A TACTICAL APPROACH TO THE UPCOMING SQUIRREL SEASON

As one with knowledge only of a life spent outdoors, I arrange my memories by seasons. By morning dew and the reflection of warm genesis on fresh leaves, I remember days casting dry flies to feisty brook trout and wild rainbows. By thick, starlit nights and the chug-chugging of a popper I recall extended summer evenings fishing for heavy bigmouths from a canoe. By the first chilly, gray morning in September, and the sight of yellow leaves adhered by mist to the rocks of a Blue Ridge Mountain hollow, I remember those days spent toting a .22 long rifle, ears perked to the sound of bushytail toes on bark. That morning is fast approaching.

Photo by Matt Reilly

    This Saturday, September 3, Virginian small game enthusiasts will be given the annual go-ahead to target their favorite quarry—gray squirrels, and the less prominent red and fox squirrels.

    The season on red squirrels and the widely distributed gray squirrels will run through February 28, statewide.

    Fox squirrels are legal game only through January 31, and can only be taken in the counties west of the Blue Ridge, and in the counties of Albemarle, Bedford, Culpeper, Fauquier, Franklin, Greene, Loudoun, Madison, Orange, Patrick, Prince William, and Rappahannock.

The traditional bag limit of a combined six bushytails remains in place.

Three Different Seasons

    Dedicated squirrel hunters enjoy pursuing game with a wide range of implements. Muzzleloaders, riflemen, shotgunners, archers, and airgunners all set their sights on bushytails, both from carefully scouted stands and conveniently located saplings during a still hunt. The right method for you is largely up to preference and ability. However, the Virginia squirrel season is a long one, and so it is worth noting the limitations and strengths of different tactics during the three distinct seasons the squirrel hunter will face between September and February.

    The month of September and early October I call the “early season”. Leaves and acorns still cling to the forest canopy, and squirrels haven’t yet been shot at. Often, this makes finding squirrels easy. They are loud, shaking large bunches of foliage while mining acorns from the treetops, and the foliage somewhat robs them of their bird’s eye view of the forest floor.

    I rarely hunt squirrels in September. In Virginia, the weather is generally still quite warm. However, when I do, I rarely stand-hunt. The squirrels are occupied and relatively stationary high in the treetops. Thus, my favorite way to hunt is to simply wander the woods with an eye on the sky, looking for roiling bunches of foliage. Once a squirrel is located, an easy stalk is usually all that separates one from a shot.

    The length of that shot varies by the cover you hunt, but keep in mind that it can be difficult due to foliage to get a clear shot with a small bore .22 rifle or an airgun. A 20 gauge with a modified choke can be an excellent choice for sorting through all those limbs and leaves, and is often my first choice in the early season.

    I call the “mid-season” that period starting in the latter days of October, and lasting until most of the fallen mast has been used up and there is snow on the ground—usually sometime in mid- to late-December. During this season, the squirrels have been educated a little, but they spend a significant portion of their day on the ground, scrounging for acorns. The forest canopy has thinned, and a longer, more precise shot it possible.

    During this period, stand hunting can be quite effective. Locate areas where there is a concentration of fallen mast, like a hardwood creekbottom or flat oak grove. White oaks tend to drop acorns earlier than red oaks, so know your local hardwood species, and pay attention to their mast-producing tendencies.

    A longer line of sight makes a .22 or air gun very valuable, and will provide more shots from a stand. The subtle crack of the rifle is also less alerting, compared to the invasive boom of a shotgun, enabling a shorter recovery to seclusion.

    The doldrums of winter I consider to be the “late season.” Food is scarce and the woods are bare. Squirrels are spooky and ranging wide. Leaves are crunchy due to cold. What’s more, groups of squirrels are often spotted chasing each other as a mating ritual.

Photo by Matt Reilly

    These reasons make me partial to a very slow still-hunt with a shotgun. Educated squirrels often stick tight to cover when approached, and make mad dashes for cover, making moving shots common. You may be lucky enough to have several squirrels chase each other to within range, in which case, multiple quick shots can pay dividends.

