Game Bird Seasons

Section 1. Authority.

This regulation is promulgated by authority of Wyoming Statutes § 23-1-302 and § 23-2-105.

Section 2. Hunting Regulations.

(a) Federal Regulations. 50 CFR 20.21(i) revised as of August 8, 2019, which do not include anylater amendments or editions of the incorporated matter, governing the baiting of migratory game birds, are adopted as regulations of the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission. Violations of these federal statutes and regulations shall be violations of the Commission regulations. A copy of Title 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations can be viewed at the Cheyenne Headquarters, Department Regional Offices or on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service website (www.fws.gov).

(b) Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (federal duck stamp). A federal duck stamp is required for persons sixteen (16) years of age and older to hunt ducks, geese and mergansers. A federal duck stamp is not required to hunt coots, sandhill cranes, crows, mourning doves, rail or snipe. Federal duck stamps shall be signed in ink across the face of the stamp and shall be in possession of the hunter while in the field.Hunters possessing an electronic federal duck stamp are exempted from this signature provision during the time their electronic federal duck stamp is valid.

(c) HIP Permit. Each licensed hunter who hunts migratory game birds shall complete a current Wyoming validation for the National Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program (HIP) and shall obtain a Wyoming HIP permit. This requirement also applies to holders of pioneer and lifetime hunting licenses. Each licensed hunter engaged in the act of hunting doves, ducks, geese, mergansers, coots, rails, cranes or snipe shall be in possession of a Wyoming HIP permit and shall immediately produce said permit upon request from anyauthorized Department representative. HIP permits shall be signed in ink across the face of the permit and shall be in possession of the hunter while in the field. HIP permits expire on June 30 each year. HIP permits are not transferrable to other states. A separate HIP permit is required from each state in which you hunt. Wyoming HIP permits shall be available only on the Department website. Youths under 14 are not required to obtain a HIP permit if they do not hold a valid game bird license.

(d) No person shall take migratory game birds:

(i) With a trap, snare, net, rifle, pistol, swivel gun, shotgun larger than 10 gauge, punt gun, machine gun, fishhook, poison, drug, explosive or stupefying substance;

(ii) With any shotgun that can hold more than three (3) shells in the magazine and chamber combined, except during the light goose conservation order (refer to Section 7 of this regulation);

(iii) From a sink box or any low floating device, which has a depression to hide a person underneath the water’s surface;

(iv) From or by means of any motorboat or sailboat unless the motor has been completely shut off or sail furled, and the boat’s progress therefrom has ceased;

(v) By the use or aid of live decoys. All live, tame or captive ducks and geese shall beremoved for a period of ten (10) consecutive days prior to hunting, and shall be confined within an enclosure which substantially reduces the audibility of their calls and totally conceals such birds from the sight of migratory game birds;

(vi) By the use of records or tapes of migratory bird calls or sounds, or electronicallyamplified imitations of bird calls, except during the light goose conservation order;

(vii) By driving, rallying or chasing migratory game birds with any motor driven land, water or air conveyance or any sailboat.

(e) Nontoxic Shot. No person shall hunt ducks, geese, mergansers or coots while possessing shotother than nontoxic shot. Nontoxic shot is also required when using a shotgun to hunt any game bird on the Commission’s Table Mountain and Springer/Bump-Sullivan wildlife habitat management areas.

(f) Evidence of Species. One fully-feathered wing or the feathered head shall remain naturally attached to the carcass as a means of identification of migratory game birds, except mourning doves, in the field and while the birds are being transported.

(g) Mourning Dove, Rail and Snipe Hunting Seasons.

(h) Sandhill Crane Hunting Seasons

(i) Permits. All persons, regardless of age, hunting sandhill cranes shall possess a permit valid for the hunt area in which they are hunting. No person shall apply for or receivemore than one (1) limited quota sandhill crane permit during a calendar year. A person may also obtain a permit valid for the general sandhill crane season in Hunt Area 7.

(A) Limited Quota Sandhill Crane Permits. Persons may apply for limited quota sandhill crane permits through the Department’s Electronic Licensing Service (ELS). Party applications shall beaccepted. Maximum party size shall be two (2). Residents and nonresidents shall not apply together as a party.

(B) General Sandhill Crane Permits. Permits to hunt during the general sandhillcrane season (Hunt Area 7) shall be available through the Department’s ELS.

(ii) Tagging Sandhill Cranes. When a sandhill crane is killed under a limited quota permit, the permittee shall detach, sign and date the carcass coupon and attach the coupon to the carcass before leaving thesite of the kill. The coupon shall remain on the crane carcass at all times until the meat undergoes processing,except that during transportation of the carcass the coupon may be removed to prevent its loss. If the coupon is removed for transportation of the carcass, it shall be in possession of the person accompanying the carcass at all times. When dating a carcass coupon, the entire wedge or block shall be cut out for the date and the month of thekill. The carcass coupon shall be attached to the carcass of a sandhill crane in such a manner as to be plainly visible. Sandhill cranes killed during the general sandhill crane season in Hunt Area 7 are not required to be tagged.

