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Waterfowl and Migratory Birds in New Jersey |
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Find Your Hunting Location
Youth 2021-22 Waterfowl Hunts:
Oct. 9 & Feb. 5, North Zone
Oct. 16 & Feb. 5, South Zone
Oct. 30 & Feb. 5, Coastal Zone
Statewide Veterans/Military Day: Nov. 6
Statewide Joint Youth and Veterans/Military Day: Feb. 5
See 2021-2022 Migratory Bird Season Information and Population Status for current information.
Youth/Veterans Waterfowl Hunt FAQs
With hundreds of miles of ocean and bayshore coastline, coastal and inland wetlands, small ponds and large lakes, New Jersey hosts an enormous variety of waterfowl species. Waterfowl can be found in abundance in the varied wetland habitats throughout the state including wood ducks in the beaver swamps of northern New Jersey to snow geese in the vast salt marshes along Delaware Bay.
In fact, New Jersey's salt marshes and coastal back bay habitats are of global significance given that over one-third of the black ducks in the eastern United States and over two-thirds of North America's Atlantic brant spend winter in these marshes.
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Mallard drake
Photo by Gary Lehman - click to enlarge
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Due to the migratory nature of waterfowl, the research and management activities of the Division's Waterfowl Ecology and Management Program are generally conducted on a flyway or continental scale requiring the participation of numerous state, provincial, federal (US and Canadian) and non-government partners. New Jersey is a member of the Atlantic Flyway Council which provides the means to participate in promulgating annual hunting regulations and long-term management plans in cooperation with partner states and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The primary objective of the Division's Waterfowl Program is to work in a cooperative manner with the numerous government and non-government agencies responsible for the populations and habitats of migratory game birds.
What Do I Need To Hunt Migratory Birds In New Jersey?
- To hunt crows: a New Jersey hunting license.
- To hunt woodcock, rail, snipe, coots or moorhens (gallinule): a New Jersey hunting license and Harvest Information Program (HIP) certification.
- Required to hunt ducks, geese or brant: a New Jersey hunting license, HIP certification, Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp and New Jersey Waterfowl Stamp. Both federal and state stamps are required for waterfowl hunters 16 years of age and older and must be signed in ink across the stamp's face. Federal stamps are available at U.S. post offices and online. State stamps are available from license agents or purchased and printed from the license website.
Waterfowl Hunting Information
NOTE: Migratory Bird Season information is included in the Hunting and Trapping Digest, published in August. The migratory bird regulations booklet is no longer produced.
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2021-2022 Migratory Bird Seasons Summary (pdf, 165kb)
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2021-2022 Duck Seasons Table (pdf, 50kb) |
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"Constant" NJ Migratory Game Bird Regulations |
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Migratory Bird Hunting Zones and Closure Areas |
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Canada Goose Harvest Management in NJ - FAQs Concerning 2019-20 Changes |
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Harvest Information Program (HIP) for Migratory Birds |
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Federal Regulations Pertaining to Migratory Birds (pdf, 34kb) |
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Nontoxic Shot Regulations for Hunting Waterfowl and Coots (US FWS Site) |
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Multi-stock Duck Harvest Management in the Atlantic Flyway (pdf, 375kb) |
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Atlantic Brant Migration and Breeding Ecology Study 2020 Update |
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NJ Waterfowl Stamp Program |
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Reporting Banded Birds (USGS Site) |
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Estimated Migratory Waterfowl Harvest, 1973-2017 (pdf, 80kb) |
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Successful Hunting Tactics for Greater Snow Geese (pdf, 227kb) |
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Black Duck Management Strategies for North America (pdf, 3.0mb) |
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2012-2013 Waterfowl Hunter Survey (pdf, 310kb) |
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Patterns of Duck Hunting Activity and Success in New Jersey, 1999-2011 (pdf, 305kb) |
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Resident Canada Goose Control Information (pdf, 85kb) |
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Canada Goose Banding in the Arctic - August, 2001 |
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Wading River WMA Blinds for Youth Hunters |
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Bird Flu Information
 Guidance for Hunters (USDA, pdf, 100kb)
Hunter Wallet Card (USDA, pdf, 75kb)
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ADDITIONAL LINKS
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