselves
within 20 yards of a deer. Then they have to make a move on that incredibly perceptive animal that concludes with making the shot. Pulling it off is
exhilarating, an exceptional accomplishment.
“Field officers are reporting that whitetails are available in fair to good numbers throughout most of the state, and that deer populations near our urban centers are still larger than they should be. Many wildlife conservation officers reported that although buck numbers are not what they were prior to antler restrictions, there are more older-aged bucks in their districts than many have seen during their entire careers with the agency. Hunting in Pennsylvania will be exciting this fall.”
“Pennsylvania deer hunters are the primary managers to keep deer populations at levels where we have healthy deer and healthy habitat, while minimizing deer-human conflicts,” added Dr. Chris Rosenberry, Game Commission Deer Management Section supervisor. “Bowhunters are the start of this process, and an integral part of the Pennsylvania deer hunting heritage.”
The Game Commission encourages bowhunters — in fact, all hunters — to spend more time afield this fall prior to hunting seasons to pattern deer movements and identify areas where fall foods are abundant. Even as the season unfolds, hunters can increase their chances of success afield by doing in-season scouting, and keeping an eye on areas adjacent to their hunting locations while on stand. Patterning daily movements in relation to feeding areas and noting the prevailing wind direction are critical components to scouting and hunting.
It seems unlikely that hunting will be less demanding or easier in Pennsylvania’s upcoming seasons.
That means hunters must put in more time and work harder to find and take whitetails.
Jeannine Tardiff, Game Commission deer biologist, said hunters who live in the greater Philadelphia and Pittsburgh areas could help Pennsylvania’s deer management program and residents immensely by staying close to home to hunt.
“There’s no shortage of deer in these areas, and hunters are sorely needed to reduce the conflicts posed by urban/suburban deer populations,” Tardiff explained. “Deer populations can quickly exceed landowner tolerances in suburbia on landscapes that simply cannot accommodate their impacts. They become a constant threat to motorists and a landscaper’s nightmare. The stumbling block, of course, is hunter access. But more and more landowners — even municipalities — are looking for assistance.
“If seeing lots of deer is what you crave as a hunter, then bowhunting in the suburbs may be for you. You’ll see more deer, but you’ll have to knock on doors and possibly talk to municipal officials to find some places to go. Make no mistake, the opportunities are there, just waiting for hunters to make the contacts to secure permission.”