The proposed frameworks prescribe season lengths, bag limits, shooting hours, and outside dates for the hunting of ducks, geese, swans, and coots. States select their seasons from within the frameworks set by the Service. State regulations may be more restrictive, but not more liberal, than the Federal guidelines. Hunters should consult the final state-selected regulations before going afield.
Highlights of the proposed regulations are as follows:
Atlantic Flyway -- (Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia)
Ducks -- A hunting season of not more than 30 days is permitted between Octobrt 1, 1993, and January 20, 1994. The daily bag limit is three and may include no more than one mallard hen, two wood ducks, two redheads, one black duck, one mottled duck, one pintail, and one fulvous whistling duck. The seasons on harlequin and canvasback ducks are closed. The daily bag limit of mergansers is five, only one of which may be a hooded merganser.
Geese -- For light geese, states may select a 107-day season between October 1, 1993, and February 10, 1994, with a daily bag limit of five birds. For Canada geese, 70-day seasons are permitted in most areas, except for closed seasons in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Virginias Back Bay; an 8-day season in Georgia; a 35 day season in Crawford County, Pennsylvania; and a 60-day season in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, except for Back Bay. In addition to the regular seasons, a 17-day season will be allowed in the Susquehanna and Juniata River area of Pennsylvania; a 14-day season on Long Island; a 16-day season in coastal and central Massachusetts; a 30-day season in southern Connecticut; and a special 4-day season in South Carolina. Season dates and bag limits for Canada geese vary in specific areas.
Changes include the extra season on Long Island and the reduced season in Crawford County, Pennsylvania. Also, the Susquehanna/Juniata River area was expanded in Pennsylvania.
Atlantic Brant -- States may select a 30-day season between Oct. 1, 1993, and Jan. 20, 1994, with a daily bag limit of two. This season is 20 days shorter than last year.
Mississippi Flyway -- (Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, and Wisconsin)
Ducks -- Hunting seasons of not more than 30 days are permitted between October 1, 1993, and January 20, 1994. The daily bag limit is three and may include no more than two mallards (one hen), two wood ducks, one redhead, one black duck, and one pintail. The season on canvasbacks is closed. The daily bag limit of mergansers is five, only one of which may be a hooded merganser.
Geese -- Generally, states may select a 70-day season for dark geese between October 1, 1993, and January 31, 1994, and an 80-day season for light geese between October 1, 1993, and February 14, 1994, with a seven-bird daily limit including no more than two Canada and two white-fronted geese. There are, however, numerous new area-specific restrictions and exceptions to these frameworks. There also are various restrictions on season lengths, bag limits, and quotas with the objective of reducing harvest 50 percent for the Eastern Prairie population and Southern James Bay population of Canada geese and 18 percent for the Mississippi Valley population.
Central Flyway -- (Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and portions of Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, and Wyoming)
Ducks -- In the High Plains Mallard Management Unit (roughly west of the 100th meridian), a 51-day season is permitted provided that the last 12 days start no earlier than the Saturday nearest December 10, 1993. A 39-day season is permitted in the Low Plains Unit. Seasons must be between October 1, 1993, and January 20, 1994. The daily bag limit is three, including no more than two mallards (one hen) on the Low Plains, two wood ducks, one redhead, one mottled duck, and one pintail. The season for canvasbacks is closed. The daily bag limit of mergansers is five, only one of which may be a hooded merganser. The point system is offered as an alternative, under which 100-point birds are hen mallards, pintails, redheads, hooded merganser, and mottled ducks; 50-point birds are male mallards (Low Plains) and wood ducks; and 35-point birds are all other ducks and mergansers.
Geese -- Goose seasons are permitted from October 1, 1993, to January 31, 1994, for dark geese, and from October 2, 1993, to February 12, 1994, for light geese, except in New Mexico where the closing date for light geese is February 28. Season lengths and bag limits vary by state.
Pacific Flyway -- (Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and portions of Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, and Wyoming)
Ducks -- A 59-day season is permitted between October 1, 1993, and January 20, 1994, except in the Columbia Basin where the season may be an additional 7 days. The daily bag limit is four birds, including no more than three mallards (one hen), one pintail, and either two canvasbacks, two redheads, or one of each.
Geese -- A 100-day season is permitted in most parts of the flyway between October 2, 1993, and January 23, 1994, with a bag limit of no more than three light geese and three dark geese, including no more than two white-fronts. For most areas, this season is 7 days longer than the one permitted last year. In California, a 30-day season is permitted for brant, and in Washington and Oregon a 16-day season is permitted for brant. The daily bag limit is two brant in these special seasons. There are many area specific regulations and exceptions to these frameworks. The seasons are closed for Aleutian Canada geese and cackling Canada geese.
Tundra Swans -- A 100-day season is permitted between October 2, 1993, and January 23, 1994, with a limit of one swan per permit for the entire season.
Additional details on the proposed hunting regulations were published in the August 23, 1993, Federal Register.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov
