THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 16, 1994 TAG: 9410140272
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY XIAOHONG ZHANG SWAIN, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Long : 180 lines
DEER-HUNTING SEASON opened in the dark, pre-dawn hours of Oct. 1 at the Northwest Naval Security Group Activity base on Ballahack Road. About 100 hunters from throughout Hampton Roads took to the woods, hoping for a shot at a deer.
``How do you know if somebody gets a deer? He will have a big smile on his face,'' said Grover ``Bucky'' Littrell, a natural resource assistant at the base's environmental division.
Eighteen deer were bagged from early morning to dusk on the first day. The largest one, a doe, weighed 135 pounds. For those lucky hunters, the long wait had been worthwhile.
``I got a 100-pound doe,'' said Jerry Haywald. ``She was about 10 yards from me.''
Haywald, a warrant officer and nurse at the Portsmouth Naval Hospital, returned to the base for more hunting on Oct. 5, but emerged from the thickets of the 2,000-acre hunting area around 11 a.m. without any game.
Haywald was not alone. None of the 40 hunters who hunted that day got any deer. Some never saw a deer at all, only the hunting dogs that were run by the base to move deer up from their hiding places. Others caught a glimpse of a deer, but the animals were either out of range or they were antlered bucks, which are off-limits to hunters.
Usually, the base requires hunters to hunt only bucks at the beginning of the season. But this year, a survey indicated that the ratio of bucks to does is 1 to 10. Because of this, the base adjusted its rules to require hunters to hunt only deer without antlers during the first two weeks of the season.
``One guy said he saw an eight-point buck standing 30 yards from him, broadside,'' said Littrell. ``But he let it walk. He's a good sportsman.''
BUT A FEW OF THE HUNTERS were not as responsible. On Oct. 1, one person shot three deer, ignoring the rule that each hunter can only hunt two deer per day.
``His deer were confiscated,'' said Josh Decker, who works at the base's game-checking station. ``He lost his hunting privileges for the year.''
The licenses of four other hunters were suspended for 30 days for harvesting bucks illegally.
``Two of them (did) mercy kills,'' Decker said. ``The deer they shot weren't in good condition.''
``The other two thought the spiked deer they shot were does. They shouldn't have fired if they couldn't see well enough whether the deer were bucks or does.''
Those who didn't get a shot during the opening days of the season will have other chances. The hunting season at the Northwest naval base lasts through the end of November, and the entire month of December will be devoted to bow hunting only. In the North Carolina side of the base's hunting area, hunting season begins Oct. 17 and runs through Jan. 2. The bow-hunting period is from Sept. 12 to Oct. 8.
A season permit to hunt on the base is $25 and a daily pass is $5. For the safety and convenience of the hunters, the base furnished 85 permanent tree and platform stands in the gun-hunting area. There is also a designated site for field dressing, where hunters can get help removing their game from the woods.
The Naval Auxiliary Landing Field on Fentress Airfield Road also has a hunting area managed by the natural resources division of the Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach. The hunting season there begins on Oct. 1 and ends on Nov. 30. Seasonal permit is $10 and the daily pass is $3.
Another major deer hunting area in Chesapeake is the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. Hunting days are Oct. 6-8, 13-15, 20-22, 28-29 and Nov. 4-5. The permit fee is $10.
Each of the local hunts are administered by naturalists to control deer population in the area.
Pam Couch, a natural resource specialist at the Northwest naval base, said the Navy has an agreement with the state to maintain the ecological system of its wooded property. According to past surveys, the average deer on the base weighs less than the standard-sized deer in the state. In addition, the does have a low lactating rate, and the average size of a buck's antlers is smaller than average.
These phenomena, Couch said, are the results of overpopulation.
Last year, 61 deer were harvested at the Northwest base. More than 700 seasonal and daily passes were issued to hunter.
Some hunters hunt for trophies - the head or antlers. Others hunt for the meat and the simple pleasure of being out in the woods.