    Keep these variables in mind when planning your days afield this fall and winter chasing Virginia’s favorite small game species.□

*Originally published in the Rural Virginian

PROPOSED REGULATION CHANGES TO SOUTH RIVER FORETELL EVOLVING FISHERY

Thanks to the persistent, concerted efforts of local anglers, the South River Fly Shop, and the Shenandoah Valley Chapter of TroutUnlimited (SVTU), Waynesboro’s urban trout fishery currently awaits the August 18^th Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) board meeting, where votes will be taken on two proposed regulation amendments that will alter the river’s fishing opportunities and potentially improve an evolving fishery.

South River Fly Shop guide Reed Cranford with a 25" brown from the South River Delayed Harvest Area.

    One amendment would replace the existing delayed harvest designation on two miles of river from North Park to Wayne Ave., with catch and release regulations.

    The second would adjust the existing 16-inch minimum size limit for trout and artificial lure-only restriction on the 5.5 miles of the South River Special Regulations Area, extending from the North Oak Lane bridge to a point 1.5 miles above Rt. 632 (the Shalom Road bridge), to a 20-inch minimum and a fly-fishing-only designation, more than doubling the amount of fly-fishing-only water in the state.

    Virginia’s delayed harvest system limits anglers fishing waters designated as such to artificial lures only, and requires catch-and-release, except for a window from June 1 through September 30 –when waters are too warm to hold stocked trout—when harvest is allowed and bait is permitted. So the question of delayed harvest versus catch-and-release year-round is dependent upon water temperature and quality.

    The proposed amendments’ position on DGIF’s schedule is a result of several years of advocacy from the local angling community, mobilized by SVTU and the South River Fly Shop. In 2012, the groups approached DGIF with the suggestion of making the proposed regulation adjustments to the South River. In defense of the existing delayed harvest management system, they were met with the argument that the river becomes too warm in the summertime to effectively hold over stocked trout populations.

    In response, SVTU and South River Fly Shop hatched a plan to mobilize their voice.

    “After a while, we decided to show public support by drawing up a proposal and getting signatures from anglers,” said Kevin Little, co-owner of South River Fly Shop. “That got us on [DGIF’s] radar.”

    Right on cue, in September of 2013, Tom Benzing of James Madison University presented at the Mountain Stream Symposium II a five-year (2008-2013)water temperature study of the South River aimed at assessing the river’s potential as a sustainable trout stream.

    In 2011, while the study was ongoing, Rife-Loth Dam, which was installed in 1884 above what is now Wayne Ave. and the upstream boundary of the South River’s delayed harvest stretch, was bulldozed.

    “The old dam was backing up and warming cold spring water coming in from upstream,” said Little. “And because it was a top-release dam, it was overflowing warm water.”

    Benzing’s study shows that the removal of Rife-Loth Dam restored normal daily fluctuations of water temperatures downstream, buffered by the restored influx of cold spring water. Furthermore, it proved that the water temperature from springs in and above downtown Waynesboro were suitable as thermal refuges for trout.

    In the spring of 2016, DGIF took notice.

    “There is a strong proposal in downtown for changing the delayed harvest designation to catch-and-release,” said DGIF Region 4 Fisheries Manager, Paul Bugas. “And we’re noticing increasing demand for more fly-fishing-only water.”

    After several years of static, this nudge from the public is getting DGIF on board.

    “We’ve sampled at the end of May and before stocking begins in October and found a good number of holdovers in downtown, which leads us to believe that some better holdovers under new regulations,” said Bugas. “We’re trying it.”

    Bugas also recognizes the potential benefits of the minimum length increase on the upper South River above North Oak Lane, which he says has few fish over 20 inches long, currently: “It will [essentially] make it illegal to take fish from an area that is still under development.”

