Alabama Deer Hunting Season

Alabama has one of the most generous deer hunting seasons in the United States. Hunters are able to hunt over one hundred days throughout the year during the Alabama deer hunting season. With a deer population that extends beyond 1.7 million, the state is a popular destination for hunters.

The Most Popular Deer to Hunt

The most hunted deer in Alabama is the white tailed deer. The most recognizable part of the deer is the streak of white under the tail. The whitetail deers can be found not only in the US, but Canada and South America. The most popular habitats for the whitetail deers are the prairies, sage and savanna woodlands. The animals can vary in size and range from 60 to 290 pounds.

Permits and Seasons

Alabama’s deer season opens in October and extends to January. Each season is divided into sections based on the type of device used to hunt deer. The most often used devices are the bow and gun. The bow season begins in mid-October, while the gun season starts a month later in November. However, both seasons will end at the end of January. Over all, there are 108 days for a hunter to harvest a deer. The deer hunting dates are released every year and should be checked with the Alabama Department of Wildlife. The state does have restrictions on how often deer can be hunted by hunters. Antlered buck are one a day and whitetailed buck are limited to three during all of the seasons. Unantlered deer are 2 a day except for spotted fawns during the special muzzleloader, spear, and bow and arrow season.

Where to Hunt

Alabama has a plentiful supply of hunting land. The state has thousands of acres that are mainly used for hunting and recreation purposes. There are over 37 wildlife areas in the state that consist of 760,000 acres. The main areas to harvest deer include Okmulgee, Blue Spring, Sam Murphy, Choccolocco, Lowndes and Cahaba River.

Hunting Tips

Even though Alabama has a large supply of deer, the animals can be elusive. Most deer can be found at waterholes or near acorn trees. Hunters may have a higher chance of locating a deer by scouting from a higher level such as a tree. The species also have a strong sense of smell, which is a used to avoid hunters. Hunters are able to control their scent and gain an advantage on the field by using deer scents. January is the month that whitetails are normally breeding. Hunters may consider this time to be an excellent period to hunt for a mature buck. The bucks are often less cautious and more attuned to a female’s scent during this time.

Additional Limitations

The state of Alabama requires hunters to take a mandatory hunter education program prior to taking part in the Alabama deer hunting season. The course includes 10 hours of instruction and an examination. Hunters will be required to learn information on hunter responsibility, wild life management, laws, species identification, archery, firearms safety, muzzle loading, survival skills and first aid. The goal of the course is to improve the relationship between hunter land owners and hunters. In addition, the education courses are geared to improve hunter behavior, reduce accidents and increased hunters understanding on wildlife laws and management.