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Migratory Birds Regulations (C.R.C., c. 1035)

Regulations are current to 2024-02-20 and last amended on 2020-06-18. Previous Versions

General Prohibitions

  •  (1) No person shall hunt a migratory bird except under authority of a permit therefor.

  • (2) Subject to subsection (8), no person shall hunt murres unless the person is a resident of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, holds a migratory game bird hunting permit and is hunting murres for human consumption.

  • (3) No person shall hunt a migratory game bird unless he is the holder of a migratory game bird hunting permit.

  • (4) Subject to section 23.1, no person shall in any area described in Schedule I hunt a species of migratory bird except during an open season specified in that Schedule for that area and that species.

  • (5) [Repealed, SOR/79-544, s. 2]

  • (6) Notwithstanding subsection (3),

    • (a) an Indian or Inuk may, in any area in Canada, and

    • (b) a resident of the Northwest Territories who is a holder of a general hunting licence issued under the Wildlife Act of the Northwest Territories may, within the Northwest Territories,

    hunt migratory game birds without a migratory game bird hunting permit.

  • (6.1) [Repealed, SOR/80-577, s. 3]

  • (7) Subsection (4) does not apply to the holder of a permit issued pursuant to section 19.

  • (8) Notwithstanding subsection (4) but subject to subsection (9), an Indian or Inuk may at any time, without a permit, take auks, auklets, guillemots, murres, puffins and scoters and their eggs for human food and clothing.

  • (9) No person shall hunt in a migratory bird sanctuary except

  • (10) Subsections 5(1) and (3) do not apply to an Indian or Inuk.

  • (11) Despite subsections (1) and (3), a minor may hunt the migratory birds referred to in column 2 of Table I of any of Parts I to X of Schedule I, or of Table II of Part I of Schedule I, without a permit during the Waterfowler Heritage Days that are set out in that column if the person

    • (a) is lawfully able to hunt in the province or territory where the hunting will occur; and

    • (b) is accompanied by a migratory game bird hunting permit holder who is not a minor.

  • (12) The permit holder referred to in paragraph (11)(b) must not, during the days referred to in subsection (11),

    • (a) have in their possession or use a firearm while accompanying the minor; and

    • (b) accompany more than two minors at one time.

  • SOR/78-490, s. 2
  • SOR/79-544, s. 2
  • SOR/80-577, s. 3
  • SOR/81-641, s. 1(F)
  • SOR/82-703, s. 3
  • SOR/94-684, s. 5
  • SOR/99-147, s. 2
  • SOR/2000-331, s. 1
  • SOR/2000-347, s. 2
  • SOR/2001-234, s. 1
  • SOR/2005-186, s. 3(E)
  • SOR/2009-190, s. 1
  • SOR/2013-126, s. 1
  • SOR/2016-126, s. 2

 Subject to subsection 5(9), no person shall

  • (a) disturb, destroy or take a nest, egg, nest shelter, eider duck shelter or duck box of a migratory bird, or

  • (b) have in his possession a live migratory bird, or a carcass, skin, nest or egg of a migratory bird

except under authority of a permit therefor.

  • SOR/80-577, s. 4

Bag Limits

 Subject to section 8, no person shall in any area in Canada kill, in any one day, a number of migratory birds of any species that, in the aggregate, exceeds the number specified as the daily bag limit for that area and that species in Schedule I.

  • SOR/79-544, s. 3
  • SOR/2000-331, s. 3

 Any person who hunts in more than one province or area in any one day, may kill in that day a number of migratory birds of any species that, in the aggregate, does not exceed the number specified as the daily bag limit in Schedule I for that species in the province or area having the highest daily bag limit of those provinces or areas in which the person hunts.

  • SOR/79-544, s. 3

 No person shall hunt migratory birds in any day after he has killed the number of birds he is permitted to kill under section 7 or 8.

  • SOR/2000-331, s. 3

Possession

  •  (1) No person shall have in his possession in a province or any area within a province on the first day of the open season set out in Schedule I for that province or area, carcasses of migratory birds of any species in excess of the number specified as the daily bag limit in Schedule I for that species in that province or that area.

  • (2) No person shall have in his possession in any province at any time, carcasses of migratory birds of any species in excess of the number specified as the possession limit in Schedule I for that species in that province unless that person has

    • (a) an export permit certifying that those carcasses were lawfully taken in another province, or

    • (b) a valid licence for hunting migratory birds issued by another province,

    and the number of carcasses does not exceed the possession limit for that species in the province that issued the export permit or licence, as the case may be.

  • (3) No person shall have in his possession in any province a carcass of a migratory game bird belonging to or taken by another person unless the carcass has attached to it a tag that is signed by the holder of the migratory game bird hunting permit under which the bird was taken and that indicates

    • (a) the name and address of the owner;

    • (b) the number of the migratory game bird hunting permit under which the bird was taken; and

    • (c) the date the bird was taken.

