Hunting And Outdoor Sports
Small game, trapping seasons open
Small game, trapping seasons open
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✍️By ZRIntel Editorial Team📍New York, State
STATEWIDE The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) on Wednesday announced that small game hunting and furbearer trapping seasons for the 202526 license year are now open. Most small game and furbearer seasons open between Sept. 1 and Nov. 1, depending on species and zone. Full season dates, bag limits, and regulations are 26 Hunting & Trapping Regulations Guide. Fall is when many new hunters go afield for the first time, and when experienced hunters rediscover New Yorks outdoors, said Jacqueline Lendrum, director of DECs Division of Fish and Wildlife. These seasons support long-standing conservation programs, which sustain abundant upland game, waterfowl, and furbearer populations, and provide safe, accessible ways to introduce the next generation to hunting. Before heading afield, please review the annual regulations on DECs website as there are several exciting and important changes this coming hunting season. New York offers a wide variety of waterfowl hunting opportunities across five waterfowl zones and nine Canada goose subzones to reflect the states diverse habitats. The DEC also designates Youth Waterfowl Days (for junior hunters ages 1215) and special days for active military and veterans in many zones to provide lower-pressure hunting opportunities and mentoring experiences, according to a press release. For 2025, the designated Youth Waterfowl Days for most upstate zones are Sept. 2728, 2025. Veteran and active military waterfowl days generally mirror those youth days in several zones. Opening dates for regular duck seasons vary by zone; hunters should consult the 202526 Hunting and Trapping Regulations Guide and DECs migratory game bird seasons page for full details. Ruffed grouse season for 202526 runs Sept. 20, 2025 Feb. 28, 2026, in the northern zones of New York. Hunters in northern Wildlife Management Units (specifically WMUs 5C, 5F, 6F, 6J) are cautioned by DEC to take care to avoid mistakenly harvesting spruce grouse, a state-endangered species found in Adirondack lowland conifer forests. The DEC also encourages hunters to participate in the Grouse Hunting Log and submit feathers from harvested birds to help biologists monitor grouse populations and annual productivity. To see the results of the survey, please visit the Ruffed Grouse Dashboard online. Through a pheasant propagation program, DEC supplies more than 50,000 adult pheasants to supplement upland game bird hunting across the state and is an important hunter recruitment, reactivation, and retention tool, according to a press release. Regular pheasant season begins Oct. 1, 2025, in Eastern New York. The youth-only pheasant hunt weekends are scheduled for this weekend in northern and eastern New York. All release sites for pheasants provided through the DEC pheasant propagation program are open to public hunting. An interactive map and complete list of release sites are available on DECs website. Additionally, DEC helps promote and facilitate mentored hunts around New York State through the HuntFishNY Event page. The HuntFishNY Event page helps prospective hunters find and register for upcoming mentored hunting and fishing events. Events are hands-on and designed for all ability levels to teach the basics about hunting, wildlife, and other outdoor skills, according to DEC. You can find sponsored pheasant hunts, mentored hunts, target shoots, hunting seminars, and more, with new events added weekly. Opportunities to pursue squirrels and rabbits are available statewide on many public lands. Gray, black, and fox squirrel: Sept. 1, 2025 Feb. 28, 2026; Cottontail rabbit: Begin Oct. 1 in Upstate New York; Snowshoe hare: Oct. 1, 2025 March 15, 2026 in the northern zone. The Small Game Seasons page has more information on bag limits, hunting hours, and a map of zones. Fall turkey hunting opportunities are improved this year due to average to above-average productivity in the last few summers. The statewide fall bag limit is one bird of either sex and hunting hours are sunrise to sunset. The Fall 2025 season is Oct. 1-14 for the northern zone. We want every hunter to return home safely, Director Lendrum added. Please follow the basics: treat every firearm as if its loaded, be sure of your target and what lies beyond it, keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot, and wear blaze orange or blaze pink when appropriate. These simple precautions save lives. Hunting in New York remains one of the safest outdoor activities, but incidents can happen when the basics of hunter safety are forgotten or ignored. Always follow firearm safety rules.