An angler prospects the banks of the upper South River in the summer. Photo by Matt Reilly

    The debate over the appropriate regulations to spur growth in the trout fishery within the South River could be called unanticipated by those with historical perspective on the river. “If you told me in 1975 that we’d be haggling over trout regulations in downtown Waynesboro, I’d laugh in your face,” said Bugas. “Back in the ‘70s, a doctor from Virginia Tech was investigating fisheries downtown, and he found sunfish, a couple carp, and some suckers, and that was about it.”

    Needless to say, the folks that call the South River dear like the change they’re witnessing.

“This river could be every bit as good as the Elk River in West Virginia,” said Little, a West Virginia native, himself. “God alone did 90-percent of the work. We’ve just gotta’ do the 10-percent to finish it.”□

*Originally published in the Rural Virginian

EARLY ARCHERY DEER SEASON IS HERE

As I write this, on the first official day of fall, the change of seasons is evident.  The morning suggests a sweater, the flaming embers of maples’ limbs lie lightly atop shoots of green summer grass, and the air smells of a few mornings I’ve experienced from a treestand.  With sunrise this Saturday will come a familiar fall tradition, what is probably the most anxiously awaited on the sportsman’s calendar—the opening of the early archery deer season, the first in a series of new beginnings to come.

The Facts

    Saturday, October 3 marks the beginning of the early archery season that will run through November 13 statewide.  The entire six-week period is designated “either-sex,” during which hunters are permitted to take either a buck or a doe.

    Midway through the season, a window opens for the gun-toting variety of big game hunters.  The early muzzleloader season extends from October 31 right through the heralded general firearms season opener, November 14.  Hunters are permitted to take a deer of either sex throughout the length of the muzzleloading season as well, unless specially noted in the VDGIF deer hunting regulations for the 2015-16 season, which can be accessed at www.dgif.virginia.gov.

    East of the Blue Ridge Mountains, except on National Forest Lands in Amherst, Bedford, and Nelson Counties, the daily bag limit rests at the historical number of two.  Hunters are permitted to take six deer per license year, provided at least three are “antlerless,” which is defined as a deer with no antlers protruding above the hair line.  Bucks with small “buttons,” or pedicels, that don’t break the skin or hair line are considered antlerless.

Four Eyes

    The falling leaves and half-bear trees that come to mind when one visualizes bowhunting in the autumn woods are often not reality during the front end of the early archery season in Virginia.  Such was my dilemma one early October evening in a familiar creekbottom.

    Evidence of a relentless summer was slipping away as dusk and the coolness of an October night settled in, when the growing sound of footsteps materialized from the peeping of birds and the trickle of a small stream in the background of my thoughts.  Still-green leaves blocked any chance of a long-distance ID.  From my position in a ground blind facing a hollow dominated by a small tributary, the noise was diffused, irregular, and hardly audible. 

    However, as the noise grew, I came to understand why.  There were two sources.  One seemed to originate from my right; the other, from my left.  Each bore different characteristics.  One was steady, soft, deliberate; the other, erratic, quick, and careless.

    The first source materialized first, on my right.  A mature doe browsed methodically down the slope of a ridge that ended at the creek’s confluence in front of me.

    My hand tightened around the handle of my compound bow as my heart rate quickened.  The deer moseyed behind the veil of a wide hickory tree.   I saw my chance.

    As I raised my bow, ready to draw, the second source strutted into view—a jake, a young turkey, seemingly with the intention of meeting my white-tailed quarry at the confluence.  Their paths ran into each other.

    But as the bird strutted into view, he froze and cocked his head at the foreign camouflage box in his turf.  Turkey have exceptional eyesight, so the fact that he didn’t bolt and send my chances of taking anything home to the table over the next ridge surprised me.  Nevertheless, I remained frozen, though my muscles were strained in the beginning stages of drawing. 

    Nervously, the bird sidestepped, still cocking his head inquisitively. 

    “If he just makes it a few more feet, that small beech might give me a window,” I breathed nervously. 

