In This Issue:
 Setting your sights on fall hunting? As hunting seasons open, time and opportunity will roll by quickly. Take these four actions now to kick off a great hunting season:
- Use this list of season dates to start making plans. Mark your calendars now and get in touch with your hunting buddies. (Temporadas de cazato)
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The 2015-2016 Outdoor Annual with detailed hunting and fishing regulations will be available in August online (OutdoorAnnual.com) and at locations where hunting and fishing licenses are sold. It will also be available as a free app for Android and Apple devices.
- Sight your rifle - As demonstrated in this video, maximize your ability to hit your target.
- Clean your shotgun - A clean firearm is essential for proper operation. Watch this brief video review.
- Find your Hunter Education Certification card or order a replacement. Stash it with your hunting gear. All hunters are required to carry proof of certification when hunting.
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 Now, before the hunting seasons start, is the best time to fulfill your hunter education requirements to ensure a safe and legal hunting trip.
Every hunter (including out-of-state hunters) born on or after Sept. 2, 1971, must successfully complete a Hunter Education course or be accompanied*. Minimum age of certification is 9 years of age.
Watch a video about your four options for completing the course. Read more about these options (opciones en español).
* Accompanied: By a person who is at least 17, who is licensed to hunt in Texas, who has passed hunter education or is exempt (born before Sept. 2, 1971).
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 Great hunting opportunities could be yours - enter to win a 2015-2016 Drawn Hunt. Don’t miss this online-only, affordable chance for some great times in the field.
Get started:
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Browse hunts by category or by location. (A printable PDF Drawn Hunts Catalog is also available for download.)
- Your unique Customer ID number is your identifier.
- Apply multiple times in same category.
- Apply up to 11:59 p.m. central on the deadline date.
- Email notification will be sent to drawn applicants and you can check your drawing status online at any time.
First Drawn Hunt Deadlines:
- August 3: Exotic, Alligator, Alligator Management, Youth Only Alligator
- August 25: Archery Deer, Archery Mule Deer, Pronghorn, Youth Only Gun Deer – Antlerless/Spike, Javelina, Private Lands - Antlerless/Spike, Private Lands Pronghorn
See all hunt category deadlines.
If you have any questions, please contact us at hunt@tpwd.texas.gov or at (512) 389-4505, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
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 Hunters who have completed a Hunter Ed course experience fewer hunting accidents in the field. To help you stay safe on your hunting trips this year, pay careful attention to the three leading causes of hunting accidents in Texas:
- Poor hunter judgment
- Safety rule violations
- Lack of firearm control
Watch this video to see examples of each and learn how to avoid these errors in the field. And then share this with your hunting friends to make sure everyone's safe.
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 Built exclusively for Texas hunters, this official Texas Parks and Wildlife app allows hunters to report harvested game in "real time." My Texas Hunt Harvest lets you track of your hunting season successes and harvest information so you can easily access them on your smartphone or tablet. The app also will help Texas Parks and Wildlife biologists manage healthy game populations to keep hunting great in Texas.
This app does not fulfill tagging requirements for any game required to be tagged or requirements for completion of the harvest log on the back of the license as it applies to white-tailed deer.
Download the free app for your Apple or Android device.
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 Calling all big game hunters! If you score big this season, enter the Texas Big Game Awards.
The Texas Big Game Awards (TBGA) recognizes hunters for their high-quality and even record-breaking harvests. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, TBGA is a joint program between Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Texas Wildlife Association that honors the conservation efforts of sportsmen and landowners.
Entry categories include White-tailed Deer, Bighorn Sheep, Mule Deer, Pronghorn Antelope and Javelina. There are also categories for youth and first-time hunters. All entries must be scored by a TBGA certified scorer.
Landowners can enter for qualifying game harvested on their property. Bigger game is a result of better habitat, and TBGA wants to recognize landowners that have helped make Texas a great place for hunting
The deadline for entries is February 15. Find a TBGA certified scorer and complete program rules and information online.
Winners will be recognized at one of the three Regional Sportsmen's Celebration banquets. Check out last year's winners from around the state. Watch a video about the program.
Don’t miss your chance to rack up some well-deserved bragging rights!
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A message from a Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine advertiser:
 Review your Bird ID flash cards so you won't make costly mistakes in the field, or take this video quiz to be sure you know the difference between the endangered whooping crane and other white birds. Hunters are urged to review descriptions of legal, endangered and non-game species before heading out this year. Remember that shooting a whooping crane can lead up to a $100,000 fine and/or 1 year in jail.
Hunters can become a part of whooping crane conservation by knowing how to identify them.
TPWD, working with partners US Fish & Wildlife, National Audubon Society, International Crane Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, Friends of the Wild Whoopers, and Friends of Aransas encourages hunters to help preserve this magnificent bird.
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A message from a Texas Parks and Wildlife sponsor:
 Everything’s bigger in Texas and so is the big hunting fun you can have when your name is drawn for a Big Time Texas Hunt guided package.
Read more about these great opportunities and enter to win.
- Texas Grand Slam - 1 winner, four separate hunts for bighorn sheep, pronghorn, white-tailed deer, desert mule deer.
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Texas Exotic Safari - 1 winner, a hunt for sable antelope, gemsbok, scimitar-horned oryx or axis deer.
- Texas Whitetail Bonanza - 6 winners, a hunt for white-tailed deer, with each winner permitted to bring one hunting guest
- Texas Waterfowl Adventure - 1 winner, three separate hunts for ducks and geese.
- Texas Big Time Bird Hunt - 1 winner, three separate hunts for dove, quail and turkey.
- Texas Premium Buck Hunt - 1 winner, a hunt for a mature white-tailed buck.
- Texas Gator Hunt - 1 winner, a hunt for alligator.
- Texas Wild Hog Adventure - 1 winner, a hunt for feral hogs, with up to 3 hunting guests
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NEW THIS YEAR! Ultimate Mule Deer Hunt - 1 winner, a hunt for mule deer bucks on the new Yoakum Dunes WMA.
All proceeds from Big Time Texas Hunts benefit wildlife conservation, research and public hunting in Texas. Entries cost $9 online or $10 by phone, mail or retail. There’s no limit on the number of entries you can purchase.
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A message from a Texas Parks and Wildlife sponsor:
 By the numbers, game wardens recently dealt with the “Ill-fated four,” “tres amigos,” “the other two shots” and more. What could it all mean?
It’s amazing what a game warden can uncover while doing his or her daily jobs of protecting the public, Texas wildlife and enforcing fishing and hunting regulations. Read the details.
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The Hunt Texas e-newsletter is made possible in part
by the generous support of Toyota.
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