301
KAR 2:225. Dove, wood duck, teal, and other migratory game bird hunting.
RELATES
TO: KRS 150.330, 150.340, 150.603
STATUTORY
AUTHORITY: KRS 150.025(1), 150.360, 150.600, 50 C.F.R. 20, 21
NECESSITY,
FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS 150.025(1) authorizes the department to
promulgate administrative regulations to establish open seasons for the taking
of wildlife and to regulate bag limits. KRS 150.360 authorizes the department
to restrict methods for the taking of wildlife. KRS 150.600 authorizes the department
to regulate the taking of waterfowl on public and private land. This
administrative regulation establishes the requirements for the taking of
migratory game birds within reasonable limits based upon an adequate supply,
and within the frameworks established by 50 C.F.R. Parts 20 and 21.
Section
1. Definitions. (1) "Dove" means mourning dove or white-winged dove.
(2)
"Migratory game bird" means mourning dove, white-winged dove, wood
duck, teal, Canada goose, common moorhen, woodcock, common snipe, purple
gallinule, Virginia rail, or sora rail.
(3)
"Teal" means green-winged teal, blue-winged teal, or cinnamon teal.
(4)
"Wildlife Management Area" or "WMA" means a tract of land:
(a)
Controlled by the department through ownership, lease, license, or cooperative
agreement; and
(b)
That has "Wildlife Management Area" or "WMA" as part of its
official name.
Section
2. Season Dates. (1) A person shall not hunt a migratory game bird except
during a season established in this administrative regulation.
(2)
The following seasons shall apply to
migratory bird hunting:
(a)
Dove, beginning on:
1.
September 1 for fifty-six (56) consecutive days;
2.
Thanksgiving Day for eleven (11) consecutive days; and
3.
The Saturday before Christmas for twenty-three (23)
consecutive days;
(b)
Woodcock, beginning on November 1 for forty-five (45) consecutive days;
(c)
Common snipe, beginning on:
1.
The third Wednesday in September for forty (40) consecutive days; and
2.
Thanksgiving Day for sixty-seven (67) consecutive days;
(d)
Wood duck, beginning on the third Wednesday in September for five (5) consecutive
days;
(e)
Teal, beginning on the third Wednesday in September for nine (9) consecutive
days;
(f)
Virginia rail, sora rail, common moorhen, and purple gallinule, beginning on
September 1 for seventy (70) consecutive days; and
(g)
Canada goose, beginning September 1 for fifteen (15) consecutive days except
that the following areas, as established in 301 KAR 2:224, shall be closed:
1.
Public land in the Ballard Zone;
2.
Public land in the West-Central Goose Zone; and
3.
The Northeast Goose Zone.
Section
3. Bag and Possession Limits. (1) A person shall not exceed the following
limits:
(a)
Dove:
1.
Daily limit of fifteen (15); and
2.
Possession limit of forty-five (45).
(b)
Eurasian collared dove: No limit, except that a hunter, if in the field or
during transport, shall keep one (1) of the following attached to the bird:
1.
The head; or
2.
A fully-feathered wing.
(c)
Woodcock:
1.
Daily limit of three (3); and
2.
Possession limit of nine (9).
(d)
Common snipe:
1.
Daily limit of eight (8); and
2.
Possession limit of twenty-four (24).
(e)
Virginia and sora rail, singly or in aggregate:
1.
Daily limit of twenty-five (25); and
2.
Possession limit of seventy-five (75).
(f)
Common moorhen and purple gallinule, singly or in aggregate:
1.
Daily limit of fifteen (15); and
2.
Possession limit of forty-five (45).
(g)
Wood duck and teal:
1.
Daily limit of six (6), which shall not include more than two (2) wood ducks;
and
2.
Possession limit of eighteen (18), which shall not include more than six (6)
wood ducks.
(h)
Canada goose:
1.
Daily limit of five (5); and
2.
Possession limit of fifteen (15).
(2)
A hunter who possesses a migratory game bird other than a dove, in the field or
during transport, shall keep one (1) of the following attached to the bird:
(a)
The head; or
(b)
A fully-feathered wing.
Section
4. Shooting Hours. A person shall not take a migratory game bird except during
the times established in this section. (1) If hunting dove on WMA land, a
person shall hunt:
(a)
Between 11 a.m. and sunset during the September and October portion of the
season, as established in Section 2 of this administrative regulation; and
(b)
Between one-half (1/2) hour before sunrise and sunset during the remainder of
the season, as established in Section 2 of this administrative regulation.
