Game Bird Hunting

Ruffed grouse are the most widely available upland game in Vermont. Good numbers of “partridge” can be found wherever brushy forest stands provide nesting cover, protection from predators and food in the form of berries and buds. Overgrown apple orchards, abandoned hillside farms and regenerating clear cuts covered with hardwood thickets are all grouse hot spots. Although grouse are found statewide, the Northeast Kingdom offers some of the best grouse hunting.

Definitions

The following are classified as game birds: quail, ruffed grouse, chukar partridge, woodcock, pheasant, common snipe, coot, wild ducks, wild geese, and wild turkey (which is classified as big game). Other wild birds including spruce grouse and Hungarian partridge have no open season.

Migratory Game Bird Regulations

The Syllabus of State and Federal Hunting Regulations for Migratory Birds in Vermont will be available on the Vermont Fish & Wildlife website and from license agents.

Waterfowl Hunting

Both Vermont and federal waterfowl stamps are required to hunt migratory waterfowl for hunters 16 and older. Federal stamps are sold at post offices, federal wildlife refuges, and online at
www.fws.gov/birds/get-involved/duck-stamp/buy-duck-stamp.php. Vermont State Migratory Waterfowl (“Duck”) Stamps are available on the Vermont Fish & Wildlife website, from department offices and license agents for $7.50. A state waterfowl stamp is good for the calendar year and no longer needs to be signed by the hunter. Note that the federal waterfowl stamp must be signed.

Before you start waterfowl hunting, make sure you have the following four things:

1. A valid Vermont hunting license.
2. A Federal duck stamp, available at most post offices, federal wildlife refuges, and online at www.fws.gov/birds/get-involved/duck-stamp/buy-duck-stamp.php
3. A Vermont state duck stamp, available wherever Vermont hunting licenses are sold
4. A H.I.P. number, available at http://vtfishandwildlife.com/waterfowl/HIP or at 1-877-306-7091

(State and federal duck stamps are required only for hunters 16 and older)

Youth Waterfowl Hunting Weekend

A Youth Waterfowl Hunting Weekend for residents and nonresidents is usually held in late September for hunters 17 and under. Check the migratory bird hunting rules syllabus for details.

Duck Blinds

Waterfowl blinds may not be placed on or in the waters of the state earlier than the first Saturday of September of any year.

Anyone who places a blind must have their name and address permanently and legibly affixed on the blind by waterproof paint or rustproof tag.

Waterfowl blinds located on or in any waters of the state except Lake Champlain must be removed, together with contents and any surrounding debris, on or before May 15 of the following year. A waterfowl blind located on or in Lake Champlain must be removed on or before February 15 of the following year. Also see Tree Stands and Ground Blinds sections in General Hunting Information.

Placement of signs for the purposes of claiming duck blind locations has no basis in law and is unenforceable.

The use of Phragmites or other invasive plants in duck blinds is prohibited. This does not apply to non-invasive plants used for camouflage such as corn stalks or cedar.

Nontoxic Shot

It is illegal to take a group or combination of waterfowl/coots and other species in Vermont while possessing loose shot or shot shells loaded with any shot other than nontoxic shot. Shot should be of a size no larger than size T.

Woodcock & Common Snipe

Woodcock are found statewide. “Timberdoodles” feed primarily on worms, and they favor areas with moist, rich soils covered with dense stands of woody shrubs and sapling-stage hardwoods. Alder swales, regenerating clear cuts and abandoned pastures covered with thickets of dogwood, sumac, birch and aspen are all likely woodcock covers. Locally hatched native birds provide hunting early in the season, but the best shooting is in mid to late October, when large numbers of migratory birds are pushed out of Canada by cold weather. The best hunting is generally in the Champlain Valley and Northeast Kingdom.

Season

Set annually, see the annual Waterfowl Syllabus.

Woodcock and common snipe are migratory game birds. Migratory game birds, including waterfowl, may be taken only by shotgun with a one-piece plug or manufactured to restrict it to three-shot capacity. State and federal duck stamps are not required for woodcock or snipe hunting. A H.I.P. number is required to hunt woodcock and common snipe.