'Dramatic' changes coming to WNC deer, bear hunting rules

Editor's Note: The hearing for district 9, which encompasses 12 counties in WNC, was set for Jan. 16 at Haywood Community College in Clyde, but has been postponed due to the threat of bad weather. It will be rescheduled in February.

ASHEVILLE - Western North Carolina hunters might be losing the treasured tradition of Thanksgiving week deer hunting if proposed hunting rules go into effect this year.

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is proposing changes to long-held hunting seasons for white-tailed deer and bear hunting in the mountains that could allow longer periods for hunting with guns in the woods and allow bear and deer hunting seasons in the mountains to overlap.

Historically, gun season for deer has paused while bear hunters are out with guns and dogs.

But the proposed rules would remove the traditional start of rifle hunting for deer on the Monday before Thanksgiving.

“These are some pretty dramatic proposals, but they are based on biological data that we’ve been collecting for five years or more. These are the best proposals biologically for the deer population and to improve hunter satisfaction,” said Mike Carraway, a state Wildlife Commission.wildlife biologist based in Asheville.

The Raleigh-based commission manages all hunting, fishing and trapping rules and regulations on 2 million acres of state game land, which includes national and state forest land and private property.

Hunting is forbidden in national parks such as the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway, although fishing is allowed.

The Wildlife Commission will hold public hearings to take comment on the proposed rule changes throughout January for each of the nine districts. The hearing for district 9, which encompasses 12 counties in WNC, was set for Jan. 16 at Haywood Community College in Clyde, but has been postponed.

Rules change with deer herd health, decreased hunter satisfaction

The time-honored tradition of the opening day of gun season for white-tailed deer is at a time that is usually cool and crisp, but not too cold, perfect for spending hours outdoors, silent and motionless. The leaves have mostly melted away, creating more forest openings for spotting deer.

And there’s the excitement of bagging some venison for the Thanksgiving table.

But if it doesn’t happen the first day, there is always the long Thanksgiving holiday for stealthy white-tailed deer stalking.

The proposed rules would move the opening season of black powder, also known as muzzle loading, from the beginning of October to the Saturday before Thanksgiving, and shorten the season from two weeks to one.

If passed, the dates would be Nov. 17-23 this year. Although black powder is primitive weaponry, it is considered part of gun season.

The opening of WNC gun season for deer would start the Saturday after Thanksgiving and last for six weeks, closing the first Sunday in January. For this year, the dates would be Nov. 24-Jan. 6, 2019.

This would add three weeks to gun season, Carraway said.

The archery season would remain the same, about 10 weeks starting the second Saturday in September.

“I’m 57 and as long as I can remember, rifle season started Thanksgiving week. So many people count on that week to hunt,” said Bryon Connor, service manager at Heritage Outdoors, a sporting goods shop in Fletcher.

“One of the complaints we’ve been hearing is changing muzzleloader to Thanksgiving week. A lot of people are off those days. Most are not muzzleloaders,” Connor said.

“Another issue is having deer season and bear season at the same time. A lot of bear hunters are running bears with dogs. People are afraid since it’s still deer season, dogs will run across somebody’s land, and they will accidentally or intentionally shoot a dog.”

The justification for the proposed changes is based on biology, Carraway said, and research over the past five years to determine peak rut season, which is Dec. 2.

Moving the gun season later in the fall would allow more time for deer to breed. The gun season for deer in 2017 was Nov. 19-Dec. 8.

“The objective is to improve the biological condition of the deer herd, and to have 50 percent of the buck harvest after the peak breeding date,” he said.

While deer are plentiful in North Carolina – rough estimates put the herd at 1 million – they are less plentiful in the mountains, where terrain, weather and a highly fluctuating mast crop can decrease hunting success compared to other parts of the state.

N.C. Wildlife biologists also based their proposals on hunter input. A survey of deer hunters in 2016 netted nearly 34,000 responses. Sixty-eight percent of respondents thought there were too few mature bucks in the herd, and 81 percent said they were willing to see changes in deer hunting seasons to improve the health of the herd.

