Special deer hunting regulations in western Kentucky should help prevent the spread of chronic wasting disease, which has not been detected so far in the commonwealth. Special Surveillance Zone regulations apply in Graves, Marshall, Calloway, Hickman, and Fulton counties.
The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife set modern gun season this year for Nov. 12th-27th. The department will operate 13 mandatory CWD Check Station locations in the Surveillance Zone during modern gun weekends of Nov. 12-14, Nov. 19-21, and Nov. 26-27. Each deer harvested in those five counties during those dates is required to be taken to a check station.
This year, archery and crossbow hunters posted the second-highest harvest on record for September, and October's numbers surpassed last year's.
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources deer program coordinator Noelle Thompson says modern gun season alone accounted for three-fourths of last year's total statewide harvest of 132,000.
Find more information on hunting locations, regulations, and tips at fw.ky.gov.
