Matthew Dickerson: Waiting in the woods, and elsewhere

For the past few weeks, I’ve been doing the sitting-in-the-woods-waiting-for-large-game-to-pass sort of waiting.

Hunters during the 16-day deer rifle season that concluded on Sunday brought what was, according to Independent archives, a record number of bucks — 676 — to be weighed at Addison County’s wildlife reporting stations.

Youthful hunters back on Oct. 21 and 22 had 93 deer weighed in Addison County during the Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife’s  Youth and Novice Hunting Weekend. That total is below average historically. 

I’ve been spending a fair bit of time in the woods lately in my annual attempt to harvest local free-range, antibiotic-free venison.

The deer rifle season got off to a strong start this past weekend with an above-average total of 244 bucks handled at eight Addison County big-game reporting stations.

Hunters may take one legal buck during this season if they did not already take one during the archery deer season.

Vermont’s 16-day regular deer season begins Saturday, Nov. 11, and ends Sunday, Nov. 26. 

Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus, a highly contagious virus capable of affecting rabbits and snowshoe hare, is appearing in states close to Vermont and may show up here according to the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department.

A youngster’s first hunt can mark the beginning of a lifelong passion for the outdoors and a commitment to wildlife conservation, and youth waterfowl hunt weekend is designed to do just that. 

In response to the inaccurate and unfair Sept. 14 letter by Barbara Felitti, who appears to be an anti-anything hunting or trapping person from Protect Our Wildlife.

Vermont’s upcoming archery deer hunting season will run from Sunday, Oct. 1- Friday, Nov.10 and Monday, Nov. 27 to Friday, Dec. 15 

At the July meeting of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Board, an FWB member recommended adding “manually applied blunt force” as a “best” management practice for killing a trapped animal.

The 2023-2024 migratory game bird hunting season dates and bag limits have been set by the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department.

Vermont’s muzzleloader season antlerless deer permit applications are now available online at Vermont Fish and Wildlife’s website and from license agents. A link to the information and online applications is on the home page. 

Human-wildlife conflict poses a major challenge for the conservation of carnivore species globally.