FWC to hold public meetings on deer hunting this week

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will host a series of public meetings this week to help shape the future of deer management in the Florida Panhandle. 

The FWC is working on a project to establish deer management units throughout Florida. 

Deer management units will divide the state into smaller geographic areas where deer population characteristics are similar to allow the FWC more flexibility with deer management based upon the deer population, habitat conditions and public preference within each of the units.

Right now, the state is divided into four management zones that are used to set hunting season dates based on deer breeding chronology.

Two deer management units are proposed for Zone D, which encompasses much of the Florida Panhandle region including the western portions of Gadsden, Leon and Wakulla counties and all counties west of them. 

One unit would cover the area south of Interstate 10 and the other north of I-10.

There will be three public meetings on the issue this month, including one on January 29^th in Marianna and one on the 30^th in Tallahassee. 

More information about the proposed Deer management units and the public meetings is available online at MyFWC.com/Hunting.

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