Apply and qualify for an Arkansas urban archery deer hunt

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas deer hunters looking to add some opportunities to hunt and give back to their communities should pick up their bows and register for the 2025-26 Urban Archery Deer Hunts. The hunts begin on Sept. 1, but hunters must register and qualify to participate now.

Urban archery hunts are held in nine communities in Arkansas to help control deer populations and manage human/wildlife conflicts. The meat provided through these hunts also helps feed less fortunate families.

Ralph Meeker, the deer program coordinator for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, says certain wildlife populations have flourished in the last five decades, but you can have too much of a good thing, especially when too many deer and people try to coexist in the same area.

“Urban hunts are the best tool wildlife managers and cities have to reduce these deer populations to acceptable social levels,” Meeker said. “Most deterrents devised for wild animals don’t work in the long term, and the few methods that do work can be very expensive to a community or landowner. Hunting is safe, efficient and effective.

All urban hunts follow stringent guidelines to ensure the safety of hunters and local landowners. All hunters must have passed the International Bowhunters Education Program course, attend an orientation to go over the added regulations and pass an archery proficiency test with the bow they intend to hunt with in order to participate.

In addition to helping control wildlife populations, all hunters participating in urban archery hunts must donate their first adult deer to Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry.

“We’ve been able to supply thousands of families over the years with fresh protein through these venison donations,” Meeker said. “The first deer any hunter harvests is required to go to the program, and many hunters donate even more.”

Deer harvested during urban hunts do not count toward a hunter’s seasonal limit. There are no limits to the number of deer that can be harvested in urban hunts and all antler restrictions are lifted. All deer harvested must still be checked to the appropriate urban deer zone.

Visit www.agfc.com/urbanhunt for more information on Arkansas’s Urban Archery Deer Hunts.

The following areas will have urban hunts for the 2025-26 season:

Visit the Arkansas Bowhunters Association to get details about and register for the following cities:

• Cherokee Village

• Fairfield Bay

• Heber Springs

• Helena-West Helena

• Horseshoe Bend

• Russellville

Contact Joseph Gentry at 870-733-4343 or email Joey.Gentry34@yahoo.com with the Bull Shoals Urban Bowhunters Association to register for

• Bull Shoals

• Lakeview

Contact David Harper at 501-356-5880 or email dharper@hsvpoa.org with the Hot Springs Village Property Owners Association for information about the Hot Springs Village Urban Deer Hunt.

####

CUTLINES:

DEER
Arkansas deer populations can sometimes exceed healthy levels and can become a nuisance in some communities. AGFC photo.

ARCHERY QUALIFIER
Hunters participating in Arkansas’s urban hunts must pass stringent qualifications to obtain their permits. AGFC photo. 

SNACK STICKS
Deer from urban hunts have been used to support various programs to feed hungry Arkansans, including the Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry’s snack sticks backpack program for students in underserved communities. AGFC photo.