Hunting in Massachusetts: 6 Things to Know About Urban Deer Hunting in Cities and Suburbs

Deer and moose have become abundant in some Massachusetts neighborhoods, but hunting them there usually is illegal for deer and always prohibited for moose. There is a popular push, though, to open up state parks to deer harvest due to the high number of deer and the fear of Lyme disease spread by deer ticks, but so far the parks remain off limits because they are too close to urban areas, according to the Newburyport Daily News.

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Starting in July 2010 the town of Andover approved deer hunts on portions of town land by bow. The purpose of the program is to reduce the overpopulation and problems associated with it. There are no announced hunts on the city’s website this year. The town of Medfield adopted a pilot deer management program in 2011 but the town's website has no listed hunt scheduled for 2015.

This year, bow hunting of deer will be allowed on five parcels of land in Weston as part of that city’s deer management program, but only on select conservation land parcels by permit from Oct. 19 through the end of the year. The application will be posted online on the town's website starting in June.

If you are looking to hunt deer in an urban setting, there are six things you should know.

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1. Unless a specific town has implemented a deer management policy, hunting in an urban setting is forbidden.

2. When there is an urban hunt announced, then individual and specific approval to hunt needs to be granted to the hunter.

3. There usually is an approval process to be granted a permit to participate in an urban deer hunt.

4. Annual urban hunts in specific towns usually require the deer hunter to pass a rigorous proficiency test and background checks. Only about 20 deer are harvested during the annual hunts. 5. All hunters in Massachusetts must have a valid hunting license issued by the state.

6. If you live in Massachusetts and have a problem with a nuisance animal, as explained on Mass.gov, General Law, Chapter 131, Section 37, gives property owners the right to use lawful means to destroy wildlife in the act of causing damage or threatening personal safety. However, landowners may only destroy wildlife actually causing damage or posing immediate threats, and it must be done humanely.

What about moose? Moose are being seen in urban areas as their numbers continue to grow in the state. Killing them is illegal, though. An encounter with a moose during mating season can be dangerous, according to Mass.gov, which describes the moose as having “tunnel vision”

This article is for information only. Please check current regulations before hunting.

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