Hunting season

For the 1944 struggle between the Haganah and the Irgun in pre-indepence Israel, see The Hunting Season.

A hunting season is the time when it is legal to hunt and kill a particular species.[1]

In the United States, each state has primary responsibility and authority over the hunting of wildlife that resides within state boundaries. State wildlife agencies that sell hunting licenses are the best source of information regarding hunting seasons, areas open/closed to hunting, etc. (Hunting of migratory birds such as ducks and geese is managed cooperatively by state fish and wildlife agencies and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service). Migratory waterfowl hunters must possess both a state hunting license and a Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (Duck Stamp), and each hunter needs a Harvest Information Program (HIP) number for each state in which they hunt migratory birds.[2]

Hunting seasons often come during the time of year when the temperature is often below that which a particular breed is required to maintain a normal body temperature.[3]

Contents

Open season

Open season is the time of the year when a particular wildlife species is allowed to be hunted as per local wildlife conservation law. It is timed to occur when the population is at its maximum and to avoid periods of vulnerability, it avoids the peak breeding period when members of a species are particularly vulnerable and avoids any disruption to mating, which may affect productivity[4].

Closed season

Closed season is the time of the year during which hunting an animal of a given species is contrary to law. Typically, closed seasons are designed to protect a species when they are most vulnerable or, sometimes, to protect them during their breeding season.

The closed season is timed to prevent hunting during times of peak reproductive activity, impaired flying ability during moulting (of game birds such as waterfowl), and temperature extremes, low population levels and food shortage.[5]

A closed season is enforced by local conservation law for the conservation of the species and wildlife management; any hunting during closed season is punishable by law and termed as illegal hunting or poaching.

References

  1. ^ wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
  2. ^ Fish and Wildlife Service
  3. ^ U.S. Patent 5,060,458 page 4
  4. ^ When can I hunt, Game Hunting, Recreation and Tourism; The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE), Government of Victoria, Australia., Accessed 04 December 2008.
  5. ^ When can I hunt, Game Hunting, Recreation and Tourism; The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE), Government of Victoria, Australia., Accessed 04 December 2008.