The 2016 fall archery hunting season for deer and wild turkey will be open from Thursday to Dec. 31 on private land and bowhunting-only areas on state land in Deer Management Zones 1-10; and from Thursday to Jan. 31 on private land in Deer Management Zones 11 (Fairfield County) and 12 (Connecticut shoreline towns).

The archery season for deer and turkey on state land is open from Thursday to Nov. 15 and Dec. 21 to 31, the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection announced Monday.

“The outlook for the 2016 hunting season is good as hunting conditions this fall are expected to be better than 2015,” Rick Jacobson, director of DEEP’s Wildlife Division, said in a news release. “The best opportunities are in the southwest corner of the state and many of the shoreline towns, especially for bowhunters. Many landowners use the archery deer hunting season as a safe and effective method of reducing deer populations, especially in the more developed areas of the state where firearms hunting may not be feasible.”

New legislation which became effective on July 1,established a Resident Game Bird Conservation Stamp, which replaces turkey permits and the Pheasant Stamp. This new stamp will be required to hunt any resident (non-migratory) game birds, including wild turkey, pheasant, ruffed grouse, partridge, and quail.

The cost of the stamp is $28 for adults and non-residents and $14 for Connecticut hunters ages 12 through 17. All revenues from the sale of the stamps will be deposited into a separate, non-lapsing account to use exclusively for the purchase and management of game birds and their habitat, DEEP said.

Sunday archery deer hunting on private lands will be permitted this year in all but three of the state’s Deer Management Zones. The three zones where Sunday hunting will not be permitted are in north central Connecticut, including portions of Hartford, Litchfield, and Tolland counties. Wild turkeys, however, may not be taken on Sunday anywhere in the state. The Connecticut Deer Management Zone map can be found on the DEEP website at http://go.usa.gov/3MNPT.

The DEEP Wildlife Division recently published a summary of white-tailed deer information, which is available at: www.ct.gov/deep/hunting.

For private land hunting conent forms visit: or at www.ct.gov/deep/hunting. To purchase deer permits and resident Game Bird Conservation Stamps visit: www.ct.gov/deep/sportsmenlicensing.

They can also be purchased at town halls, vendors and some DEEP offices. Hunters should consult the DEEP website for an up-to-date listing of new state lands open to archery hunting.