Arkansas’ “Velvet Buck” Season Big Success
Arkansas bowhunters harvested 1,231 deer during the state’s first statewide early buck hunt earlier this month. The jump-start to deer season was added during the biannual regulations-setting process this spring to offer hunters the opportunity to pursue a buck still “in velvet.” Ralph Meeker, deer program coordinator for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, said the hunt’s harvest was within the range expected by biologists. “When we look at historical harvest for the first three days of archery season, hunters typically check between 2,000 and 4,000 deer, depending on the weather,” Meeker said. “But a lot of those deer are does, so when you look at only the buck component of that harvest, it’s around 800 to 1,500 antlered deer.” Meeker [...]
