Hunters from around the region this week weighed in on a proposal that could extend deer hunting season on the Vineyard.
At a pair of public hearings held by state officials Thursday, some hunters gave their support to running the annual deer hunting season, which normally goes from Oct.7 to Dec. 31, into January to help cut back the growing number of deer on the Vineyard, Gosnold and Nantucket.
The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife is seeking public comment on allowing archery and primitive firearm hunting into January for the first time in the state’s history, as the deer populations are estimated to exceed 10,000 deer on both the Vineyard and Nantucket.
Their growing numbers are contributing to erosion along the Islands’ shorelines, according to Martin Feehan, the MassWildlife deer and moose project leader. Deer also carry ticks, increasing the spread of Lyme disease and alpha-gal syndrome.
“We’re seeing extensive damage that is unique from what we are dealing with on the mainland when it comes to overabundant deer,” Mr. Feehan said.
Under the proposal, hunters would have to renew their license before hunting the new January season, but they would be covered for the rest of the year, sparing them from getting another license for the fall hunting season.
Bill Holland, who lives on the Cape but has been regularly hunting during black powder and bow season on the Vineyard, was in favor of the January season because it coincides with the quiet season.
“The Cape is a seasonal area, just as you know, Nantucket or the Vineyard are,” Mr. Holland said at one of the virtual hearings. “January is the time of year that we have time off when we could get over there and do some hunting.”
Others were interested in moving the start of the season earlier in the year.
Ryan Brule, a Barnstable resident who’s been hunting on the Vineyard since 2005, thought early September would be a better time for an additional hunting. “The black powder season is probably the hardest season to shoot a deer on the Islands…” Mr. Brule said. “The easiest time to shoot them is during the archery season, and if you extended [it] and made it earlier, even by a couple weeks in September, you would see the harvest rate go up a lot.”
Stephen Pond, a Chappaquiddick resident, said he spends every morning and evening in deer stands with his bow, but feels conflicted about adding another season. He said he worries about how regulations would be enforced.
“There’s very little policing that goes on out here…” Mr. Pond said. “There’s a lot of gangs that come over through shotgun [season] and a lot of gangs that show up [with] muzzle-loaders, and it seems to be the same thing. They trespass and they go on any property that they feel they can go [on] if it’s not posted.”
Instead of lengthening the season, many said they’d rather see the state allow hunting on Sundays, though MassWildlife said such a change would require legislative action.
Matt Rivers, who was born-and-raised on the Vineyard, said in late December hunters run into more problems because many of the does are pregnant and the bucks have lost their antlers. He said he’d prefer hunting be allowed on Sundays although he supported the January season.
“I think I can speak for most hunters, and as a blue collar worker who works a nine to five, Monday through Saturday, that if they open Sundays, we’d have a much better ability to bring the numbers down,” Mr. Rivers said.
In addition to the new January season, MassWildlife is also considering allowing hunters to hunt on food plots, where people could plant crops such as clover to attract deer. Mr. Feehan also raised new regulations that would make hunting permits available to the youth, and remove the daily antlerless bag limit, which is currently four on the Vineyard.
The state will be accepting written comments about any of the proposed regulations until 4:00 p.m. on Feb. 5. The Fisheries and Wildlife board will announce its decisions later that month.
