Game Bird Regulations - Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Director’s Message
BIRD HUNTERS – GET READY TO GO!
Forest grouse, Oregon’s most popular game birds, open on
September 1. More hunters hunt for these birds in Oregon than any
other due to the long season (September – January) and their wide
distribution throughout the state. Their habitat in cool forests makes
them the perfect quarry after a hot summer. Just the tune up your
hunting dog and your hiking legs need before pheasant and chukar
season!
This year we have made it easier for you to make forest grouse a part
of any family camping trip. Possession limits for both forest grouse
and quail have increased from two to three daily limits, allowing you
extra hunting time without worrying about the number of harvested
birds at your campsite. Use this camping time to help your kids learn
shotgun safety and staying alert for birds on the move. See our improved oregonhuntingmap.com
to hone in on a good spot to hunt—we’ve added range maps for forest grouse and all of Oregon’s
upland birds.
Another early season opportunity for kids is our September youth upland bird hunts. This year, we’re opening up registration
in August so busy families have more time to plan. Also new this year, sign up online or at a license sales agent—the cost is
still free!
Olivia Barber, accompanying her dad,
Clayton, during a recent chukar hunt.
The department remains sensitive to the needs of sage grouse, a popular game bird and
iconic species of the sagebrush rangelands. In response to the large fires in SE Oregon
this summer, we’ve reduced sage grouse permit numbers in two units to allow us time
to determine if there are any population level effects. Oregon’s sage grouse harvest
remains very conservative at two to three percent of the estimated fall population.
The hunt is made possible by the exceptional cooperation of hunters who annually
provide wings from harvested birds yielding valuable biological information like age
ratios, gender ratios, peak hatching period, and proportion of successful hens; all of
which are important for assessing the status of Oregon’s sage grouse.
Once these early season opportunities have whetted your hunting appetite, get ready
for another great waterfowl season. Duck numbers were at a record high this year in
North America, 43 percent above the long-term average according to U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service surveys.
Oregon is coming off a bang-up season for duck hunting. Sauvie Island Wildlife Area
saw the best waterfowl season since 1978-79, with nearly 22,000 birds taken last year.
Fern Ridge Wildlife Area hunters took nearly 5,500 ducks, the highest number since
record keeping began in the late 1980s and 1,900 more than in 2011.
We’re lucky in Oregon to have five state wildlife areas managed especially for
waterfowl—Sauvie Island, Fern Ridge, Ladd Marsh, Klamath, and Summer Lake. All of
these were purchased and are maintained by funds from the federal Pittman-Robertson
Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937, the excise tax on guns, ammo, and hunting equipment
which celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. Thanks to the support of hunters, we will
continue to see many more years of great bird hunting here in Oregon.
Roy Elicker,
Director
A sage grouse in full strut.
Brandon Reishus after a successful
forest grouse hunt.
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife 3