Crunch. Crunch. Dead leaves crumble under the hooves of the mighty whitetail. BANG! The hunter propels a spinning bullet from the chamber of his rifle, killing the deer. Many hunters hope to hear that sound Saturday morning as gun season opens.
With a shotgun or a rifle, hunters enter the woods the weekend before Thanksgiving to start off the season, which runs through Dec. 1 and reopens from Dec. 26 until Jan. 10 at the Noxubee Wildlife Refuge.
The Refuge is one of the most popular places for Starkville residents to deer hunt.
“The last time I hunted at the Refuge I was sitting in my stand, and I counted five orange vests walking through the woods,” said Shannon Hammett, a senior at Mississippi State University. “The Refuge is close for people who don’t have land around here.”
The Refuge has 45,000 acres of public hunting land that is mostly composed of lowlands but also includes some ridges and rolling hills, according to Steve Demarais, a professor of wildlife management at MSU.
There is a two-buck, two-doe bag limit at the Refuge, and the chances of harvesting a deer at the Refuge are excellent, according to David Richardson, a biologist at the Refuge.
Demarais said the Refuge has trophy deer.
“I’ve seen some really nice bucks out there,” Demarais said. “If I’m hunting and being a good hunter, I have a chance of seeing an excellent buck.”
Richardson and Demarais explained that without hunters reducing the deer population, deer would starve to death and die of diseases such as blue tongue. Richardson said 292 deer were killed at the Refuge last year and that is not enough.
“If we have another sub-300 year we might see fatalities associated with densities,” Richardson said. “Deer rebound quickly. It is better to take more than not enough.”
“Recreational hunting is the only feasible means of controlling deer populations,” Demarais said. “There is a lack of recruitment of young hunters. As a deer manager, I’m concerned about the future.”
This year, 1,212 permits have been sold–down slightly from last year, according to Refuge employee Gwen Cotton.
Even though there may be fewer hunters at the Refuge this year, hunters still have to play by the rules that come with hunting on public land.
State law prohibits the use of salt licks, corn feeders or food plots to lure deer, but hunters can compensate by finding acorn trees that deer frequent for snacks.
The Refuge has its regulations, but Richardson said it could be worse, considering some hunting clubs. He said some clubs require a buck to have at least six points before it is a legal kill.
The Refuge requires a state hunting license, which can be purchased at Wal-Mart, and a $12 permit purchased from the Refuge Office.