The next hunting season might be a little bit more quiet than the last.

Last week, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Advisory Board voted unanimously to allow hunting with silencers in the state.

According to the National Rifle Association, more than 30 states already allow hunting with silencers, or as they're also called, suppressors.

To buy a silencer, first an applicant must find a dealer with a NFA, or Class III, firearms license. The approval process requires a background check by law enforcement, fingerprinting, approval from a local sheriff and a $200 transfer tax. The approval process can take as long as six months, if not longer.

And that's for each silencer. To buy another, an applicant must go through the process again.

Anyone with a felony in their criminal history or a misdemeanor domestic violence charge is prohibited from owning a silencer and will not be approved.

Once an applicant has finished the process, he or she must keep their paperwork on hand wherever they have the silencer.

Silencers might seem like a dream for poachers shooting deer in the dark, but Harders said the rule change is not likely to have a big impact on illegal hunting.

"When crossbows were talked about, the same thing was said about that," he said. "A poacher typically uses whatever they've got. They're not going to go out and fill out a lot of paperwork."

A few might, he said, but it's not the noise at night that lands poachers in trouble.

"Our officers don't follow the shot," he said. "We use other methods."