The 2016-2017 hunting season introduces a new mandatory system for local hunters who will now be required to report all harvested deer and turkey prior to moving the deer or turkey in the hunters’ possession. Hunters must report the harvest within 48 hours through Game Check using the Outdoor Alabama app for iPhone and Droid smartphones, online at www.outdooralabama.com or telephone (800-888-7690).

Already on the books in Georgia and Tennessee, Game Check is a system designed to provide the state with harvest data, so wildlife officials will be able to make more informed decisions about deer and turkey populations across the state. Before the implementation of Game Check this fall, Alabama had no way to know exactly what was being harvested in the state since reporting was voluntary. Chuck Sykes, Director of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division for the State of Alabama, explained that only a glimpse of harvest records could be established using data collected at State Wildlife Management areas. These areas do collect data – including the weight, sex and age of harvested deer – but it is only a reflection of that particular area, not the state as a whole.