Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Secretary Robert Barham will close deer hunting season in a portion of northeast and central Louisiana because of flooding from the Mississippi River for one week, beginning Sunday (Jan. 3) 30 minutes after sunset.
 
The closure will be from the Arkansas state line, east of U.S. 65 to Vidalia, La., and west of the Louisiana-Mississippi border. The season will then reopen Jan. 11 30 minutes before sunrise unless further measures due to the flooding are necessary.
However, land from the levee to the Mississippi River in this area will remain closed until further notice.
 
“This closure will give the deer a week to acclimate and adjust to their new temporary habitats,’’ Barham said. “We want to get hunters back as soon as possible but, at the same time, it’s important to let the deer get settled after being forced from their normal home ranges.’’
 
Parishes affected by this include East Carroll, Madison, Tensas and Concordia.
Continued unrestricted hunting under these circumstances poses a potential risk of overharvest of the deer resource and may pose a significant risk to the hunting public because of the increased concentration of hunters in the areas where deer and other wildlife are located.
 
Barham is acting under authority granted by emergency provisions of R.S. 49:953 of the Administrative Procedure Act and under authority of R.S. 56:115.