When it comes to hunting in the Northeastern areas of the United States, Maine stands out among the states in this region as a top hunting destination, providing a variety of game species and hunting opportunities. Now, let's directly jump to the most important part and see when the Maine hunting seasons start.
The following information will give you all the crucial information about the Maine hunting season calendar, legal shooting hours, licenses and hunting regulations, and help you plan your hunting trips in advance.
Maine Deer Hunting Seasons
First and the most popular hunting season is deer season. The Maine deer season starts on September 7, 2024, and ends on December 14, 2024, giving hunters more than 3 months to enjoy the outdoor hunts. Here are the details:
- Expanded Archery Season: September 7 - December 14, 2024
- Regular Archery Season: October 5 - November 1, 2024
- Youth Deer Hunt Season: October 25 - October 26, 2024
- Maine Resident Only Day: November 2, 2024
- Firearms Season: November 4 - November 30, 2024
- Muzzleloader Statewide Season: December 2 - December 7, 2024
- Muzzleloader Season (zone12, 13, 15-18, 20-26, 29): December 9 - December 14, 2024
🔔*Note:
- hunters can only take deer with antlers at least 3 inches long. Exceptions apply for hunters with Antlerless Deer Permits and expanded archery hunters.
- The legal hunting hours are 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset.
- The bag limit is One antlered deer only per hunter. If you have the Antlerless Deer Permits, you may take the antlerless deer.
Maine Bear Season
Youth Bear Day: August 24, 2024
General Hunting Season: August 26 - November 30, 2024
Hunting with Bait: August 26 - September 21, 2024
Bear Trapping: September 1 - October 31, 2024
Hunting with Dogs: September 9 - November 1, 2024
🔔*Note:
- Each hunter can only take two bears. One by hunting and one by trapping.
- The legal hunting hours are 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset.
Maine Moose Hunting Season
The moose seasons vary in different hunting zones. Make sure to familiarize yourself with the units you are going to hunt in.
Antlerless-Only Season(4A ):
- October 21- October 26, 2024
- October 28 - November 2, 2024
- November 4 - November 9, 2024
Bull-Only Season( 1- 6, 10, 11, 18, 19, 27, 28): September 23 - September 28, 2024
Bull-Only Season( 1-15, 17-19, 27, 28): October 14 - October 19, 2024
Antlerless-Only Season(1-6, 8): October 28 - November 2, 2024
🔔*Note:
- Please note that moose hunting season dates and WMDs are subject to change.
- The legal hunting hours are 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset.
Maine Turkey Seasons
Spring Turkey Season
Fall Turkey Season
General Hunting Season: September 16 - November 7, 2024
Youth Turkey Day: Sep. 14, 2024
🔔*Note:
- The Fall turkey season is closed on Units 1-5 and 9.
- The legal hunting hours are 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset.
- You may take up to 2 turkeys for the spring season, but cannot exceed the bag limit of each hunting zone.
- You may take up to 5 turkeys for the fall season, but cannot exceed the bag limit of each hunting unit.
- The bag limits vary in different Units. Here are the details:
- Units 15-17, 20-25: 5 Wild Turkeys
- Unit 26: 3 Wild Turkeys
- Unit 28: 2 Wild Turkeys
- Units 6-8, 10-14, 18, 19, 27 & 29: 1 Wild Turkey
Maine Bird Hunting Season
Bobwhite Quail and Ruffed Grouse Season
- September 28 - December 31, 2024
- Daily bag limit is 4 and total limit is 8
Pheasant Season
- September 28 - December 31, 2024
- Daily bag limit is 2 and total limit is 4
Crows Season:
- Unit 1~6:
February 5 - April 15, 2024
August 1 - September 21, 2024 - Unit 7~29:
January 22, - March 30, 2024
August 1 - September 21, 2024 - No limit on crows and you can hunt as many as you want
Woodcock Season
- September 28 - November 19, 2024
- Daily bag limit 3 and total limit 9
Snipe Season
- September 2 - January 3, 2025
- Daily bag limit is 8 and total limit is 24
Sora & Virginia Rails Season
- September 2 - November 21, 2024
- Daily bag limit is 25 and total limit is 25
Ducks, Geese, Sea Ducks Season:
🔔*Note:
- The hunting hours for bird seasons are half an hour before sunrise to sunset daily.
- Except for the license, there are special permits you should purchase. Such as Waterfowl Permit, Pheasant Permit, Duck Stamp.
Maine Small Game Seasons
Gray Squirrel Season
- September 28 -December 31, 2024
- September 28 -February 28, 2025 (Falconry)
- Daily bag limit is 4 and total limit is 8
Snowshoe Hare Season
- September 28 -March 31, 2025
- September 28 - February 28, 2025
- Daily bag limit is 4 and total limit is 8
Bobcat Season
- December 2, 2024 - February 21, 2025
- No Limit
Fox Season
- October 21, 2024 - February 28, 2025
- No Limit
Raccoon Season
- October 1, 2024 - December 31, 2024
- No Limit
Skunk, Opossum Season
- October 21, 2024 - December 31, 2024
- No Limit
Coyote Season
- No closed season ( Daytime Hunting)
- December 16, 2024 - August 30, 2025 (Night Hunting)
- No Limit
🔔*Note: this year, there is no open seasons for Spruce Grouse, Lynx, and Cottontail Rabbit.
