The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has made it official, a new nine day deer hunting season will begin this year on September 11. The newly adopted proposal was originally made in June, and will also extend daily hunting hours during deer and bear season and require hunters to wear fluorescent orange or fluorescent pink when in the field.

The Deer Management Plan will allow for taking antlerless deer in certain Wildlife Management Units (WMUs). As currently written, the new nine-day season would begin on the second Saturday in September through 2030. Here are the areas where the extra season will be held:

*Region 3: parts of Orange, Sullivan, Ulster, and Rockland Counties (WMUs 3M and 3R)

*Region 8: parts of Erie, Cayuga, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Steuben Wayne and Yates Counties. (WMUs 8A, 8F, 8G, 8J, and 8N 9A and 9F)

Other changes in the updated plan pertain to bow and muzzleloader season, official hunting hours, hunter safety.

*Bow hunting for antlerless would be allowed during the same nine day period in all of Nassau County and portions of Albany, Greene, Monroe, Sullivan and Ulster Counties.

*Muzzleloader Reinstate either-sex deer harvest opportunity during the early muzzleloader season in portions of Franklin, Jefferson and St. Lawrence Counties

*Hunting Hours Hunting hours would be extended to coincide with most other states. Deer and bear hours would be 30 minutes before and after meteorological sunrise and sunset.

*Safety all hunters pursuing deer or bear with a firearm, or anyone accompanying them, to wear a solid or patterned fluorescent orange or fluorescent pink hat or vest or jacket.

There is also one small change in bear hunting regulations. In the Adirondack portion of the Northern Zone, bear could be taken by firearms all 79 days of the season. Current rules only allow 72 days of firearms hunting excluding the seven-day period where bears could only be taken with a muzzleloader, crossbow, or bow.

You read more specifics on the Updated Deer Management Program at the DEC's website.

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