The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency will present a preview of its recommendations for the 2018-19 and 2019-20 hunting and trapping seasons at the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission’s April meeting.
The presentations will be made during the committee meetings on April 26, beginning at 1 p.m. The regular commission meeting starts at 9 a.m. on April 27. The meeting will be held at the TWRA Ray Bell Region II Building in the Ellington Agricultural Center.
Chuck Yoest, Wildlife and Forestry Division assistant chief, will introduce the lineup of speakers that will give reviews of the 2017-18 hunting seasons and the regulations recommendations for the next two years.
At its March meeting, the commission voted to establish hunting and fishing regulations every two years, rather than on an annual basis. The hunting regulations will be set on the even years.
The commission will vote on the hunting and trapping proposals at its May meeting. Fishing regulations will be set for two years on odd years beginning in 2019.
An update on whirling disease, which impacts trout, will be given by Brandon Simcox, TWRA Streams and Trout Coordinator. TWRA is responding to the recent finding of the disease which has been detected in the South Holston and Watauga rivers.
The national vice president for development of the Delta Waterfowl Foundation, Jeffrey Howell will be in attendance. His presentation will discuss the missions and programs for the organization in the United States and Canada.
Donald Hosse, TWRA Education Outreach coordinator, will be presenting a video and information about Buffalo Ridge Refuge. The Humphreys County property has long been a site for TWRA outreach programs and became a property of the Agency in 2016.