The proposed rules would also shift the either-sex gun season to the first day instead of the last day of the season, to increase the opportunities for hunting does and antlerless deer, which are those in the 1- 2-year-old range.

The bag limits for does would decrease from six to four. The statewide limit for antlered deer would remain at two per hunter.

“The goal is not necessarily to have more deer, but to manage the herd to where it can be healthier and provide older, healthier bucks, which is what people want to hunt,” Carraway said. “One objective is to get better fawn survival in the spring.”

The number of hunting licenses sold in the state has remained relatively stable, about 250,000 a year, said Lisa Hocutt, who compiles hunting and fishing license sales for the wildlife commission.

North Carolina had nearly 586,000 license holders last year. That includes resident and nonresident hunters, and those with lifetime licenses.

The deer harvest in the mountain region has also remained about the same. There were 5,998 deer harvested in 2017 in District 9, up from 5,554 in 2016. There were 5,624 deer bagged in 2015.

A low point was 4,227 in 2014, which coincided with a bumper acorn crop. When food is more plentiful, deer don’t need to move as much, making them more difficult for hunters to spot.

Disease is another factor in deer harvest, said mountain region biologist Justin McVey.

There was an outbreak of hemorrhagic disease in September across the mountains. Transmitted by a biting midge in the summer, the disease causes symptoms of emaciation, loss of motor control and fever.

A single case of rabies, very rare in deer, was confirmed in early September in Cherokee County.

More: What is killing deer in Western North Carolina other than hunters?

What’s good for the deer is good for the bear?

The proposed changes in the bear hunting season are a result of the changes to deer management, Carraway said.

Two weeks would be added to the current seven weeks of black bear season in the mountains. It would open two weeks earlier, on Oct. 1 rather than mid-October, and run through Nov. 17.

Bear season would then close for Thanksgiving week for black powder season. The last two weeks of bear season would overlap with gun season for deer.

Black bear harvest varies widely in the mountains based on weather – very cold, wet weather tends to keep people at home – and on the mast crop. Last year there were 701 bears killed by hunters in the Wildlife Commission’s Western District, 568 in 2016 and 753 in 2015. There were 393 bears harvested in 2014, a year of a particularly good mast crop.

In public Wildlife Commission meetings with bear hunters, most said they preferred keeping the current bear season structure, to overlap with the newly proposed deer season.

“In some ways, it’s a compromise. We are allowing deer and bear hunters to be in the woods at the same time. Biologically, it won’t negatively impact the bear population,” Carraway said.

There are an estimated 18,000-20,000 black bears in North Carolina, including 6,000-8,000 in the mountains.

More: Black bears already on the move in WNC

Bryan Henn, who hunts deer with bow and rifle and also hunts bear, said he has heard concerns from rifle hunters about the new rules taking away Thanksgiving week, but that he agrees with most of the changes.

As the N.C. Wildlife representative for the North Carolina Bowhunters Association, Henn said shortening black powder season from two weeks to one means deer hunting with archery will not be interrupted by guns.

Adding two extra weeks to bear season gives him more opportunity to bag a bear before gun season for deer. The new deer season would also be open during the Christmas and New Year holidays.

“For the bowhunter, you’ll have two months to hunt all to yourself,” said Henn, of Fletcher.

He said most muzzleloaders also hunt with rifle, so gaining three weeks of gun season should be a boon to everyone.

“Moving the doe season to let more does to breed will increase the deer herd, too, which is a great thing. That will really help the herd and that’s what all hunters want to see.”

Learn more

The public hearing on the rule proposals for District 9 was set for Jan. 16, but will be rescheduled for February at Haywood Community College auditorium, 185 Freelander Drive in Clyde.

All of the proposed regulations can be found in the 2018-2019 Public Hearing Booklet at www.ncwildlife.org. The comment period for the proposed regulation runs through Feb. 1. Comments may be submitted online, at the public hearing, emailed, including full name and address, to regulations@ncwildlife.org or mailed to: Rules Coordinator, N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, 1701 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, N.C. 27699-1701.

After collecting and considering all public comments, the wildlife commissioners will meet in February to decide whether to adopt the proposals. Approved proposals will take effect Aug. 1.