Electronic Validation (e-notching) of License Tags
Successful deer and turkey hunters can use the Department’s Go Outdoors Virginia mobile smart phone app to electronically validate the appropriate license tag on their electronic deer/turkey license or bonus deer permit.
Blaze Colors
“Solid blaze orange” has been defined as safety orange or fluorescent orange hue.
“Solid blaze pink” has been defined as safety pink or fluorescent pink hue. See Blaze Pink in Virginia: What You Need to Know for details.
Blaze orange or blaze pink is now required to be displayed on the exterior of an occupied ground blind during the general firearms deer season.
Tracking Dogs
Licensed hunters engaged in tracking wounded bear, deer, or turkey with a dog may possess a weapon permitted for hunting and may use such weapon to humanely kill the animal being tracked, including after legal hunting hours. Such weapon shall not be used to hunt, wound, or kill any animal other than the animal being tracked.
Legal Weapons
Arrow guns, pneumatic-powered air guns that fire an arrow, are legal for hunting any wild bird or animal for which there is a hunting season.
Persons with a disability that prevents them from drawing a bow or crossbow may hunt with an arrow gun during the archery season provided they have in possession an authorization form provided by the Department that has been completed by their physician.
Tree Stands
Permanently disabled hunters possessing a valid hunting license, hunters holding a lifetime disabled hunting license, and hunters holding a lifetime disabled veterans hunting license are exempt from any local ordinance in which hunting from an elevated platform or tree stand is required.
Deer — Urban Archery
The City of Newport News, Town of Buchanan, and the counties of Prince William and Stafford have been added.
Furbearers
Raccoons may now be hunted all day on Sundays.
Wildlife Management Areas
Oakley Forest WMA (2,911 acres) in Spotsylvania County has been added to the Department’s Wildlife Management Area system.
–Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries
