Shotgun season for deer began on Monday and the first week of the 12-day season was marked by good weather and a decent harvest by hunters.
By 1 p.m. yesterday, Brian Hawthorne, a forester for the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, had seen 71 deer come through the deer check-in station in the state forest.
A total of 292 deer were taken during the two weeks of shotgun season on the Vineyard, which ended on Saturday, Dec. 12. Hunters were successful and the numbers are close to what was expected, despite weather conditions that were less than ideal.
“The weather was not that great,” said John Scanlon, state wildlife biologist. Mr. Scanlon operated the deer check-in station at the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest during the first week of the hunting season. He checked in 137 deer.
Four days into the deer shotgun season and already 196 deer have been taken. The two-week hunting season began Monday morning with foul weather. John Scanlon, a state wildlife biologist assigned to the Vineyard this week, said that the hunters didn’t start bringing deer to the check-in station at the state forest until later in the afternoon.
By Wednesday afternoon the number was 79. By yesterday afternoon the number had grown to 95, even though Thursday morning was windy and stormy.