(iii) Limited Quota and General Sandhill Crane Hunt Area Descriptions.

Area and Number.

Area 1. All of the Bear River and Ham’s Fork River drainages in Lincoln County.

Area 2. All of the Salt River drainage in Lincoln County south of the McCoy Creek Road.

Area 3. All lands within the Bureau of Reclamation’s Eden Project in Sweetwater County.

Area 4. All lands within the Bureau of Reclamation’s Riverton and Boysen Unit boundaries; those lands within Boysen State Park south of Cottonwood Creek, west of Boysen Reservoir, and south of U.S. Highway 20-26; and all non-indian owned fee title lands within the exterior boundaries of the Wind River Reservation, excluding those lands within Hot Springs County.

Area 5. All of Uinta County.

Area 6. All of Big Horn, Hot Springs, Park and Washakie counties.

Area 7. All of Campbell, Converse, Crook, Goshen, Laramie, Niobrara, Platte and Weston counties.

Area 8. All of Johnson, Natrona and Sheridan counties.

(i) Waterfowl Hunting Seasons

(i) Pacific Flyway

* The daily bag limit of seven (7) ducks and mergansers may include any combination of species with the following restrictions:

• no more than two (2) hen mallards;
• no more than one (1) pintail;
• no more than two (2) canvasbacks;
• no more than two (2) redheads; and,
• no more than two (2) scaup. No scaup shall be taken after December 15.

(ii) Central Flyway Zones. The Central Flyway is divided into three (3) zones. Refer to the season dates for the zone in which you are hunting.

(A) ZONE C1 shall include Big Horn, Converse, Hot Springs, Natrona, Park and Washakie counties, and Fremont County excluding those portions south or west of the Continental Divide.

(B) ZONE C1A shall include Goshen and Platte counties.

(C) ZONE C2 shall include Albany, Campbell, Crook, Johnson, Laramie, Niobrara,Sheridan and Weston counties; and that portion of Carbon County east of the Continental Divide.

(iii) Central Flyway

*For Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt information, see Section 6.

**The daily bag limit of six (6) ducks and mergansers may include any combination of species with the following restrictions:

no more than five (5) mallards of which not more than two (2) shall be hens;

• no more than one (1) pintail;
• no more than three (3) wood ducks;
• no more than two (2) canvasbacks;
• no more than two (2) redheads; and,
• no more than one (1) scaup.
• two (2) blue-winged teal may be taken in addition to the regular limit of six (6) ducks during the following dates:
  • Zone C1 and C1A: September 28– October 13
  • Zone C2: September 21– October 6

(j) Special Hunting Days for Youths, Veterans and Active Military Personnel (including members of the National Guard and Reserves on active duty). In the Pacific Flyway and in Zone C2 of the Central Flyway, the special hunting days for youths, veterans and active military personnel shall be September 14-15, 2024. In ZoneC1 and C1A of the Central Flyway, the special hunting days for youths, veterans and active military personnel shall be September 21-22, 2024. Only qualifying persons may take ducks, mergansers, coots and geese on these special hunting days, subject to the following conditions:

(i) All youth hunters shall be seventeen (17) years of age or younger and shall be accompanied in the field by an adult at least eighteen (18) years of age.

(ii) No more than four (4) youths shall be accompanied by any one (1) adult.

(iii) The accompanying adult shall not take ducks, coots, mergansers or geese unless they also qualify as a veteran or active military personnel. However the accompanying adult may participate in other open seasons.

(iv) All license and stamp requirements, daily bag limits, species and sex restrictions, shooting hours and other regulations that apply to the regular duck and goose seasons, as defined for each flyway, shall apply during the special hunting days for youths, veterans and active military personnel. Exceptions: The additional blue-winged teal limit does not apply on these special hunting days. In Zone C1A, the daily bag limit fordark geese shall be four (4) on the special hunting days for youths, veterans and active military personnel.

(v) All veterans and active military personnel participating in the special hunting daysshall be in possession of documentation confirming they are a veteran or active military personnel while hunting in the field.

(vi) The areas described in Section 3 (b), (d), (e) and (f) shall be closed to hunting during the special hunting days for youths, veterans and active military personnel.

Section 3. Description of Closed Areas.

The areas described in this Section shall be closed for the species and dates specified in the tables in Sections 2, 5 and 7.