  • (4) Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), a corporation that trains dogs as retrievers may, for the purpose of that training, have in its possession not more than 200 carcasses of migratory game birds.

  • (4.1) Subsection (3) does not apply to a corporation referred to in subsection (4).

  • (5) Subsection (2) does not apply to a person acting under the authority of a permit issued pursuant to section 25 or 26.

  • SOR/79-544, s. 4
  • SOR/82-703, s. 4
  • SOR/99-393, s. 1
  • SOR/2000-331, s. 3
  •  (1) Subject to subsection (2), no person shall possess or transport a migratory bird unless at least one fully feathered wing is attached to the bird.

  • (2) The wing and the plumage thereon may be removed from a migratory bird

    • (a) when the bird is prepared for immediate cooking; or

    • (b) after the bird is taken to the residence of its owner for preservation.

  • SOR/79-544, s. 5(F)
  • SOR/2000-331, s. 3

Sale, Gift or Purchase

[
  • SOR/95-432, s. 1
]
  •  (1) No person shall sell, expose for sale, offer for sale, trade, barter or buy migratory birds or the eggs, nests, carcasses or skins of migratory birds, except as authorized by these Regulations.

  • (2) Subsection (1) does not apply to a person acting under authority of a special permit in writing from the Minister.

  • SOR/2005-198, s. 2
  •  (1) Subject to subsection (2), a person may possess, purchase, sell, barter or transport the feathers of migratory game birds for the purpose of making fishing flies, bedding, clothing or other similar uses if the feathers so used were obtained under the authority of a valid migratory game bird hunting permit.

  • (2) No person shall purchase, sell, barter or offer to purchase, sell or barter the feathers of migratory birds for millinery or ornamental use.

  • SOR/85-694, s. 3
  • SOR/86-534, s. 3(E)
  • SOR/2000-331, s. 3

 A person may give a migratory game bird to another person for the purpose of mounting or human consumption, or for the purpose of training dogs as retrievers, if the bird was killed under the authority of a migratory game bird hunting permit.

  • SOR/95-432, s. 2

Shipment

  •  (1) No person shall ship, transport or offer for shipment or transport a package or container of any kind that contains a migratory bird or a nest or egg thereof unless the exterior of the package or container is clearly marked with the name and address of the shipper, the number of any permit under which the birds, nests or eggs were taken and an accurate statement of the contents of the package or container.

  • (1.1) Subsections (1) and 10(3) do not apply to a person travelling in a private conveyance who is transporting the carcass of a migratory game bird that he or another occupant of the private conveyance has taken under the authority of a migratory game bird hunting permit.

  • (2) Subject to subsection (1), no person shall ship or transport carcasses of migratory birds taken under the authority of a migratory game bird hunting permit unless

    • (a) those birds were taken under a migratory game bird hunting permit in the open season specified for that species and that province in Schedule I;

    • (b) those birds are transported during the open season or within five days after its termination; and

    • (c) the number of those birds does not exceed the number specified in Schedule I as the possession limit for that species in that province.

  • (3) No person shall traffic between Canada, or the exclusive economic zone of Canada, and the United States in migratory birds, or the nests or eggs of migratory birds, that have been captured, killed, taken or shipped contrary to the laws applicable to the area in Canada, the exclusive economic zone of Canada or the United States in which those birds, nests or eggs were captured, killed, taken or shipped.

  • SOR/80-577, s. 5
  • SOR/84-561, s. 1
  • SOR/2004-138, s. 1(F)
  • SOR/2005-198, s. 3
  • SOR/2006-136, s. 1
  • SOR/2007-140, s. 1(F)

Bait Restrictions

  •  (1) Subject to section 23.3, no person shall hunt for migratory game birds within 400 m of any place where bait has been deposited unless the place has been free of bait for at least seven days or the bait was deposited in accordance with subparagraph (5)(a)(i) or (ii).

  • (2) [Repealed, SOR/93-431, s. 2]

  • (3) Subject to section 23.3, no person shall deposit bait in any place during the period beginning 14 days before the first day of the open season for that place and ending on the day immediately following the last day of the open season for that place, unless the person, at least 30 days prior to depositing the bait,

    • (a) obtains the consent in writing of

      • (i) every landowner and lessee or tenant whose land is located within 400 metres of that place,

      • (ii) the Regional Director, and

      • (iii) the chief game officer of a province or any game officer of the province authorized by him to act on his behalf; and

    • (b) posts in that place signs that are located at a distance of 400 m from the bait and that are of a type and wording satisfactory to the Regional Director.

  • (4) A consent obtained pursuant to paragraph (3)(a) is valid only in respect of the open seasons in respect of which it was obtained.

