Vermont's 16-day regular deer season opens Saturday, Nov. 14, and runs through Sunday, Nov. 29. Hunters must report every deer taken in that period in person at a big game reporting station, and online reporting will not be available, the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department said.
The department's season announcement says the in-person requirement covers archery-season deer taken on those dates and exists so biologists can collect information from as many deer as possible.
New antlerless rules and legal bucks
New rules this year let hunters with an antlerless deer permit take antlerless deer during the regular season. The department said permits were distributed by lottery earlier this year, and hunters without one cannot take antlerless deer. Vermont hunting licenses include a buck tag for the season and a late-season bear tag valid Nov. 14 to 22.
What counts as a legal buck depends on the wildlife management unit. In units C, D2, E1, E2, G, I, L, M, P and Q, it is any deer with at least one antler three inches or more in length. In units A, B, D1, F1, F2, H, J1, J2, K, N and O, it is any deer with at least one antler with two or more points, each an inch or longer.
Check stations and teeth
Hunters who take a deer on Nov. 14 or 15 can report at one of 14 biological check stations staffed by department personnel. The department listed stations in St. Albans, Enosburg Falls, Derby, Concord, Plainfield, Barre, Waitsfield, New Haven, Pittsford, Middletown Springs, Proctorsville, Windsor, Bennington and Guilford. Hunters who skip those stations are asked to submit a tooth from the deer, with envelopes and removal instructions at all big game reporting stations. The department said it will cross-section each tooth to determine the deer's age and post results next spring.
Deer biologist Nick Fortin said the greatest numbers of deer are in western regions and valley areas, while the Green Mountains and Northeast Kingdom have "fewer, but often larger, deer." He urged hunters to wear fluorescent orange.
Carcass import rules after New York detection
In a separate Nov. 10 notice, the department reminded hunters about Vermont's rules on bringing deer, elk or moose from areas with chronic wasting disease, after the disease was found in a wild deer harvested in western New York. The department said CWD had previously been detected in captive and wild deer in New York's Oneida County in 2005, and that it has not been found in Vermont to date.
It is illegal to import or possess deer, elk or moose, or their parts, from states and Canadian provinces that have had the disease, or from any captive hunt or farm facility regardless of location. Exceptions include boneless meat, antlers with no other meat or tissue attached and a clean skull cap with antlers attached. Hunters bringing an animal from a listed area must have it processed under Vermont's regulations before entering the state, including hunters returning from New York and Quebec, the department said.
Each animal imported illegally carries a fine of up to $1,000 and loss of hunting and fishing licenses for one year. Natural deer urine-based and deer body fluid attractant scents are also prohibited in Vermont because of the CWD threat.
The Fish & Wildlife Department can be reached at 802-828-1000 or fwinformation@vermont.gov.