Trapping Season In Maine
The following are the hunting dates and open areas of Maine trapping seasons for certain wildlife.
| Early Fox & Coyote | Statewide | October 20 - November 2, 2024 |
| Early Muskrat | Units 1-6 & 9-11 | October 27 - November 2, 2024 |
| Beaver | Units 1-4 | October 20, 2024 - April 30, 2025 |
| Units 5, 6 & 8-11 | October 27, 2024 - April 30, 2025 | |
| Units 7 & 12-29 | October 27, 2024 - April 15, 2025 | |
| Bear | Statewide | September 1, 2024 - October 31, 2024 |
| General Trapping
(bobcat, coyote, fisher, fox, mink, muskrat, opossum, otter, raccoon, red squirrel, marten, skunk, weasel) |
Statewide | November 3, 2024 - December 31, 2024 |
*Remember that it is not legal to trap any game animals that are not listed in the above seasons. There are different regulations for different species in trapping seasons, you can check them completely HERE.
Maine Hunting Licenses
The hunting license fees vary for different species, hunting methods, and your residency. We have listed all the licenses and permits for your reference.
For Deer Hunting
- Deer Firearm/Archery/Muzzleloader/Expanded Archery (Resident): $26
- Deer Firearm/Muzzleloader(Nonresident): $115
- Deer Archery/Expanded Archery (Nonresident): $75
- Deer Permit(Resident): $12
- Deer Permit(Nonresident): $12
For Moose Hunting
| Hunting Methods | Residents | Nonresidents | Moose Permit |
| Firearm | $26 | $115 | $52 |
| Archery | $26 | $75 | $585 |
For Bear Hunting
| Hunting Methods | Residents | Nonresidents | Bear Permits |
| Firearm | $26 | $115 | $10 |
| Archery | $26 | $75 | $74 |
For Turkey Hunting
| Hunting Methods | Residents | Nonresidents | Turkey Permits |
| Firearm | $26 | $115 | $20 |
| Archery | $26 | $75 | $20 |
For Bird / Small Game Hunting
- Resident Small Game Hunt: $15
- Nonresident Small Game Hunt: $75
- Pheasant Permit: $27
- Coyote Night Hunting Permit: $4
- Waterfowl Permit: $7.5
*The costs of the Resident's lifetime hunting licenses range from $150 to $10. The older the age, the cheaper the price.
Maine Hunting Regulations And Tips
Hunters in Maine need to follow a set of rules, regulations, and ethical guidelines to ensure safe, legal, and responsible hunting practices.
Here is a comprehensive list of what hunters need to pay attention to and follow when hunting in Maine:
- Hunting License and Permits: First, obtain the appropriate hunting license and any necessary permits for the specific game species and hunting methods. Ensure you have the correct type of license (resident or non-resident) and that it is valid for the specific area and season.
- Hunting Dates and Bag Limits: Familiarize yourself with the hunting seasons and bag limits for different game animals you plan to hunt. Such as, Sunday hunting is prohibited; don't hunt outside of the seasons and exceed the bag limits.
- Wildlife Management District (WMD): Know the boundaries and regulations for the Wildlife Management Zones in which you plan to hunt because different districts may have different rules.
- Hunting Orange Requirement: Wear blaze orange clothing during firearm hunting seasons to increase visibility to other hunters and avoid any accidents. Maine regulations specify the minimum amount of blaze orange that must be visible on your clothing.
- Safe Firearm Handling: Practice safe firearm handling at all times. Keep your firearm pointed in a safe direction, keep it unloaded until ready to use, and only place your finger on the trigger when you are prepared to shoot.
- Hunting Methods: Use legal and ethical hunting methods for the game species you are pursuing. Ensure you are aware of regulations regarding baiting, trapping, hunting with dogs, and other specific methods.
- Hunter Education: Complete a hunter education course if you are a new hunter or if it is required by law. This course covers firearm safety, hunting ethics, and other essential knowledge for hunters.
- Private Property: Respect private property rights and obtain permission from landowners before hunting on private lands. Be aware of land use regulations and boundaries.
- Reporting Requirements: Comply with any reporting requirements for the harvested game. For certain species like moose, deer, and bear, hunters may be required to report their harvest.
- Ethical Hunting Practices: Follow ethical hunting practices, including taking only ethical shots within your effective range, tracking and retrieving wounded game, and avoiding unnecessary suffering of animals.
- Leave No Trace: Leave no trace by packing out all trash and adhering to ethical field dressing and game retrieval practices.
- Wildlife Conservation: Support wildlife conservation efforts by following hunting regulations that are designed to sustain healthy wildlife populations.
- Youth Hunting: If participating in youth hunting activities, ensure that youth hunters are supervised and educated about safe and ethical hunting practices.
- Transportation of Game: Properly tag and transport harvested game as required by law. This may include attaching a tag to the animal and keeping records of the harvest.
- Check for Updates: Regularly check for updates to hunting regulations, as rules and requirements may change from year to year.
- Show Respect: Abide by hunting ethics and principles of fair chase, which include sportsmanship, respect for wildlife, and consideration for other hunters and the environment.
Conclusion
Maine's challenging landscapes and diverse wildlife offer an attractive opportunity for hunters of all levels of experience. Nevertheless, it is crucial to understand the state's hunting regulations for safety and compliance.
Please note that Maine hunting seasons and regulations may change, so always make sure to check for updates on Maine hunting seasons and rules before you start your hunting trip. Happy hunting!
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