    My wish came true after several sweaty moments.  Naturally, at that time, the doe’s head had popped out from behind the hickory, still apparently oblivious to the tense moment at hand.  I saw my second of opportunity, and drew. 

    As subtle as I could be wasn’t subtle enough.  The doe swung her head up, her body still shielded by the hickory.  I had a fresh opponent in the staring game, and now I was at full draw. 

    Meanwhile, the jake continued his nervous dance, edging ever closer to the blind.  The doe twitched her ears, though her body remained solidly in place, teasing me.

    After what seemed an hour, I began to shake under the weight of the bow.  The jake had finally had enough, wheeled around, and trotted out of the scene.  The doe shot out a wheeze and bolted.  I relaxed, exhausted from the tension of a close encounter.□

*Originally published in The Rural Virginian

SUNDAY HUNTING LEGISLATURE PASSES THROUGH THE STATE LEGISLATURE

As this column is being penned, Governor Terry McAuliffe awaits the arrival of a bill that will legalize Sunday hunting on private land in Virginia—a bill he previously indicated he will sign into law.

        House Bill 1237 (HB 1237), which has a twin in the Virginia Senate (SB 154), was introduced and passed by the Virginia House of Delegates last month by a vote of 71-27 and moved on to the Senate for approval.  On Feb. 18, the Senate responded with a vote of 28-11 in favor of the bill.

        Governor McAuliffe, whose signature represents the last obstacle for the bill, has been a supporter of Sunday hunting during his term, and revealed through a spokesperson that he intends to grant his signature to either bill when they land on his desk.

        The ban on Sunday hunting historically belongs to a group of regulations called “blue laws,” laws that restrict certain activities on the Sabbath day, such as operating a retail store or the sale of alcohol. The blue law on hunting was established in Virginia in the early 1900s, and has seen growing opposition in recent years.  Finally in 2012, Sunday hunting activists had a breakthrough, as a bill was passed in the Senate, only to be shot down in the House by an opposing subcommittee.  Heading into 2014 with a fresh batch of executive and legislative officials taking seats in Richmond, and with legislation already being passed, the future for Sunday hunting looks promising.

        With the bill’s passage, more hardworking Virginian’s will be able to find the time and energy to hunt on the weekends, rather than have to sacrifice a time-honored tradition to recuperate and prepare for the week ahead.  More kids will become involved with hunting, as their parents find the time to introduce them.  This will in turn result in the sale of more hunting licenses and increased funds available to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries for managing and improving game populations and habitat.

        On the contrary, the majority of the bill’s opposition comes in the form of non-hunters.  Trail runners, bird watchers, horseback riders, and other non-hunting outdoorspeople argue that Sunday is a safe day to be in the woods during hunting season, and has been traditionally in Virginia for the past 100 years. 

        While I certainly understand this position, and recognize regrettably that not all hunters are safe hunters, by my experience, the majority of hunters are quite responsible and courteous.  Just as the deer and bear hunters of the national forests and wildlife management areas sometimes must share the woods with fishermen in the fall, fishermen, small game hunters, hikers, equestrians, and photographers all too must learn to respect the others’ space and right to the woods.  They must don blaze orange in recognition of that seasonal relationship, and do their best to maintain a safe and effective cushion.  Those that hunt on public land accept in doing so the possibility of crossing paths with another sportsman.  If that doesn’t satisfy, consider private land or public areas where hunting is prohibited.  It works for the majority of the country.

        Overall, if (or when) this bill is signed into law, I firmly believe that both the sporting public and wildlife will benefit.  

Originally published in the Rural Virginian

IT'S STILL SQUIRREL SEASON

The woods seem dead, dark and growing colder, with a slight breeze filtering through the woodlot over frost-covered oak leaves.  In minutes, the morning sun breaks the horizon, casting warm shadows as it graces towering hardwoods.  The woods come alive, freed from the nocturnal wind and chill.

