DEM Reminds the Public and Hunters of the Upcoming Archery Deer Season

Published on Thursday, September 12, 2024

PROVIDENCE, RI – The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) is reminding the public and hunters that deer archery season begins in the coming weeks. Rhode Island is split into four Deer Management Zones (DMZ) with different season dates and bag limits to achieve different management objectives. Archery deer season opens on Sunday, Sept. 15. for DMZ 1, on Tuesday, Oct. 1 for DMZ 2, and Thursday, October 17 for DMZ 4. For a complete breakdown of hunting season dates, regulations, and a map of the DMZs, please review the 2024-25 Hunting and Trapping Regulation Guide available online at www.eregulations.com/rhodeisland/hunting and at local sales agents.

White-tailed deer are a common sight in Rhode Island and regulated hunting has proven to be the most cost-effective, efficient, and successful method of managing deer populations, which in turn ensures that the population remains in balance with ecological and social factors. DEM’s Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) runs a robust deer program, offering opportunities for hunters to harvest deer across the state with lengthy season, liberal bag limits, and extensive access to public lands. DFW biologists seek to balance deer hunting opportunities with maintaining a healthy deer population and reducing negative impacts associated with overpopulated deer, including agricultural crop losses, nuisance complaints from residents, and especially deer vehicle collisions. DEM’s annual Deer, Deer Harvest and Deer Hunter Summary serves as a guide for future management decisions to maintain a healthy deer population. All reports can be found on DFW’s Wildlife Conservation and Research webpage.

Deer season is one of the most anticipated times of the year for hunters, offering opportunities to engage with nature, enjoy the camaraderie of fellow outdoor enthusiasts, and obtain wild sourced meat, with most RI deer hunters seeking to hunt for food rather than trophies according to the latest Deer Hunter Survey and Rhode Island Hunter Sentiment Survey. Hunting has a long tradition in RI, supporting family customs, providing locally sourced meat, connecting people with nature, and attracting tourism to the state. All licenses and permits can be found online at DEM's Rhode Island Outdoors (RIO) online system at www.RIO.ri.gov and at local sales agents. For more information about Rhode Island’s hunting and fishing licensing system RIO, click here. 

DEM supports deer hunting through DFW’s Hunter Education Program. Safety training is required by law in Rhode Island for beginner hunters and to date, more than 40,000 people have completed a hunter safety course, helping to reduce related accidents in the state and elsewhere. Hunter Education promotes safe, ethical, and legal hunting practices preventing hunting related accidents nationally. Hunters are taught to clearly identify a target and what is beyond it before shooting. All archery deer hunters complete a hunter education class to obtain an archery deer permit. Archery proficiency testing is also required every two years to bow hunt on Prudence Island, Patience Island, Block Island National Wildlife Refuges, Trustom National Wildlife Refuge, John H. Chafee National Wildlife Refuge, Beavertail State Park, the Bristol town property co-op parcels, and anywhere in the town of Lincoln. During deer archery season on lands open to public hunting, the public must wear 200 square inches (a hat or vest) of solid, daylight fluorescent orangefrom Saturday, Sept. 14 – Friday, Feb. 28. Archery hunters during the archer deer season are exempt from this requirement. Public lands remain safe for all visitors to enjoy while following this safety requirement. Environmental Police Officers from DEM’s Division of Law Enforcement monitor lands that allow hunting statewide to enforce hunting laws and help protect public safety. A complete schedule of hunter educational offerings is available online here. 

Hunters are reminded to take precautions in the field to protect themselves from mosquito bites, as Rhode Island’s Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) Virus and West Nile Virus (WNV) risk levels are now considered high. Humans can only contract these diseases through a bite from an infected mosquito and they are likely present in mosquitoes statewide. According to both the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the United States Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services, there is negligible risk to hunters for contracting EEE from field dressing, handling venison, or consuming venison if proper personal protective equipment is worn while dressing, and the venison is properly cooked. There is a very small risk from exposure to the brain or spinal cord of a deer infected with EEE. Anyone who is decapitating or removing the antler cap from a deer should wear eye protection and avoid any contact of brain or spinal cord tissue, or spinal fluid, with their eyes or any other mucous membrane. Visit health.ri.gov/mosquito for additional mosquito prevention tips, videos, and local data.

Hunters and target shooters provide funding for wildlife conservation through their purchase of firearms and ammunition through Pittman-Robertson Restoration Program, and through the purchase of their state hunting licenses and permits. These funds are distributed to each state by the federal government and used to conserve land, manage habitat, restore wildlife populations, and much more. In 2023 alone, Rhode Island received $7,176,940 in funding for wildlife restoration from this program. With the help of hunters and target shooters, DEM has protected thousands of acres for wildlife in RI, continued our research and monitoring efforts for both game and non-game birds and mammals, established a strong research partnership with University of Rhode Island, and continue to provide hunter education and wildlife outreach opportunities for the public. Without the contribution of legal and responsible hunters, DEM would not be able to conserve and protect our state's wildlife. 

DFW is available to answer any questions and provide assistance throughout the season by calling 401-789-0281 or emailing DEM.DFW@dem.ri.gov.

Follow DEM on Twitter (@RhodeIslandDEM), Facebook, or Instagram (@rhodeisland.dem and @ri.fishandwildlife) for timely updates. Follow DFW on Facebook and Instagram (@ri.fishandwildlife) to stay up to date on news, events and volunteer opportunities. You can also subscribe to DFW’s monthly newsletter here. Sign up here to receive the latest press releases, news, and events from DEM's Public Affairs Office to your inbox.