(a) Goshen County

(i) Hawk Springs Reservoir. Beginning where the east fence of the Union Pacific Railroad right-of-way meets the south fence enclosing Hawk Springs Reservoir; due east along said fence to Goshen County Road 51; northerly along said road to the access road to the northeast dam of the reservoir; southwesterly along said road to the northeast dam and the fence enclosing the reservoir; northwesterly along said fence to the second gate; southwesterly from said gate to the northwest corner of the fence enclosing the reservoir; southerly along said fence to the beginning point.

(ii) Springer Reservoir. Beginning on U.S. Highway 85 at the George Marlatt farmhouse; westerly along the fence between the farm land and the pasture land to the west end of the west pump lake and Bump-Sullivan Ditch; southerly along said ditch to the high-water mark of Springer Reservoir; westerly then southerly along the high-water mark to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department's Springer Wildlife Habitat Management Area (WHMA); westerly then southerly along the Springer WHMA boundary to Parking Area 3; southeasterly along the reservoir access road to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department buildings; due south fromsaid buildings across the Whispering Wings LLC property to the Fullmer Family Trust pasture fence; westerly along said fence to Goshen County Road 37; southerly along said road to Goshen County Road 42; easterly along said road to U.S. Highway 85; northerly along said highway to the Springer WHMA boundary at the Casey L. Hunter property; westerly then northerly along said boundary to the fence separating the Joe and Judith Hunter Living Trust property and the George Marlatt & Son, Inc. property; easterly then southerly then easterly along said fence to U.S. Highway 85; northerly along said highway to the George Marlatt farmhouse.

(iii) Pond No. 1 Table Mountain Wildlife Habitat Management Area. Pond No. l and adjacent lands as marked by colored signs and posts.

(iv) Miller Lake (Glomill Reservoir). Miller Lake and all lands within three hundred (300) yards of the normal high water line.

(v) North Platte River. That portion of the North Platte River and all lands within three hundred (300) yards of each bank of said river beginning one-quarter (1/4) mile downstream of the western-mostriver crossing with Wyoming Highway 157 downstream to the eastern-most river crossing with Wyoming Highway 157.

(b) Platte County

(i) Festo Lake. Festo Lake and all lands within three hundred (300) yards of the normal high water line.

(ii) Wheatland Reservoir No. 1. Wheatland Reservoir No. 1 and all lands within three hundred (300) yards of the normal high water line.

(c) Fremont County

(i) Ocean Lake. The waters and lands within one-half (1/2) mile of the aeration system onthe north side of Ocean Lake shall be closed to migratory game bird hunting beginning November 15 through March 10 of the following year.

(d) Sweetwater County

(i) Eden Reservoir. Eden Reservoir and all lands within three hundred (300) yards of the normal high water line.

(e) Lincoln County

(i) Palisades Reservoir. Beginning at the junction of the McCoy Creek Road and U.S. Highway 89; northerly on U.S. Highway 89 for one and six-tenths (1.6) miles to the Palisades Reservoir high water line; westerly along said high water line to the Wyoming - Idaho state line; south along said state line to the McCoy Creek Road; southeasterly along the McCoy Creek Road to U.S. Highway 89.

(f) Teton County

(i) South Park Wildlife Habitat Management Area Northwest Reservoirs. The threereservoirs (Snowy Egret, Sandhill Crane and Blue Heron) in the northwest corner of the property and the surrounding lands, beginning at the South Park Wildlife Habitat Management Area’s northwest property corner; east along the fenced northern property boundary to Flat Creek; south along the western edge of Flat Creek to the bridge and South Park Feedground Road; southwest along South Park Feedground Road to the intersection with the maintenance road; northwest along the maintenance road to theend of the maintenance road; due west to the fenced property line; north along the fence to the northwest corner of the property.

Section 4. Shooting Hours.

(a) Except as provided in Section 4 (b) and Section 8, shooting hours for hunting all migratory game birds shall be from one-half (1/2) hour before sunrise until sunset.

(b) From November 16 through the close of the dark goose season, daily shooting hours for darkgeese shall end at 1:00 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays within the following areas: Goshen County north of Wyoming Highway 313 on the west side of U.S. Highway 85, and north of County Road 32 on the east side of U.S. Highway 85.

Section 5. Falconry Seasons.

Migratory game birds may be taken by the use of trained raptors in thepossession of properly licensed falconers during the regular hunting season set forth in Section 2 and extended falconry seasons in accordance with the limitations in this Section, Section 2, Section 3 and Section 4. Licensed adult falconers are allowed to hunt by falconry methods during the special hunting days for youths, veterans and active military personnel set forth in Section 2 (j).

