The Wildlife Resources Section of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (DNR), in cooperation with Kanawha County Board of Education, will host an Archery in the Schools (AIS) Program instructor training on Aug. 11 and 12 at Kenna Elementary School in Charleston, according to Jerry Westfall, DNR’s AIS Program coordinator.

“It has been quite some time since an AIS Program training was held in the Kanawha Valley,” said Westfall. “Thanks to the cooperation we have received from the Kanawha County Board of Education, we can once again provide AIS training to area physical education teachers and coaches, as well as others from around the state. We are very excited about the potential expansion of the AIS program by involving schools not yet participating. Based on the interest we have received so far, and the number of local schools, this training should be quite successful.”

AIS is the DNR’s largest and fastest-growing educational program. Since its inception in 2004, more than 35,000 students have been introduced to archery as part of their PE classes in 183 West Virginia schools. The program teaches Olympic-style, target archery in both public and private school’s Grade 4-12 PE classes. “But in order for schools to have the AIS Program, they must first have a certified instructor — preferably a PE instructor or coach who will introduce as many kids as possible to the joys of target archery,” said Westfall. “The DNR has about four trainings a year; and, because class size is limited to 25, training slots are highly sought after. As an added incentive, teachers taking this training may be eligible to receive Continuing Education Hours (CEH’s).”

The training will cost $25 for all school employees and $50 for non-school employees. The fee will be paid to WVDNR – Archery in the Schools Program (via check, money order, or exact currency only) during the first morning of the training. The deadline for signing up for the training is July 31.

To register for the training at Kenna, call Billie Shearer at 304-558-2771; e-mail billieshearer@wvdnr.gov. For more information on the AIS Program, visit the DNR’s AIS Web site at www.wvdnr.gov/archery or call Westfall at 304-558-2771 or e-mail him at jerrywestfall@wvdnr.gov.



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Archery and muzzleloader deer hunters in West Virginia will be able to enjoy additional antlerless deer hunting opportunities this fall, according to Frank Jezioro, director of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. The Natural Resources Commission recently approved a special antlerless deer archery season and a special antlerless deer muzzleloader season that will take place on private lands only in selected counties where the harvest of additional antlerless deer is necessary for management purposes. Hunters should be aware of the following details associated with these special antlerless deer seasons:

* The special antlerless deer archery season will open on Sept. 14 and close on Sept. 19 and allow for the taking of one additional deer that must be checked on a Class RB or Class RRB stamp.

* The special antlerless deer muzzleloader season will run from Sept. 21 to Sept. 26 and will allow for the taking of one additional deer that must be checked on a Class RM or Class RRM stamp.

* Both the special antlerless deer archery season and the special antlerless deer muzzleloader season will take place on private lands only in the following counties or portions thereof: Barbour, Berkeley, Brooke, Cabell, Calhoun, Doddridge, Gilmer, Grant, Greenbrier (south of Rte. 60, south of I-64, south and east of Rte. 9, east of Rte. 219 at Renick, south of Rte. 11, west of Greenbrier River., south of I-64, west of Rte. 60/14), Hampshire, Hancock, Hardy, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Kanawha (north of Elk River and west of Corridor G), Lewis, Marion, Marshall, Mason, Mercer (east of I-77), Mineral, Monongalia, Monroe, Morgan, Ohio, Pendleton, Pleasants, Preston, Putnam, Ritchie, Taylor, Tyler, Wetzel, Wirt and Wood.

“These special antlerless deer seasons will afford archery and muzzleloader hunters an excellent opportunity to hunt deer earlier in the year and during a time when weather conditions are generally milder,” Jezioro said. “These seasons have the added advantage of allowing hunters and landowners to harvest additional antlerless deer from private lands where needed for management purposes.”



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Preliminary figures indicate West Virginia hunters harvested 9,485 bearded turkeys statewide during the recently completed 2009 spring gobbler season. This year’s spring harvest is approximately four percent below the 9,929 birds taken in 2008.

The top five counties in 2009 were Mason (422), Preston (378), Harrison (310), Upshur (296) and Wood (273). Thirty of the state’s 55 counties had lower harvests this spring when compared to 2008. District 6 showed the greatest decline (12 percent), followed by District 4 (nine percent), District 5 (three percent) and District 1 (three percent). Higher harvests were reported in District 2 (three percent) and District 3 (three percent). District 1 reported the largest kill (2,130 birds), followed by District 4 (1,737), District 6 (1,700), District 5 (1,650), District 3 (1,426) and District 2 (842).

“Just as we saw last year, the 2009 spring turkey season experienced many days of rain,” said Curtis I. Taylor, chief of the wildlife resources section of the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. “This wet weather dampened hunter turnout, reduced gobbling activity and resulted in a lower than expected harvest.”

Biologists had forecast a spring harvest of more than 10,000 gobblers for 2009, based on improved brood counts the past two years. “Reports from field personnel during this spring season indicated hunting pressure was lower than normal,” said Taylor. “Much of this decrease in hunting can be attributed to the very foul weather conditions.”

Looking on the bright side, wildlife biologists expect a good carryover of mature toms. With more favorable weather conditions and sufficient fall foods, there should be an abundance of gobblers for the 2010 spring season.