The application period for Arkansas’s special urban bow hunts for the 2021-22 deer hunting season is now open.
The hunts, which begin Sept. 1, offer Arkansas bowhunters an early opportunity to get into the woods. It’s also the most effective method available for wildlife managers to assist cities in maintaining white-tailed deer populations at levels which reduce conflicts with homeowners and drivers.
The following areas will have urban hunts for the 2020-21 season: Bull Shoals, Cherokee Village, Fairfield Bay, Heber Springs, Helena/West Helena, Horseshoe Bend, Hot Springs Village, Lakeview and Russellville.
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission coordinates with the Arkansas Bowhunters Association and the Bull Shoals and Lakeview Urban Bowhunters Association to administer the nine urban bowhunting opportunities.
Ralph Meeker, Deer Program coordinator, said the partnership with the two bowhunting associations helps ensure participating hunters are proficient and guides hunters on how to be discreet and understand the nuances of hunting in an urban setting.
“All hunters must pass a proficiency test, pass the International Bowhunters Education Program (IBEP) course, and attend an orientation before receiving their urban hunt tags,” Meeker said. “The training is not difficult, but it does ensure that participants are capable of making ethical choices and a clean harvest.
“The orientation teaches hunters about some of the ground rules to follow while hunting and some suggestions to prevent any conflicts with landowners who live nearby,” he added. “Hunting is the most efficient means we have to control deer populations, and we want to make sure this tool is still available in the toolbox for years to come.”
Urban hunts also provide food for needy families in Arkansas. As a hunt stipulation, all hunters must donate their first adult deer harvested to Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry. “Some hunters will donate every deer they harvest, but we only require the first adult deer to be donated,” Meeker said.
Meeker and Jeremy Brown, assistant Deer Program coordinator, have worked with AHFH and schools throughout Arkansas to provide snack sticks made from donated deer meat to needy children throughout the state.
Deer harvested during urban hunts do not count toward a hunter’s seasonal limit. There are no limits to the number of deer that can be harvested in urban hunts and all antler restrictions are lifted. All deer harvested must still be checked to the appropriate urban deer zone.
For more information on urban deer hunts in Arkansas click here.