  • (5) Subsection (3) does not apply to

    • (a) the holder of a scientific permit issued under section 19 who deposits bait

      • (i) for the sole purpose of attracting migratory birds for capturing and banding them, or

      • (ii) in a confined area specified in their permit for scientific purposes other than the one specified in subparagraph (i); or

    • (b) the holder of an aviculture permit issued under section 20 who places bait in a confined area specified in their permit for the sole purpose of feeding migratory birds lawfully in their possession.

  • (5.1) The permit holder who places bait for the purpose referred to in subparagraph (5)(a)(i) or (ii) must post a sign at the place where the bait is deposited that is of the type and wording specified in the permit and that indicates the permit number.

  • (6) For the purpose of subsection (1), any area

    • (a) of standing crops, whether flooded or not,

    • (b) of harvested crop land that is flooded,

    • (c) where crops are properly shocked in the field where they grow, or

    • (d) where grain is scattered solely as a result of normal agricultural or harvesting operations

    shall not be regarded as a place where bait has been deposited.

  • (7) [Repealed, SOR/81-641, s. 2]

  • SOR/78-490, s. 3
  • SOR/79-544, s. 6
  • SOR/80-577, s. 6
  • SOR/81-641, s. 2
  • SOR/93-431, s. 2
  • SOR/99-147, s. 3
  • SOR/2001-323, s. 2
  • SOR/2018-111, s. 1
  • SOR/2020-133, s. 1

Hunting Methods and Equipment

  •  (1) Subject to subsections (4) and (5) and section 23.1, no person shall hunt a migratory bird

    • (a) except with a long bow and arrow or with a shotgun not larger than number 10 gauge;

    • (b) by the use or aid of live birds, including non-migratory birds;

    • (c) by the use or aid of recorded bird calls, except as permitted in any part of Schedule I;

    • (d) with a shotgun of any description capable of holding more than three shells unless the capacity of the gun has been reduced to three shells in the magazine and chamber combined, by means of the cutting off or the altering or plugging of the magazine with a one-piece metal, plastic or wood filler that cannot be removed unless the gun is disassembled; or

    • (e) from any aircraft, sailboat, power boat, or motorized vehicle, or any vehicle to which a draught animal is attached.

  • (1.1) Notwithstanding subsection 2(3) and paragraph (1)(e), a person referred to in subsection 5(2) may hunt murres from a power boat.

  • (1.2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1)(e), a mobility-impaired person may hunt from an aircraft, a sailboat, a powerboat or a vehicle referred to in that paragraph if it is stationary and if the person

    • (a) is authorized, under the laws of the province where the hunting occurs, to hunt in a manner described in that paragraph, if those laws provide for such an authorization; and

    • (b) has a medical certificate referred to in subsection (1.3), in any other case.

  • (1.3) The medical certificate must

    • (a) be signed by a medical practitioner lawfully entitled to practise medicine in any province;

    • (b) attest to the person’s impairment of mobility because of a condition that is not temporary in nature and that severely limits the use of their legs, including being paraplegic, being hemiplegic, being dependent on a wheelchair to move about, having prostheses on both legs and having a leg amputated above the knee; and

    • (c) attest that the practitioner is not aware of any medical reason to believe that the person is not capable of operating, in a competent manner, the weapon that they use to hunt.

  • (2) No person shall, while hunting migratory birds, have with him for his own use more than one shotgun at any one time unless each shotgun in excess of one is unloaded and disassembled or unloaded and cased.

  • (3) Subject to subsections (4) and (5), no person shall hunt a migratory bird by the use of a rifle or a shotgun loaded with a single bullet.

  • (4) A resident of the Northwest Territories who is not required to hold a migratory game bird hunting permit may, within the Northwest Territories, hunt a migratory bird by the use of

    • (a) a shotgun, loaded with a single bullet; or

    • (b) a rifle of a calibre of not more than 0.22 inches.

  • (5) A resident of the Province of Quebec who is not required to hold a migratory game bird hunting permit may, within that portion of the Province lying north of the 50th parallel of north latitude, hunt a migratory bird by the use of

    • (a) a shotgun loaded with a single bullet; or

    • (b) a rifle of a calibre of not more than 0.22 inches.

  • (6) Notwithstanding paragraph (1)(a), migratory game birds may be hunted with the aid of raptors in any area of a province that is designated by the province as an area in which persons may hunt with the aid of raptors.

  • (7) [Repealed, SOR/99-147, s. 4]

  • SOR/79-544, s. 7
  • SOR/82-703, s. 5
  • SOR/85-694, s. 4
  • SOR/93-431, s. 3
  • SOR/98-527, s. 1
  • SOR/99-147, s. 4
  • SOR/2000-331, ss. 2, 3
  • SOR/2002-80, s. 1
  • SOR/2008-217, s. 1
  • SOR/2009-255, s. 1
 

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