Laws and Regulations

Important Hunting Announcement:

Hunting will be closed the week prior to Christmas Bird Count surveys. In 2025, the closure will begin on December 15th and end on December 22nd. The Christmas Bird Count will occur on December 21st.

Important Links: 

Through this Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (FLREA), Congress authorized Federal collection of fees for recreational use of public lands managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest...

The Lacey Act, as amended in 1981 and 2008, prohibits the importation, exportation, transportation, sale, receipt, acquisition, or purchase of any fish or wildlife or plant taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law, treaty, or regulation of the United States or any Indian...

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 (16 U.S.C. 703-712) implements four international conservation treaties that the U.S. entered into with Canada in 1916, Mexico in 1936, Japan in 1972, and Russia in 1976. It is intended to ensure the sustainability of populations of all protected migratory...

The National Wildlife Refuge System Centennial Act reinforces the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act provisions to raise public understanding and appreciation for the refuge system; calls on the Secretary of the Interior to establish a Centennial Commission to oversee special public...

The Refuge Recreation Act of 1962, with subsequent amendments, authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to administer refuges, hatcheries and other conservation areas for recreational use, when such uses do not interfere with the primary purpose for which these areas were established.

Spells out wildlife conservation as the fundamental mission of the Refuge System; requires comprehensive conservation planning to guide management of the Refuge System; directs the involvement of private citizens in land management decisions; and provides that compatible wildlife-dependent...

Hunting on a national wildlife refuge is subject to current federal and state regulations. Consult those regulations before hunting. All hunters must possess a valid state hunting license. All hunters 16 years or older must possess a Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp while hunting migratory waterfowl...

The Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act, commonly referred to as the Duck Stamp Act, requires waterfowl hunters, 16 years of age or older, to purchase and possess a valid Federal waterfowl hunting stamp prior to taking migratory waterfowl. Receipts from the sale of the stamp are...