(2)
If hunting dove on private land, a person shall hunt:
(a)
Between 11 a.m. and sunset on September 1; and
(b)
Between one-half (1/2) hour before sunrise and sunset during the remainder of
the season, as established in Section 2 of this administrative regulation.
(3)
Other species listed in this administrative regulation shall be taken between
one-half (1/2) hour before sunrise and sunset.
Section
5. Shot Requirements. A person hunting waterfowl shall not use or possess a
shotgun shell:
(1)
Longer than three and one-half (3 1/2) inches; or
(2)
Containing:
(a)
Lead shot;
(b)
Shot not approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service pursuant to 50 C.F.R.
Parts 20 and 21 for waterfowl hunting; or
(c)
Shot larger than size "T".
Section
6. Hunter Orange. A person shall be exempt from hunter orange requirements
pursuant to 301 KAR 2:132 and 2:172 if:
(1)
Hunting waterfowl or doves; or
(2)
Accompanying a person hunting waterfowl or doves.
Section
7. Exceptions to Statewide Migratory Game Bird Seasons on Specified Wildlife
Management Areas. (1) A person shall not:
(a)
Hunt wood duck or teal on an area closed to waterfowl hunting as established in
301 KAR 2:222;
(b)
Hunt in an area marked by a sign as closed to hunting; or
(c)
Enter an area marked by a sign as closed to the public.
(2)
A person hunting dove on any of the following areas shall only use or possess
nontoxic shot approved by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service pursuant to 50
C.F.R. Parts 20 and 21:
(a)
Ballard WMA;
(b)
Boatwright WMA;
(c)
Doug Travis WMA;
(d)
Duck Island WMA;
(e)
Kaler Bottoms WMA;
(f)
Kentucky River WMA;
(g)
Ohio River Islands WMA;
(h)
Sloughs WMA;
(i)
South Shore WMA;
(j)
Yatesville Lake WMA; and
(k)
A WMA wetland management unit that is posted by sign.
(3)
At Ballard WMA, a person shall not hunt:
(a)
Dove, Virginia rail, sora rail, common moorhen, purple gallinule, or snipe
after October 13; or
(b)
Woodcock.
(4)
In the Swan Lake Unit of Boatwright WMA, a person shall not hunt:
(a)
Dove, Virginia rail, sora rail, common moorhen, purple gallinule, or snipe
after October 13; or
(b)
Woodcock.
(5)
At Miller Welch - Central Kentucky WMA, a person shall not hunt:
(a)
Dove or snipe after October 13; or
(b)
Woodcock.
(6)
At Grayson Lake WMA, a person shall not hunt:
(a)
Within three-quarters (3/4) of a mile from the dam including the no-wake zone
of the dam site marina;
(b)
On Deer Creek Fork; or
(c)
On Camp Webb property or the state park, except for youths drawn for any
department quota dove hunt on Camp Webb property in September.
(7)
At Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area, a person shall not hunt a
migratory game bird between the last Saturday in September and November 30.
(8)
At West Kentucky WMA, a person shall not hunt Canada geese during the September
season.
(9)
At Yatesville Lake, the following areas shall be closed to waterfowl hunting,
unless authorized by Yatesville Lake State Park:
(a)
The Greenbrier Creek embayment; and
(b)
The lake area north of the mouth of the Greenbrier Creek embayment to the dam,
including the island.
(10)
At Robinson Forest WMA, a person shall not hunt a migratory game bird on the
main block of the WMA. (22
Ky.R. 1174; eff. 2-12-1996; Am. 23 Ky.R. 2536; 2972; eff. 2-12-1997; 24 Ky.R.
1359; 1670; eff. 2-17-1998; 25 Ky.R. 1095; eff. 1-19-1999; 26 Ky.R. 1190; 1534;
eff. 2-14-2000; 28 Ky.R. 1683; 2017; eff. 3-18-2002; 29 Ky.R. 1319; eff.
1-16-2003; 30 Ky.R. 995; eff. 1-5-2004; 31 Ky.R. 826; eff. 1-4-2005; 33 Ky.R. 1111;
eff. 12-7-2006; 34 Ky.R. 1113; eff. 2-1-2008; 35 Ky.R. 1005; eff. 1-5-2009; 36
Ky.R. 965; 1199; eff. 12-11-2009; 37 Ky.R. 1029; eff. 1-3-2011; 38 Ky.R. 821;
eff. 1-6-2012; 39 Ky.R. 838; eff. 1-4-2013; 40 Ky.R. 653; 1045; eff. 11-7-2013;
41 Ky.R. 859; eff. 1-5-2015.)