(a) Falconry Bag and Possession Limits. The daily bag limit shall not exceed three (3) migratory game birds in the aggregate nor shall the possession limit exceed nine (9) migratory game birds inthe aggregate for falconry during the regular hunting season or extended falconry seasons. The daily bag and possession limits, singly or in the aggregate, may include any species and sex of ducks, geese, coots, mergansers, rail, snipe, mourning doves and sandhill crane when seasons for these species are open. No more than one (1) sandhill crane shall be taken under a limited quota sandhill crane permit. The falconry bag and possession limits are not in addition to the bag and possession limits listed in Section 2.

Section 6. Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt.

Nineteen (19) numbered pits/blinds shall be available each day during the dark goose hunting season and shall be occupied on a first-come, first-served basis within the Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt Area in Goshen County. From November 16, 2024 through February 16, 2025, hunting during dark goose shooting hours shall only be allowed from pits/blinds or within fifty(50) yards of the pits/blinds.

(a) Selection of pits/blinds. Hunters and hunting parties shall occupy pits/blinds by parking onevehicle directly in front of the numbered post that is marked with the corresponding number of the pit/blind.Vehicles shall not be parked overnight to reserve a pit/blind. Vehicles shall also not be parked in front of anumbered post of a pit/blind other than the one the hunting party is occupying. Hunters shall not changepits/blinds except by returning to the parking area and moving their vehicle to the numbered post corresponding to the new pit/blind.

(b) Access to pits/blinds. Hunters shall only park in established parking areas. No more than two (2) vehicles per pit/blind shall be allowed in the parking lots. No person shall drive a vehicle beyond theestablished parking areas during the goose and duck hunting seasons, except for Department administrative access.Hunters may only use non-motorized methods to transport decoys and other gear to and from the pit/blind.

(c) Commercial operations. No person shall conduct a commercially guided or outfitted hunt on the Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt Area.

(d) Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt Area boundary description. The Bump- Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt Area shall include the portion of the Springer/Bump Sullivan Wildlife Habitat Management Area (WHMA) located west of Goshen County Road 37 (Bump- Sullivan Reservoir and adjacent Commission owned lands); the portion of the Springer/Bump Sullivan WHMA located south of Goshen County Road 42; and the portion of the Springer/Bump Sullivan WHMA located between County Road 37 and the closed area boundary.

Section 7. Light Goose Conservation Order

(a) Licensing, Permitting and Reporting Requirements.

(i) Wyoming Game Bird License and Conservation Stamp. Each person who takes or attempts to take any light geese under the authority of this regulation shall have in possession a valid Wyoming game bird license and a valid Wyoming conservation stamp (except as otherwise exempted by State statute).

(ii) Conservation Order Special Management Permit. A Conservation Order SpecialManagement Permit shall be in possession of any person participating in the light goose conservation order. The Conservation Order Special Management Permit shall be validated by signing the person’s name in ink across the face of the permit. Conservation Order Special Management Permits may be purchased through the Department’s ELS.

(iii) Reporting Requirements. Any person who obtains a Conservation Order Special Management Permit will be emailed an online harvest survey. Permit holders are requested to accurately complete the survey at that time.

(vi) Hunters are not required to possess a Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (duck stamp) or Harvest Information Program (HIP) Permit in order to participate in the light goose conservation order.

(b) Conservation Order Regulations.

(i) Shotguns shall be the only weapons that can be used to take light geese and are notrequired to be plugged to limit shell capacity to three (3). Shotguns larger than ten (10) gauge shall not be legal for the taking of light geese during the light goose conservation order.

(ii) Recorded or electronically-amplified calls may be used for the taking of light geese during the light goose conservation order.

(iii) Evidence of Species. One fully feathered wing or the feathered head shall remainnaturally attached to the carcass as a means of identification of all light geese in the field and while the birds are being transported.

(vi) Nontoxic Shot Restrictions. No person shall take light geese while possessing shot shells loaded with shot other than nontoxic shot.

(v) The Central Flyway portion of Wyoming, excluding the closed areas listed in Section 3, is open during the light goose conservation order.

(vi) Light Goose Conservation Order Hunting Seasons.

(c) Bump-Sullivan Area. Those areas within the boundary of the Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt Area, including Bump-Sullivan Reservoir, shall be open to the taking of light geese during the light goose conservation order. Light goose conservation order participants are not required to hunt from a numbered Department pit/blind during the light goose conservation order. Participants who choose to hunt from a numbered Department pit/blind shall follow the rules in Section 6 of this regulation. Section 6 (c) shall apply to persons hunting light geese anywhere within the Bump-Sullivan Managed Goose Hunt Area.

Section 8. Light Goose Conservation Order Shooting Hours.

Shooting hours for taking light geese during the light goose conservation order shall be from one-half (1/2) hour before sunrise until one-half (1/2) hour after sunset.