Hunters lucky enough to be drawn from a ran om lottery will again help reduce the overcrowded deer herds at two popular West Virginia State Parks
The DNR has announced controlled hunts at Blennerhassett Island November 8 and 9. There will also be a controlled hunt staged at Stonewall Resort November 15, 16, and 17. Biologists say ongoing monitoring of deer numbers in the parks reveal numbers well above the carrying capacity.
Controlled hunts were staged at Blennerhassett Island in 2001, 2002, and 2007. Stonewall Resort hosted hunters in 2008 and ’09. Both were considered successful management efforts.
“We have been successful with the use of controlled hunts as a method of wildlife management in a public setting; however, history has shown that multiple successive hunts are necessary to reduce the population to sustainable levels.” The scheduling of both controlled hunts on these state parks is good and responsible resource management, according to Jezioro.
The Blennerhassett Island hunt will be open to hunters who are both resident and non-resident, but the Stonewall hunt is limited to West Virginia residents only or those who possess a lifetime West Virginia license.
Hunters will be allowed only one deer per day and it must be an antlerless deer. There is a lottery on the morning of the hunt among those hunters on hand and five are granted permission to take a doe or buck.
Hunters wishing to participate can review the entire rules here. Applications must be made to the DNR to be in the lottery drawing by August 28.
Click HERE for Blennerhassett Hunt application. Click HERE for the Stonewall Resort Hunt Application
