Attention Texas hunters: the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) requires proof of sex for certain game animals. This includes deer, pronghorn, pheasant, and wild turkey. Proof of sex can be provided through various means, such as the head, mammary organ, or vulva of a deer or pronghorn, or a leg attached to the carcass of a pheasant or wild turkey.

Proof of Sex Requirements

For deer and pronghorn, proof of sex can include the head, either skinned or unskinned, with or without antlers, or the mammary organ or vulva along with the tail. Other documents, such as a Managed Lands Deer Program Tag or a TPWD Drawn Hunt Legal Deer Tag, can also serve as proof of sex.

For pheasant, one leg attached to the carcass and/or the bird’s plumage still attached to the carcass will suffice as proof of sex. For wild turkey, one leg along with the spur attached counts as proof of sex for male turkeys, while a patch of skin with breast feathers and beard attached is required for female turkeys.

Exceptions to Proof of Sex

There are exceptions to the proof of sex requirement. Hunters can visit a taxidermist and have the carcass stuffed, and a taxidermist receipt will satisfy the requirement. Alternatively, an official document from the landowner where the game was killed, containing the hunter’s name, the date the animal was hunted, and the sex of the deer, pronghorn, pheasant, or wild turkey, can also serve as proof of sex.

Original reporting: News/Talk 790 KFYO (Lubbock) — read the source article.