A Guide to Tasmanian Fallow Deer Hunting

By Matthew Byrne

Tasmania is renowned for having some of Australia's finest herds of Fallow Deer I was introduced to hunting Tasmania's Fallow Deer at a very young age by my father. Early on, I was too young to go on these hunting trips and would wait in anticipation for my father to return to see if he had taken a stag. My first chance to go Fallow deer hunting came at the age of nine when my father agreed to take me to a property in the central highland lake country. It was here that I was handed a .243 and took my very first stag, a small 10 pointer from a resting shot at 300yds.
Now at the age of nineteen, I look back on that day as the beginning of not only my first stag but the beginning of an obsession in hunting this magnificent Tasmanian deer species.

The Deer

Fallow deer (Dama dama) are an introduced species to Tasmania and over the years have thrived in the mix of scrubland and open farmland. Today they are widely distributed in Central, North, Northeast, East and to a much lesser extent southern areas. Currently, the stronghold areas of the species are predominantly central and Northeastern regions.

The quality of Fallow stags tends to vary from area to area with many good quality heads of 200+ D.S being taken every season in the Central highlands, particularly the Bothwell area. Illegal poaching continues to be a major problem in Tasmanian deer herds with many large stags unfortunately being shot both before and after the season.

On a brighter note, many properties have now undergone some form of deer management scheme that encourages hunters to harvest stags of 14 points and above. This may well be a step in the right direction for Tasmanian deer hunting and already a number of properties around the state are seeing better quality heads

A prime 24-point Tasmanian Fallow trophy taken by my father

The Season

The Fallow deer season in most years starts the end of February/early March and runs for five weeks thereon, after which there is a closed season. The season just gone(2001) was brought forward a week earlier and as this was a decision by the PWS only time will tell to see if this will remain in future seasons.

For the cost of $50(Aus) a hunter may buy a deer licence that will allow him/her to shoot both an adult male deer and an antlerless deer. All that is required to purchase a deer licence is a current Firearms licence. Service Tasmania stores around the state are just about the only place where you can purchase a deer licence, many hunting stores simply don't stock them anymore.

The vast majority of hunting in the state is undertaken on private property where many places now operate under a club system. Certainly this leaves the visiting hunter little chance of gaining access to prime hunting ground, however all is not lost. There are still areas of forestry land, which can be accessed, and all you need is a permit from Forestry Tasmania. As well as this there are local and mainland guides available which can offer a chance at a quality Tasmanian Fallow deer.

Rifles

In Tasmania Fallow deer may not be taken with any calibre below.240. As a result hunters use anything from a .243 upwards to .300 magnum. I personally use a .270 Ruger and run 130gn Winchester factory loads. Fallow deer are only a reasonably small-bodied deer in comparison to other deer species and a.270 sees that they go down without any hassles or without ruining too much meat in the process. On the other hand .243's are a great calibre with correct shot placement but have a bit of a reputation for wounding deer.

Tactics

The opening of Tasmania's deer season most definitely offers the hunters the best chance of taking a Fallow stag. The deer are generally not as 'switched on' to hunting pressure yet and many deer will be seen making their way off paddocks or flats and up on to more covered banks with wattles or small saplings where they will rub the remaining velvet off their antlers.

At such times deer will also begin to get pushed from other areas so occupying a position with a high vantage point that enables you to see surrounding areas is a commonly used tactic. Basically this is waiting for the deer to move toward your position or shooting range. This method of hunting requires a large degree of glassing and being on alert as stags may come when you least expect them.

As the season progresses stags tend to be become more cunning and hunting the thicker gullies tends to be more effective. Some stags will browse these areas early and late in the day, while others will bed down and will need to be pushed. This leads to another commonly used tactic of pushing deer with the hope of getting a shot. Much like other similar hunting, this is done with 3 or more people and is an effective way of bagging a stag in mostly what is a team effort.

Finally, every season is different and it pays to adapt your tactics from time to time. As an example the past season was extremely dry so large numbers of deer were concentrated anywhere there was water such as moist gullies, dams etc. Being observant is the key and looking for the usual signs such as rubs, droppings, well used tracks/game trails are all steps in the right direction. Deer being creatures of habit may well run or travel a similar way to what they may have done the previous year, so this is worth considering when choosing a spot.

If you ever get the chance consider a hunt in Tasmania chasing the mighty Fallow deer you may well be surprised…….

A mix of Thick banks and crops make for ideal Fallow deer territory in Tasmania.