A Bushytail suns on a branch before beginning the morning's activities.  Photo by Matthew Reilly

        Deer begin to move, without worry—the deer season in Virginia has been closed for two weeks.  One trots to within view, shaking off the wintry night in the woods with every sprightly step.

        When the sun emerges from the rolling ridges in its entirety, another woodland creature is awakened by the warming of the tree trunks.  A gray squirrel scrambles out of his den in an ancient oak and suns for a spell on a branch soaked in sunlight.  Before long, the bushytail abandons his perch, and scuttles to the ground to feed.

        But his descent is intercepted by the tapering bark of a .22 rifle.  He tumbles from the tree and lands with a thump on the forest floor.  I left my bed earlier than even the whitetail to begin my vigil, tucked in a grove of oaks and hickories, and now recoil back, behind cover, memorizing the location of my first squirrel of the morning.

        Deer season may be over, but squirrel season is in full swing.

A New Season

        Historically, the rabbit season has outlasted the squirrel season just as the squirrel season does deer season.  But this year, biologists have discovered reason to extend the season on red and gray squirrels to match the rabbit season’s close on February 28, while the close of the season on fox squirrels remains January 31.  This allots small game hunters three months (September, January, and February) to chase their bushy-tailed quarry without being considerate of the meticulous activities of those hunting bigger game.

        The reason for this change, as stated by Marc Puckett, State Small Game Biologist, is “more [hunting] opportunity without negative impact.”  All of Virginia’s border states set squirrel seasons ending in late February.  Virginia is a regional holdout.

A Different Game

        Early in the squirrel season, food supplies are abundant, allowing squirrels to be easily patterned by the location and presence of hardwood trees.  Foliage still clings to tree branches, shielding the still-hunting hunter from the vision of game feeding in the treetops.

 

        In the late season, hunting is not quite so easy.  Most of the mast has fallen from the trees, as have the leaves, making stalking, and sometimes locating, squirrels a difficult game.

The author with a stocky Bushytail.
Photo by Matthew Reilly

        Squirrels feed primarily on the ground during this time, rooting up acorns squirreled away in the ground in the fall, and eating up the last of those gone unclaimed.  For this reason, I’ve found creekbottoms to be particularly profitable places to hunt in the winter.  Gravity naturally concentrates acorns in hilly country in creekbottoms, where squirrels produce much racket perusing the forest floor for them.  The soft earth and often-wet leaves that are characteristic of creekbottoms permit me to stalk a noisy squirrel while minimizing my own noise.

        I have also observed squirrels feeding on ferns in the winter, which grow predominantly in damp soil, making creekbottoms a prime late season squirrel magnet.

        However, even if you know where to search, squirrels can be reclusive in harsh weather.  Schedule hunts for warm or seasonal days without precipitation or wind.  On days forecast as windy, hunting the morning may allow you a few hours of calm woods.

        If you must hunt windy or exceptionally cold days, hunt protected areas.  In such cases, squirrels will readily assume perches amid the lush, evergreen canopy of pine stands.  Pines are excellent protection from the elements.  Especially when insulated with snow, the thick crowns of white pines retain more heat than skeletal hardwoods, and also serve as a wind block, allowing squirrels to feel more secure at a time when they would have to sacrifice their sense of hearing elsewhere.

        Still, the hunter’s best chance at bagging squirrels may exist in the morning as squirrels rise from their dens.  Scout your woodlot for hardwoods with holes—dens—in the trunks, or bunched, leaf nests in the forks.  Take a stand in an area dense with such trees at daybreak and wait for squirrels to awaken.  Because morning temperatures often recede into the teens and 20s this time of year, squirrels will emerge later in the morning, after the sun has warmed the woods significantly; so being in place well before light is unnecessary.  Squirrels often peer out of their den holes for threats before emerging, so wear camouflaged clothing, and remain still and observant.  If you kill a squirrel, retain your cover, mark its location, and wait for another opportunity.□

Turn your squirrels into a squirrel pie!

