NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission has set the 2007-2008 fall and spring hunting seasons with no major surprises.
The commission met for its annual May seasons-setting meeting at the Ellington Agricultural Center here on Wednesday and Thursday, approving most of TWRA's recommendations for the upcoming seasons.
The chief change for 2007-2008 is a provision allowing hunters 36 hours after harvesting a big game animal to check that animal in at a big game checking station. TWRA had recommended the change from the previous regulation, which required deer, turkeys, bear or wild boar to be checked at the nearest checking station immediately after leaving the woods at the end of the hunting day. Many hunters had complained about the inconvenience of the requirement, particularly during deer season, when hunters in parts of the state can conceiveably kill deer every day of the week but do not have a checking station within many miles of their home or hunting area.
TWRA had considered a Telecheck system similar to the system in place in Kentucky and Mississippi, which allows hunters to phone in big game kills rather than make a physical appearance at a checking station. However, the consideration was eventually rejected, with officials citing high costs — estimated at $200,000 — to implement the system and the need for biologists to examine deer at checking stations to gather data on Tennessee's deer herd.
All big game animals must still be checked at the nearest checking station and by the most reasonable route, and proof of sex cannot be destroyed until after the animal has been checked in.
Another major change allows turkey hunters to hunt with 28-guage shotguns. In approving the proposal, commissioners only approved half of what TWRA had requested. Previously, hunters were able to hunt with shotguns only size 20-guage and larger. The agency had sought to make 28-guage shotguns and .410 shotguns — or the equivalent of a 67-guage — legal for turkey hunting. The measure was aimed at making turkey hunting easier for youngsters who have trouble with the handling and recoil of larger shotguns.
In deer hunting changes, five counties (Decatur, Gibson, Houston, McNairy and Stewart) were moved from Unit A to Unit L, while Cumberland County was moved from Unit B to Unit A.
There were no changes to the statewide bag limits for either deer or turkey. In Unit B, muzzleloader hunters will have two additional days to harvest a doe; the first segment of the season will be open for either-sex hunting on the first five days rather than the first three days. The bag limit remains one deer.
A number of changes were made to bear and boar seasons, and several WMA-specific changes were approved as well. More details will be coming soon to TnHunting.Com.
