Hunting and Trapping Licenses for the upcoming seasons in Pennsylvania are now available for purchase. It would be advisable to get yours as soon as possible since there are numerous changes and additions to learn about. This year each license purchaser will receive a free copy of the Pennsylvania Hunting and Trapping Digest for the 2019-2020 seasons. Last year, they were only available for purchase, not as a free hand out with your license.

There are numerous changes, and they are spelled out in the Digest. There really is a lot to read about and understand regarding new opportunities. Let’s take a look at a few so you will get an idea of what is in store for this fall.

Antlerless Deer Licenses:

Since this is usually of interest to area sportsmen, you should know that for the upcoming season the allocation is being reduced in WMU 2G by 4,000 licenses, making 26,000 available for the year. With fewer available for purchase, it will be even more important to make sure you submit your application on time – that means Monday, July 8 this year for residents and Monday, July 15 for nonresidents.

There is often discussion by hunters at deer camp about whether or not to take antlerless deer. Yes, obviously, they give birth to the fawns that regenerate the population. But, scientifically speaking, it is important to have a properly balanced herd, with an appropriate ratio of bucks to does. Most observations in the surrounding counties would identify a larger number of does to bucks, thus it would appear that taking does would be advisable. In the end, the decision is yours to make.
Firearms Deer Season:

In a rather bold move, this year the firearms deer season will open on a Saturday rather than the traditional opener on Monday. There was much discussion leading up to this decision, and there has been much discussion – rather heated at times – since. With the opening day this year to be on a Saturday, it expands the season to 13 days, including 3 Saturdays. The desire was to give hunters an additional Saturday in hopes that more hunters would be able to be afield on a Saturday. Depending on feedback from the upcoming season, there is some discussion of returning to the traditional Monday opener. Time will tell.

Bear Seasons:

Over that past few years, the harvest numbers of black bear throughout the state have not kept up with their growing population. Inclement weather often occurs, thus reducing the numbers of hunters afield and the total number of animals taken. In order to better control the number of bruins throughout Pennsylvania, there has been the addition of several hunting opportunities this fall.

First, there will be a new Muzzleloader season for bear to be held statewide from October 19-26. Additionally, during the Special Firearms season, held statewide from October 24-26 for Junior and Senior license holder using arms and ammunition permitted during the Regular Firearms Deer Season – not only can they take antlerless deer, but will also be permitted to take black bear! This will be followed by a statewide archery season (to include crossbows) that will run from October 28 to November 9.

Elk Seasons:

Further expanding the opportunities for Pennsylvania hunters, a September elk archery season and a January antlerless elk season will be added in 2019-20. All elk licenses will be awarded via lottery and anyone wishing to be considered for any of the three seasons must file a separate application for each. Fifteen licenses (5 bulls, 10 cows), are available for the September archery elk season, 98 licenses (27 bulls, 71 cows) are available for the general season, and 29 cow licenses are available for the January antlerless elk season. In all, 142 elk licenses, 32 for bulls and 90 for cows will be awarded through the lottery system.

All of these changes and additions should give sportsmen throughout the state a greater chance to take a deer, bear or elk this fall. Certainly more days afield will be the immediate benefit of these changes. I sure hope your schedules will allow you to take advantage of these additional opportunities this coming fall!