Originally published in the Rural Virginian                                                         

OPENING DAY

Rivers cool and skies clear, breezes blow crisp air through aging leaves and thunderstorms disappear as summer slips into fall.  There’s obvious change in the air.  

The clues are reminiscent of hardwood sunrises, leaves crunching underfoot to frost fallen in the night, the intoxicating aura about the woods as the trees greet the end of their year in fiery display, slight movements of game camouflaged by forest bathed in warm light.

Those that succumb most to these allusions find it hard to remain focused as the week wanes on.  Fridays are filled with meticulous planning and visualizing.  They return home and greet the weekend with an early retirement—alarm set punctually and pertinently.  But they can’t sleep.  With the sun comes the first day of bow season, perhaps one of the most-awaited dates on the sportsman’s calendar.

This year, October 5 is that date, when thousands of such hunters will usher in the beginning of Virginia’s early archery deer season.  The season will run until November 15, overlapped slightly by the early muzzleloading season that opens on November 2 and closes with the archery season.

East of the Blue Ridge Mountains, these seasons are either-sex in full, meaning that hunters are permitted to harvest either antlerless (defined as a doe, button buck, or shed antler buck) or antlered deer all season.

Different Types of Hunters

Within those that take to the woods during bow season, there are two distinct groups—those that hunt with a bow because it allows them early legal permission to take game, and true archers. 

True archers are completely immersed in their sport.  They begin target shooting and making adjustments to their weapon promptly as the season closes in the winter, and keep at it throughout the summer, patiently awaiting the arrival of fall.

I tend to fall into the former group; for my devotion to the fish of the rivers and lakes far outweighs my desire to maintain shooting form.  However I bear a complete appreciation for the challenges set forth by the archery season opener, and can usually be seen in my front yard shooting a foam cube several weeks prior, welcoming the coming season with enthusiasm.

A Different Kind of Game

Besides the difference in gear, there are many differences between bow-hunting and gun-hunting that can fashion better hunters.  To begin, shots must be taken at much closer ranges, requiring the hunter to work within about 20 yards of game to get a safe, sure shot.  Due to the multitude of variables involved in shooting an arrow straight and accurately, extra care must be taken in maintaining proper form as well.

One of my favorite ways to hunt this season is from a pop-up or hand-made ground blind.  In forests of new growth, there are plenty of dense areas of vegetation in which to conceal yourself, where, if chosen and prepared correctly, you may find yourself at a very short distance from your quarry.  Though, at such a small distance, and at eye level with game, it can often be difficult to draw without being detected; but that is just another challenge of the bow-hunting pursuit.

Because they put hunters above the eye level of their target, treestands are unofficially the bowhunter’s best friend.  They can be bought in many different styles and heights to suit individual situations, and offer a larger, birds-eye-view of the area in which they are placed, a feature that can be appreciated in the early morning hours.  There’s nothing like watching the woods warm as the sun peeks over the horizon on a crisp fall morning, an experience that is lost in part in a ground blind.

Where to Hunt

Virginia abounds with public land, over 200,000 acres of which are managed specifically for hunting as part of the VDGIF’s 39 Wildlife Management Areas.  Particularly worthy of note, C.F. Phelps WMA in Fauquier County, Goshen and Little North Mountain WMA in Rockbridge and Augusta Counties, and Featherfin WMA in Buckingham and Appomattox Counties support large and healthy populations of deer.  Nevertheless, huntable populations of deer may be found on just about any WMA, including the Hardware River and James River WMAs close to home.

Rules and regulations differ between WMAs, so make sure to educate yourself before hunting a new property.

National Forests represent another public land opportunity for hunters.  Virginia’s George Washington and Jefferson National Forests total 1.8 million acres, one of the largest pieces of contiguous public land in the eastern US.  Such a large property offers much backcountry, and biologists continue to support that hunters’ best chance at a large mountain buck may originate from the interior of the National Forest land, if they’re willing to work for it.

