MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Vermont's annual youth and novice deer hunting weekend is underway.

Both young and novice hunters on Saturday and Sunday must be accompanied by an unarmed adult over 18 years old who has Vermont hunting license.

Resident or nonresident hunters age 15 and younger who have completed a hunter education course must buy a hunting license and get a free youth weekend deer tag, the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department said. Hunters age 16 and older who have completed a hunter education course and purchased their first hunting license within the last 12 months before the weekend must get a novice weekend deer tag.

The youth and novice hunters may take one deer over the weekend.

Hunters are encouraged to bring any deer they take to one of the state's biological reporting stations to help biologists gather data on the health of Vermont’s deer population, the department said.