AmmoLand.com

Maryland NPR Reminds Hunters To Stay Safe During Firearm Deer Season

Maryland Department of Natural Resources

Annapolis, MD --(Ammoland.com)- The Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) encourages hunters to put safety first as this year’s firearm deer season opens November 27, the day with the greatest concentration of hunters afield.

“Tree stand incidents account for most hunting accidents,” said NRP Superintendent Colonel George G. Johnson IV. “There have already been three tree stand related hunting fatalities this hunting season.”

All hunters should use a full-body safety harness that keeps the hunter tethered to the tree and prevents a fall to the ground. NRP reminds hunters to inspect their safety equipment prior to use and replace any worn or broken pieces. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has produced a helpful video, demonstrating how to use a tree stand and full-body safety harness that can be viewed above.

The improper use of weapons has been another cause of accidents. Hunters should inspect, be familiar with, and practice with the weapon that is to be used prior to the start of the hunt.

When handling a weapon, hunters should always follow two cardinal rules:

• Treat every gun as if it is loaded and never point the firearm at anything unless intending to shoot.
• Positively identify the intended target and make sure the area beyond is devoid of other hunters or property before the trigger is pulled.

Before hunting, all hunters should follow these laws and regulations before they go hunting:

• Hunters must obtain and possess a hunting license while hunting.
• A course in firearms and hunter safety is required for those who did not hunt prior to July 1, 1977.
• Hunters must possess written permission from landowner before hunting on private property.
• Hunters and companions must wear a fluorescent cap or outer garment that contains 250 square-inches of fluorescent orange color.
• Possessing loaded weapons in a vehicle is prohibited. This includes ammunition in the magazine or chamber.
• It is illegal to shoot or hunt from or across a roadway.
• Hunting within 150 yards of a residence, camp or other building is prohibited without advance permission of owner or occupant.
• Before removing the deer from the location of the kill, a field tag must be filled out and attached to the deer. It must be recorded on the hunter’s Big Game Harvest Record.
• Hunters must check-in the deer within 24 hours of field tagging to the Department of Natural Resources via the internet at www.gamecheck.dnr.state.md.us or the call the Big Game Registration phone line at 1-888-800-0120. The confirmation number must then be entered onto the Big Game Harvest Record.

Citizens are encouraged to call the Natural Resources Police Communication Center at 800-628-9944 with poaching complaints, public lands enforcement questions or maritime enforcement questions.

Filed under: Ammoland TV, Hunting News by Ammoland No Comments »

Georgia Firearms Deer Season Opens October 16

Georgia Firearms Deer Season Opens October 16

Georgia Department of Natural Resources

SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga. --(Ammoland.com)- It is finally that time of the year again for Georgia hunters.

Firearms deer season opens Saturday, Oct. 16 and lasts through Jan. 1, 2011 in the Northern Zone and in the Southern Zone, through Jan. 15, 2011.

“Regulated hunting is the most cost effective and efficient means of managing the deer herd,” says John W. Bowers, assistant chief of Game Management for the Wildlife Resources Division. “In addition, sportsmen and women provide more than $30 million each year to fund wildlife conservation in the state through license fees and self-imposed excise taxes collected on the purchase of firearms, ammunition, archery equipment and fishing equipment.”

More than one million acres of public hunting land is available to hunters in Georgia, including more than 100 state-operated wildlife management areas. In addition to traditional hunters, many special hunts are offered, including ladies-only and adult/child hunts. Dates and locations for these hunts, as well as WMA maps, are available in the 2010-2011 Georgia Hunting Seasons and Regulations guide at www.gohuntgeorgia.com .

During the 2009-2010 firearms deer season, 305,000 licensed hunters harvested more than 398,000 deer in Georgia.

Hunters are allowed a season total of ten antlerless deer and two antlered deer (one of the two antlered deer must have a minimum of four points, one inch or longer, on one side of the antlers).

A valid hunting license is required to hunt deer during firearms season, as is a big game license and a deer harvest record. In most cases, a separate WMA license is required to hunt on a WMA. All deer hunters must wear at least 500 square-inches of fluorescent orange above the waist to legally hunt during firearms season, except on archery-only areas.

Georgia is considered the top destination in the country for non-resident hunters and continues to draw tens of thousands of hunters from across the country each year. The state’s quality deer herd and the availability of vast acres of public hunting land serve as the main appeal.

For more information on deer hunting seasons and regulations, visit www.gohuntgeorgia.com .

Filed under: Hunting News by Ammoland No Comments »