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Shooting can be a rewarding sport, but for everyone to keep enjoying it’s important to respect the rules that are in place. It doesn’t matter whether you’re an experienced game hunter, or new to the sport; you need to abide by the regulated seasons for different quarry species, to ensure that hunting is kept in good repute. To that end, it’s good to have a knowledge of open and closed shooting seasons for wildfowl, gamebirds, ground game and deer.

The difference between an open and closed season is huge, as shooting certain species out of season is illegal and can lead to prosecution. Intriguingly, it is also illegal to hunt on Sundays and Christmas day, but this has traditionally been put down to religious reasons and giving farmers a break from the noise.

So keep yourself in the know and have a read of our shooting seasons below. Please note: These dates and rules apply for England and Wales, but may differ in Scotland, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands

Gamebirds

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Gamebirds such as Pheasant, Partridge, Grouse and Snipe are all available to hunt in open season from autumn to early winter time. But if it’s Grouse in particular you’re looking to shoot then you have one date to remember: the 12^th August, known by game shooters as ‘The Glorious Twelfth’.

Flushing out game is the most traditional hunting style, employing the services of Gamekeepers Beaters and Pickers-up, as well as trained dogs to find the birds. The season for each gamebird is listed below:

Pheasant – October 1^st – February 1^st

Partridge – September 1^st – February 1^st

Grouse – August 12^th – December 10^th

Snipe – August 12^th – January 31^st

^Waterfowl

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Ducks and Geese are often shot by waterfowlers around the same time and season as gamebirds. The only exception is Canada geese that can be shot all year round, as long as you have a general licence issues by a government agency.

Waterfowling is generally separated into occurring below the high water mark (coastlines, lakelands, rivers etc.) or above the water line (fields and places where certain species feed). The dates for open season are listed below:

Duck and Goose (Inland) – September 1^st – January 31^st

Duck and Goose (below high water mark) – September 1^st – February 20^th

Ground Game

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Ground game consist of Brown Hares, Mountain Hares normally found in Scotland, and Rabbits. There is actually no closed season for the Brown Hare and Rabbit, but only on the condition they are hunted within occupied land, rather than moorlands or unenclosed land, where it is illegal for half the year. Mountain Hares however, have a fixed open season in Scotland. The details are listed below:

Brown Hare and Rabbit (Occupied land) – January 1^st – December 31^st

Brown Hare and Rabbit (Moorland or Unenclosed land) – December 11^th – March 31^st

Mountain Hare – August 1^st – February 28^th/29^th

^Deer

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There are many different species of deer residing in the UK, all with different open seasons that have been outlined by the appropriate governing bodies. These species include Red, Sika, Fallow, Roe, Chinese Water Deer and Muntjac.

Stalking regulations separate the male Stag or Buck and the female Hind or Doe when it comes to their open seasons but these time periods do overlap. For more information, we’ve listed the details below:

Red, Sika (Stag) – August 1^st – April 30^th

Red, Sika (Hind) – November 1^st – March 31^st

Fallow (Buck) – August 1^st – April 30^th

Fallow (Doe) – November 1^st – March 31^st

Roe (Buck) – April 1^st – October 31^st

Roe (Doe) – November 1^st – March 31^st

Chinese Water Deer (Buck) – November 1^st – March 31^st

Chinese Water Deer (Doe) – November 1^st – March 31^st

If you need any more advice on hunting seasons, equipment or clothing, feel free to pop into Keen’s Tackle and Guns or get in touch using our contact page here.

Sources:

http://basc.org.uk/game-and-gamekeeping/quarry-species-shooting-seasons/

http://naturenet.net/law/seasons.htm

http://basc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/downloads/2013/06/aim_of_the_game_for_web.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterfowl_hunting

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deer