Deer harvest strong during pandemic
Gerald Howes Jr. of Cummington poses with a buck he shot this winter. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Published: 1/27/2021 8:23:02 PM
CUMMINGTON It appears the pandemic has motivated people to take to the great outdoors, including hunting for deer.
Although some data are still being entered, the current statewide deer harvest stands at 14,331. The previous season’s harvest was 13,891.
“At the moment this looks like the second-highest take in our history,” said Marion Larson, chief of information and education at MassWildlife.
The record harvest was 14,516 in the 2018 season.
The harvest wasn’t the only thing that saw an increase, however. Hunting license sales from Dec. 1, 2019, to Oct. 20, 2020, increased by 5.8% from the same period starting Dec. 1, 2018. Sporting licenses, for both hunting and fishing, increased by 7.7%, while fishing licenses rose by 23% between these two periods.