Central Flyway Philosophy About Hunting
Summary
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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has the responsibility and authority in the U.S. to establish annual hunting seasons for migratory birds. This authority is granted under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. The FWS sets outside parameters called frameworks (opening and closing date, daily bag and possession limit, season length) within which states must select their hunting seasons.
The Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) has the authority in Canada to establish annual hunting seasons for migratory birds under the same Treaty.
Hunting seasons are closed each year until formally opened by the FWS and CWS.
The FWS publishes a Notice of Intent to Establish Open Seasons in the Federal Register in January. It also discusses leading issues and the potential for major changes.
The Flyway Technical Committees and Council meet in March to consider changes in hunting regulations for migratory shore and upland game birds ( mourning dove, sandhill crane, snipe, woodcock, etc. ) and some waterfowl seasons. This meeting focuses on Early Seasons that open in September. In recent years, the regulatory packages of Adaptive Harvest Management for the regular duck hunting season have also been considered at this time. The Council forwards its recommendations to the Service Regulations Committee (SRC) of the FWS. The SRC consists of 4 Regional Directors of the FWS plus a Chairperson.
The FWS publishes specific proposals for Early Seasons in the Federal Register in July. Public comments are accepted on these proposals and a Final Rule published, usually in August.
States select their hunting seasons for Early Seasons in August within the framework provided by the FWS. A state can be more restrictive but not more liberal than the federal framework.
The Flyway Technical Committee and Council meet again in July to consider Late Seasons which include the regular duck and goose hunting seasons. Late Seasons open as early as the Saturday nearest October 1. Council again forwards their recommendations to the SRC.
The FWS publishes specific proposals for Late Seasons in the Federal Register in August. Public comments are accepted and a Final Rule is published in September.
States select their hunting seasons in September for Late Seasons from the frameworks provided by the FWS. A state can be more restrictive but not more liberal than the federal framework.
Surveys to determine population status of migratory birds are conducted throughout the year. Some of these data are a year old when used in consideration of hunting regulations. Others, such as the May Breeding Pair and Habitat Survey for ducks are used in the year they are collected. While annual changes in some populations are potentially important, long- term trends are given more weight.
The CWS produces a status report in November and hunting season proposals in December for the following year. A public comment period occurs in January and February, final proposals are due in March and final rules are selected in June. The reason for earlier selection of hunting seasons in Canada is that essentially all migratory bird hunting seasons begin in early September.
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Details
| Early Season Process in US | Late Season Process in US | The Process in Canada |
Background
The Federal government of the United States gained authority for migratory bird management through what is known as the Weeks-McLean Law (the Migratory Bird Act) in 1913. Authority was given to the U.S. Biological Survey (USBS), Department of Agriculture, to make and enforce regulations to provide protection of this natural resource. This was followed by the Migratory Bird Treaty with Canada which was signed in 1916 and approved by Congress on July 3, 1918. A similar treaty with Mexico was signed by the President in 1936 and treaties with Japan and the Soviet Union followed. The USBS was transferred to the Department of Interior in 1939 and the name was changed first to the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in 1940.
The Migratory Birds Convention Act that implemented the Migratory Bird Treaty was adopted in 1917 by the Parliament of Canada. This gave the federal government authority to regulate the taking of migratory birds. Hoyes Lloyd and a secretary were assigned to the Department of Interior in 1918 under the National Parks Branch and given the task of administering the Act. The Dominion Wildlife Service was created in 1947 and operated under the Department of Mines and Resources. In 1950, the organization became known by its present name, the Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS), and is now within the larger Environment Canada department.
This Treaty and the accompanying laws that implemented it specify that hunting seasons will be closed unless explicitly opened by the controlling authority. Over the years, the official document of the federal government in the U.S. regarding rule making has become known as the Federal Register. It is used to publish essentially every action and proposed action by federal agencies. And it is this document that the FWS uses to publish rules relating to migratory bird hunting.
The CWS also involves the public and provincial and native governments in establishing migratory bird hunting regulations through various publications and meetings.
The Migratory Bird Treaty was amended in 2000 to bring
provisions into line with Canada's Constitutional obligations
to aboriginal peoples and to allow greater flexibility for the FWS
to provide for the needs of Alaska natives. New partnerships have
arisen from the changes made in the treaty that will allow better
management of the migratory bird resource.
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Early Season Process in the U.S.
Each January, the FWS publishes its intention to open the current year's hunting season on certain migratory birds and at the same time identifies priority issues and the potential for major changes. Traditionally, in early March, the Central Flyway Technical Committees meet to consider the status of several migratory bird species with a focus on webless species such as doves, cranes, snipe and September teal and early Canada goose seasons. The technical committees of other flyways also meet in late-winter. The Technical Committees make recommendations to Council for consideration at their late-March meeting. Both groups take into account the most current information from population status and harvest surveys and other issues identified by the FWS. While annual changes in population status may be important, the Flyway places a greater weight on long-term trends.
In recent years, this has also been a time when flyways provide input to the Adaptive Harvest Management regulatory packages that affect duck hunting season. Recommendations about these issues are forwarded to the FWS. The Council will also alert the FWS if they plan to present proposals for major changes to waterfowl hunting regulations in the Late Season process later in the year. Thus, March is the beginning of what is known as the Early Season process, a time when regulations for seasons that open in September are considered. This includes seasons for webless birds, September teal and September Canada geese.
In June, the FWS convenes its Service Regulations Committee
(SRC) comprised of four Regional Directors plus a chairperson. The
Committee considers the recommendations from the Council and its
own staff in the Office of Migratory Bird Management. This meeting
is attended by two representatives from each Flyway so direct
interaction between the flyways and the SRC can occur. Ultimately
the SRC directs its staff to publish a set of proposed hunting
regulations in the Federal Register. These proposals include the
"frameworks" from which states can choose their hunting
seasons and include things like how long a season can be, how many
birds are allowed in a daily bag limit and the dates within which a
season can be chosen. The FWS receives comments on these proposals
and, after addressing the comments, publishes a Final Rule, usually
in August. As is the case with other official rules, the Secretary
of Interior must sign the Final Rules. States then select the
hunting season that best fits their needs from within the
Frameworks provided. States can be more restrictive but not more
liberal that the Frameworks allow.
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Late Season Process in the U.S.
The process essentially begins again in late July when the Technical Committee and Council meet to consider Late Season recommendations. These are hunting seasons that traditionally open on the Saturday nearest 1 October in some states and are largely waterfowl (duck and goose) oriented. By this time, the data from the May Breeding Pair and Habitat Survey and July Production Survey are available. However, in recent years, this data has already been used to select the appropriate "package" from those available in the Adaptive Harvest Management (AHM) process. The Flyway provides comments about AHM for consideration in the following year and makes recommendations on regulations for goose and swan hunting for the current year.
The SRC meets in early August to consider these Late Season
recommendations and again, the FWS publishes proposals in the
Federal Register. By mid-September, the FWS has published the Final
Rules (Frameworks) from which states can select hunting seasons for
the upcoming fall.
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The Process in Canada
The process in Canada also involves the public and provincial and native governments although the timing is much different and all migratory birds are considered at the same time. In November, the status of migratory bird populations is reported. The CWS produces proposed regulations for the following year in December, public comments are received through February and final proposals are made by April. Hunting regulations are typically finalized in mid-June and published soon thereafter. The CWS acknowledges that regulations are established "without the benefit of knowledge about the breeding conditions and production forecasts for the current year" and explicitly reserves the right to make changes after final regulations are adopted. As in the U.S., long-term trends play the greatest role in selection of appropriate hunting regulations.