Deer, turkey season to open Saturday

Adventure, the chance to bring home a trophy buck or gobbler, meat to fill the freezer, quality time in the outdoors on a beautiful fall day, and/or the thrill of the hunt are available for everyone with a legal hunting license and place to hunt when deer and turkey season opens on Saturday morning.

General seasons for both north Texas deer and turkey run from Nov. 3 to Jan. 6, and the legal shooting hours for all game animals and non-migratory game birds in Texas is the period from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset. 

Hunting season starts at 7:26 a.m. in Shackelford County, 30 minutes before the anticipated 7:56 a.m. sunrise on Nov. 3, and according to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) deer program leader Alan Cain, it looks to be a promising hunting season state-wide.

“An abundance of new plant growth in the aftermath of the recent storms should provide a boost for white-tailed deer,” he said.

Cain reminded those with deer feeders to remove and dispose of any corn that became wet or spoiled because of all the moisture to avoid aflatoxins. 

“Hunters may also need to adjust their hunting strategies to find deer that may not be readily seeking out corn because of the green conditions,” said Cain. “But it is good for the deer. Based on what we’ve seen coming in during archery season, hunters should be pleasantly surprised with antler quality.”

Steve Ford with Big Game Management has already been out in the field on successful hunts with bow hunters.

“We are seeing a lot of bucks,” Ford said. “We didn’t get the rain we needed in the summer to get the really high scoring racks, but I’m seeing a tremendous amount of three to four-year-old deer.”

Shackelford County game warden Jacob Mort says the deer and turkey hunting season looks really good.

“I’ve been talking with local ranchers and our biologist,” Mort said. “They agree that we got the right amount of rain to keep the animals healthy and in good shape. I think this will be a good to great year!”

Ford is a little more cautious, unwilling to predict a great year, at least so far.

“I’ve seen a lot of good deer, but not many great deer,” Ford said.

Ford added that, although he is seeing turkeys around, the ones that he’s seen are all adults, possibly indicating a poor hatch this year.

Mort, however, blames that on the thick cover from the recent rains offering the birds plenty of places to hide, or on differences in the turkey populations at various locations within the county. 

“I’ve driven around and have seen quite a few turkey, including young ones,” the game warden said.  

Regulations

Mort said that the rules are the same as last year.

“Make sure everyone that needs it has taken hunter education, and make sure that you are hunting on your own land or leased land,” Mort said. “Also, make sure that projectiles (bullets) do not cross property lines.”

Deer hunters must have a valid hunting license and if they were born after Sept. 2, 1971, they must have completed the hunter education program or be accompanied by a qualifying hunter.

Along with a valid hunting license and meeting hunter education requirements, turkey hunters and quail hunters must also have an upland game bird endorsement.

Both deer and turkey must be securely tagged with the appropriate tag from the hunter’s license immediately upon kill.

Hunters are reminded of the establishment of chronic wasting disease (CWD) management zones. Hunters who harvest mule deer, whitetail deer, elk, red deer, or other CWD susceptible species within the Trans-Pecos, Panhandle, and South-Central Texas CWD Containment and Surveillance Zones are required to bring their animals to a TPWD check station within 48 hours of harvest. 

Shackelford County is not included in a CWD zone, but the TPWD also urges voluntary sampling of hunter harvested deer outside of these zones.

Deer Season

White-tailed deer season for rifles opens Nov. 3 and closes on Jan. 6 in North Texas. 

In addition to the regular season, a special late season from Jan. 7-20 allows adult hunters to continue harvesting antlerless deer (does) and unbranched antlered bucks (spikes) only. 

A youth-only season runs from Jan. 7-20, with hunters 17 and younger permitted to shoot either bucks or does, as long as they haven’t reached their licensed limit.

The bag limit is five deer, including no more than two bucks, all seasons combined.  

Hunters play a key role in habitat management by helping to maintain deer numbers within the amount of food supplies the land can sustain. Wildlife biologists have conducted extensive deer habitat research over time and recommend deer harvest based on their findings.

Hunting prospects are expected to be good across the state, according to wildlife biologists with the TPWD.

Generally speaking, white-tailed deer in Texas have fared well in recent years with an estimated population of about 4.6 million, according to Cain. 

“Texas has a robust deer population with plenty of animals for hunters to pursue,” he said. “Overall the 2018 deer season is expected to be good, probably similar to the last several years.”

Turkey Hunting

During the fall season, hunters may shoot birds of either sex from Nov. 3 to Jan. 6.

The annual bag limit for turkey is four birds, no more than one of which may be an Eastern turkey.

A special youth-only period extends the season from Jan. 7-20.

During a spring turkey season from March 30 to May 12, only gobblers or bearded hens may be harvested.

It is against the law to hunt roosting turkeys by any means at any time.

Quail Season 

Quail season will remain open until Feb. 24.

The daily bag limit is 15 birds, with a possession limit of 45.

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