MOST HUNTERS CONSUME the venison themselves or share it with friends, said Couch.
Jerry Haywald, father of three children, provided his family three deer last year.
``I made a lot of stews,'' he said. ``I gave friends some burgers. I'm out here for the meat. I can care less whether it's a buck or a doe.''
Pete Napisa of Norfolk, who showed up first at the checking station on Oct. 5, said he collects the antlers of the bucks he has hunted. But he said he's not a trophy hunter.
``I eat the meat myself,'' he said. ``I also donate some to senior citizen clubs or the Boy Scouts in Norfolk.''
In Chesapeake, Central Meat Packing at 1120 Kempsville Road processes deer. Last year, the store worked on 3,000 deer, said Richard Edmondson, whose father, Earl, owns the business. The company is also a participant in the venison-donation program sponsored by a non-profit organization called Hunters for the Hungry. Last year, hunters donated 16,000 pounds of venison through Central Meat Packing.
In 1994, Hunters for the Hungry expects to collect and distribute 100,000 pounds of venison. Hunters can leave their donations, as little as 1 pound of meat, to participating meat processors or collection points throughout the state. The donations are then picked up for distribution to the hungry. Hunters for the Hungry will pay for processing an entire donated deer.
TO BE ABLE TO HUNT ON the naval bases and in the Great Dismal Swamp, a hunter must have proof of completing a hunter safety course and must possess a state hunting license and area hunting permit. The Northwest and Fentress naval bases also require bow hunters to pass a qualifying test.
Couch said she would like to have gun hunters also take a qualifying test.
``We haven't found a place yet,'' she said. ``But as soon as we have a range, we will do the test.''
Northwest River Park offers a bow hunter safety course in August and September each year. Brian Hostetter, a natural resources manager at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach, was the instructor this year.
To be safe, Hostetter said, hunters must learn the proper way to use hunting devices, carefully check their equipment before each hunt and know their shooting range well. He said 95 percent of bow-hunting accidents are self-inflicted, such as falling from a tree stand, and 3 percent are the fault of companions.
``But, generally, bow hunting is a very safe sport,'' he said.
Hostetter said ethical hunters obey all hunting laws and rules, respect landowners, do not litter and do not leave nails or other sharp objects on trees.
He said that many people don't realize that hunters contribute to the nation's conservation effort.
``There are $5 million from license fees each year,'' he said, ``and $14 million from taxes on hunting equipment. All that money goes back to conservation.''
Couch said money from hunting permits sold at Northwest naval base has been used to build bluebird boxes, plant groundcover and conduct prescribed burning to improve woods habitat. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
Color on the Cover: Hundreds of sportsmen, like Norman St. Martin,
roam the woods at Northwest Naval Security Group Activity base as
deer-hunting season begins.
Bucky Littrell climbs one of the hunting stands at Northwest naval
base.
Dennis Negly's permit is checked by Anne Dunlop before he gets a
hunting stand.
Northwest and Fentress naval bases require bow hunters to pass a
test.
File photo
Antlered bucks were off-limits for the first two weeks of hunting
season because their numbers had declined.
JUST THE FACTS
HUNTING SITES
Northwest Naval Security Group Activity base on Relay Road off
Ballahack Road. Contact Pam Couch at 421-8239.
Fentress Auxiliary Landing Field on Fentress Airfield Road.
Contact Brian Hostetter at 433-3438.
The Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge off Route 17. Contact
Lloyd Cult at 986-3705.
TO PROCESS OR DONATE DEER
Central Meat Packing, 1120 Kempsville Road. Contact Earl or
Richard Edmondson at 1-800-373-1094 or 547-2161.
HUNTING NECESSITIES
Wear a minimum of 400 square inches of solid-colored blaze orange
on the chest, shoulders, back and head.
Bring food and water.
Bring a flashlight, a compass and a whistle.
Dress in layers of clothing.
by CNB