Hunting Small Game, Furbearers and Other Species

• Small game season dates and bag limits
  • 2012-13 Small Game Outlook
• Furbearer season dates and bag limits
  • 2012-13 Furbearer Outlook
• Other species
• Take the N.H. Small Game Survey - Win a hunting rifle!
• Ruffed Grouse Wing and Tail Survey - Win a shotgun!
• Wildlife Management Unit maps
• 2010-2011 Small Game Harvest Report

2012-2013 Small Game Season Dates and Bag Limits

(Hunting license required for all species)

2012-2013 Small Game Season Outlook

By Julie Robinson, Small Game Project Leader

Things are looking great for this year’s small game hunting season! Ruffed grouse, woodcock, snowshoe hare and squirrel are exciting to hunt and make excellent table fare. Why not give small game hunting a try this fall? It could become your newfound passion!

Take the Small Game Survey: Small game hunters can help Fish and Game by providing data on their hunts through the annual Small Game Survey. Those who participate are entered into a raffle for a rifle generously donated by Sturm Ruger Inc.

Grouse: Spring this year came early and stayed relatively dry. There were rains during the grouse nesting and brood raising, but nothing that seemed to deter good production. Our ruffed grouse drumming counts were nearly double from last year’s in the northern portion of the state, and biologists in that region commented on seeing “grouse everywhere.” Exact brood sizes are hard to determine, due to the explosive behavior the chicks display when trying to flee.

Grouse hunters are encouraged to take part in our Ruffed Grouse Wing and Tail Survey this fall. Click here for more information on the Grouse Survey. All hunters who participate have a chance to win a shotgun donated by the Ruffed Grouse Society.

Snowshoe hare hunting is growing in popularity. Snowshoes are best hunted with a dog, usually a beagle, and the season runs from October 1 through March 31. Fish and Game's Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness offers a winter class in snowshoe hare hunting, so keep an eye out for it.

Squirrel: A great way to introduce someone new to hunting is to take them squirrel hunting. The season opens on September 1 and provides an early season opportunity to hone their hunting skills.

Woodcock numbers have remained stable in New Hampshire for many years now. This year’s early spring, and the fact that woodcock arrive very early, bode well for above-average production. Biologists were seeing chicks very early on. During the fall season in 2011, numerous hunters commented on seeing large numbers of woodcock while hunting, and this season should be the same.

Woodcock are the second most sought-after small game species according to our survey results.  Each year, dedicated biologists and a group of volunteers conduct woodcock singing ground surveys. Singing ground surveys provide an index to the overall abundance of resident singing males, which is used to make inferences about the breeding population. The woodcock season has expanded to 45 days, opening on October 1 with the other small game seasons, and ending on November 14. There are substantial numbers of woodcocks in flight that move through the state in early and mid-November, so this season expansion should provide hunters with some additional quality hunting opportunities.

The woodcock season framework changes came about as a result of a new National Woodcock Harvest Strategy that was developed at the Flyway level with all four flyways, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and the USGS working together. The historic and current woodcock breeding and harvest data was analyzed and a set of hunting frameworks was developed for the country. Woodcock are managed by region. There is a Central Management Region in the mid-west and an Eastern Management Region along the east coast. Traditionally, the Central Region has been allowed a more liberal woodcock hunting season than the Eastern Region. The analysis completed for the new hunting strategy indicated that there was no reason to have different sets of hunting frameworks for the regions. So now we have one set of framework for the country.

Woodcock populations are generally in good shape, even though there continues to be a small annual long-term decline in breeding numbers. Woodcock hunting pressure has declined substantially in the last decade, so we feel confident that there is room for some additional opportunity. The population will continue to be monitored closely and future hunting seasons will be adjusted as needed.

Cottontail Rabbits: Cottontail rabbit range remains fragmented and highly limited in New Hampshire.  Be sure to note the list below for the closed areas for the taking of cottontails.  These closures are designed to protect our remnant New England cottontail populations.  Have a safe and successful fall hunting season!

The following areas are closed to the taking of cottontail rabbits (click here for map):

(1) The portion of WMUs K, M and L bound by Route 28 from the Massachusetts border in Salem, north to Route 4 in Epsom, Route 4 west to I-93 in Concord, I-93 south to I-89 in Concord, I-89 north to Route 13 in Dunbarton, Route 13 south to the Massachusetts border in Brookline.

(2) The portion of WMU L bound by Route 202/11 west from the Maine border in Rochester, to Route 16, Route 16 south to Route 125, Route 125 south to Route 101, Route 101 east to the Squamscott River, north along the Squamscott River, north along shoreline of Great and Little Bay estuary to the Piscataqua River, and northwest along the Maine border to Route 202/11 at the Maine border.

Take the Small Game Survey -- You could win a Ruger rifle! Click here for info.

For information and season dates for snipe, Canada geese and other waterfowl, CLICK HERE.