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The big-game seasons begin on Sept. 27 as archery deer opens statewide. This includes crossbows. All three big-game units have these dates: Sept. 27-Oct. 24, Oct. 27-31 and Nov. 10-21. Units A and L also have Dec. 15-19.

The bag limits for the entire archery season follow: For East Tennessee's Unit B it is two deer, either-sex; for Unit A it is three bucks and four does; for Unit L it is three bucks per season and three does per day.

The Young Sportsman Hunts will be Oct. 25-26 and Jan. 17-18. The bag limits are one deer either-sex for Unit B, three bucks and two does for Unit A, and three bucks and three does per day for Unit L.

The statewide bag limit for antlered buck is three, but no more than two may come from Unit B. The only way that more than three bucks can be taken is if a "bonus" buck is taken on a managed hunt (state or federal). No more than one antlered deer may be taken per day.

A most regrettable error has occurred in the printing of the 2008 Federal Duck Stamp. Officially it is known as the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has discovered that about 3.5 million of the stamps sent to sporting goods stores all over the country have a wrong phone number for reorders on the accompanying card. A mere dyslexic transposition of two numbers has the caller connected to a phone-sex hotline.

Since it would cost about $300,000 to reprint them, the USFWS does not plan to recall the stamps, preferring to spend the money on conservation.

The TWRC has voted unanimously to reinstate about $40,000 in grants to Ducks Unlimited, which were cancelled earlier this year due to budget cuts.

The funds are meant for waterfowl breeding grounds in Saskatchewan, Canada, where roughly one-third of Tennessee's ducks originate. DU officials and many local members lobbied that DU leverages these funds at least five-fold with other conservation donors, creating a dramatic difference in future Tennessee duck hunting.

Squirrel meat is often prepared fried or in a stew, sometimes with dumplings. Slow cookers make a great stew. However, if someone offers you some burgoo, pass.

It has come to light that some squirrel hunters consider the brains a delicacy, mixing them with scrambled eggs or in a stew called burgoo. If this bizarre practice appeals to you, consider this:

Recently medical researchers were tracking the rare occurrences of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) in humans when they found six cases in western Kentucky. Further investigation discovered that all six victims often ate squirrel brains.

Now, in the wake of mad cow disease in England a half-dozen years ago, and now chronic wasting disease (CWD) in some American deer populations -- both related to CJD -- indications are that eating the brain or spinal cord tissue of infected mammals could cause CJD. The disease can take years to incubate and causes fluid buildup and swelling in the brain. It is always fatal.

In short, to avoid "mad squirrel disease," don't eat squirrel brains, but the meat is just fine.

Have you ever taken a squirrel (or rabbit) that had one or more strange lumps under the fur, usually on the back? Upon cleaning and skinning the animal it will often reveal a grub worm burrowed into the muscle. Many hunters consider this tainted meat and throw it away, disgusted. That's not necessary since the meat is good.

The culprit is the larvae of the parasitic bot fly. By October it will mature into a wasp-like insect, chew through the skin and drop to the ground. The squirrel is naturally anesthetized to the larvae's presence and has no long-term damage.

The mature bot fly mates and then lays its eggs in the nests of rodents like mice, squirrels and rabbits. When they hatch, the larvae crawl into the mouths of the rodents and burrow through the flesh to dwell just under the skin until its adult stage. The host is not seriously affected by the parasite and the flesh is safe to eat. Is nature fascinating or what?

Tom Wiest welcomes news, questions and comments from readers. Contact him via e-mail at wiest.tom@gmail.com.