Regardless of where you hunt, you are likely to find good populations of deer in Virginia.

CHANGING SEASONS

Squirrel Season, Bigger and Better

    With the arrival of the first Saturday in September, Virginia’s fall squirrel season will be set into motion statewide.

Photo by Matt Reilly.

    The estimated 33,000 squirrel hunters native to Virginia enjoy the state’s longest small-game season—discounting the clamorous old crow—as they are permitted to pursue their sport a full month after deer hunters abandon their stands.

    However, this year our state biologists have extended the season’s duration.  The 2013-14 squirrel season will run from September 7-February 28.  Virginia is then added to the ranks of states whose squirrel season extends fully into the month of February, including our neighbors North Carolina and Maryland.  Marc Puckett, state small-game biologists assures that low hunting pressure in the late-season does not negatively impact squirrel numbers, and that the extension is a way of increasing hunting opportunities for those devoted sportsmen who chase the bushytail well into the winter months.

    With this change, it’s important that hunters remain informed by reading up with a critical eye on the game laws.  Gray and red squirrels may be hunted the full length of the season in 2013-14.  Their hefty cousins the fox squirrels, however, remain protected by the January 31 closure.  The bag limit remains set at a total of six combined squirrels.

Be Selective or Stay Home?

    The early squirrel season—that is, in my mind, the month of September—is hardly characterized by appropriate hunting conditions. 

    Squirrels are very vulnerable at this time.  Their hurried thrashing through dense summer foliage is an easy giveaway, and hides the hunter’s movements and noise, making close shots possible at times, even if shooting may be tricky.

    I do, however, on occasion tote my .22 into the prime squirrel woods of Fluvanna County in September.  Creeping to within shooting range of a bouncing ball of leaves is an exhilarating experience, but sometimes effortless.  This time of year, squirrels are hardly as gun shy as they become by the climax of deer season, and will many times be just a little too trusting of the human creeping through the understory.

    Too often I find myself exiting the woods with juveniles—the lanky, large-eyed, un-educated members of the squirrel population that don’t carry enough meat to make their skinning and cleaning a worthwhile endeavor.  Even trying to select the largest of the squirrels from the treetops, the leaves that still cling to the trees make distinguishing size difficult.

    These youngsters are truly young-of-the-year, from the year’s second litter.  After being born in late June or July, the juveniles rely on the mother for up to ten weeks before striking out on their own to begin gathering and caching food for winter.  This weaning stage often runs into September.

    For these reasons, I prefer to spend the last month of summer fishing for the numerous species of fish that the Old Dominion hosts.  Biologists from North Carolina may share the same opinion as I, setting opening day of squirrel season at October 14.

Feeding Deer

    Also effective in September, the annual prohibition on deer feeding begins September 1 and runs through the first Saturday in January, or the closing day of deer season.  But this too is subject to change.

    New this year, it is illegal to feed both deer and elk in Buchanan, Wise, and Dickenson Counties at any time.

    The deer feeding restriction has also been extended to endure the length of any deer or elk hunting season in the state.  This covers late urban archery seasons that take place in portions of the state that host overabundant deer populations.

    Feed must now be removed from any baiting site prior to September 1; and a new regulation has been created defining an area as “baited” for 10 days following the removal of feed.

    These laws are aimed at preserving the health of both the public and wildlife.  Most notably, Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) can be spread in areas where heaving feeding activity concentrates deer unnaturally.  Therefore, it’s illegal to feed deer in Clarke, Frederick, Shenandoah, and Warren Counties, as well as the City of Winchester, where CWD has been confirmed and contained.

    Deer also suffer a loss of “wildness” from human feeding, as they begin to associate humans with their food source and become dangerously trusting.  If you don’t recognize this as a negative issue, inquire from the local Park stations accounts of visitors being badly or fatally wounded by the hooves or antlers of an angry deer—they have many. 

Originally published in the Rural Virginian