Controlled Deer Hunt Set For Devil’s Den Preserve In Weston And Redding

REDDING, CT — The Nature Conservancy will hold its annual controlled deer hunt at Devil’s Den Preserve, which borders both Redding and Weston, during the state-designated firearms hunting season for private lands.

The hunt will take place on the following weekdays only: Nov. 19-20 and 24-26, and Dec. 1-4 and 8-9. Devil’s Den will be closed to visitors on these days, and signs will be posted at all public entrances to the preserve.

This stewardship effort aims to improve and maintain forest health by reducing the deer population, according to a statement from TNC officials. In recent decades, the high density of deer in southwestern Connecticut and associated over-browsing have caused ecological damage in the region’s forests, harming the understory, limiting tree regeneration, and contributing to the gradual loss of native flowering plants.

TNC is working with experienced hunters who have knowledge of the preserve and local area and who will hunt only in select areas of the preserve’s interior away from any neighboring properties. Signs will be posted at all public entrances to the preserve.

The annual limited hunt began in 2001 and has since improved and maintained the ecological condition of the Saugatuck Forest Lands in combination with additional forest restoration efforts conducted by TNC and other regional conservation organizations.