What Types of Hunting Laws Do We Have?

Because of the complexity of wildlife issues, we regulate hunting with different laws.

1. Federal Laws: Federal laws regulate the taking of migratory bird species, such as doves and waterfowl, ducks, geese and swans. Doves and waterfowl breed in Canada and the United States and winter in the southern United States and Mexico. The authority to manage them is in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, an international treaty between our three nations.

2. State and Provincial Laws and Regulations: States and provinces manage the hunting of non-migratory species, such as deer, rabbits, turkeys and pheasants. States and Provinces manage wildlife and regulate hunting using laws and regulations.

3. Municipal Laws: There are also municipal laws that affect hunting and the use of firearms by hunters. For example, a city may have a law about how far from a home or residential neighborhood one must be to shoot a firearm.

How are laws and regulations made?

Laws come from legislators or citizen ballot initiatives. It takes a lot of time and effort to develop or change laws. Consequently, laws do not change often.

Most states and provinces grant their wildlife agencies the authority to manage wildlife using regulations. Regulations are generally easier to change and better suit the dynamic nature of wildlife management.

 For example, if a drought caused many turkeys to die, the wildlife agency could change its regulations quickly and easily, reducing the number of permits and protecting the turkey population.

 Conversely, if turkeys produce a "bumper crop," the wildlife agency can change its regulations, increasing the number of permits and providing more hunting opportunity.