Mass grey squirrel season extended?

[whacko]

Just read the abstract that grey squirrel is open till Feb 28 now.....used to end Jan 2 every year. Sweet!

 

[pupchow]

Good to know. Pheasant also been extended.

https://www.mass.gov/media/2083796/download

 

[Mark from MA]

They were talking about doing this last year.

Note that the two weeks of deer season we can't hunt small game and pheasants.

But Im sure my club will have a few extra weekend hunts now in.

 

[pupchow]

Also wrt to extended pheasant, that will extended the period of restrictions on pheasant stocked wma.

 

[RDG]

Also wrt to extended pheasant, that will extended the period of restrictions on pheasant stocked wma.

I think they were getting rid of the of the weird pheasant stocked WMA restrictions.

Public Hearing for proposed hunting regulation changes

MassWildlife is holding a public hearing on June 22, 2022 on regulations related to the hunting of pheasant, quail, and small game.

www.mass.gov

• Create a late pheasant and quail season so hunters can pursue any previously stocked unharvested birds through December 31.
• Expand hunting hours on stocked WMAs. Hunting hours would remain sunrise to sunset while hunting pheasant, but would be expanded for other species. For example, archery deer hunters could now hunt from a half-hour before sunrise to a half-hour after sunset on WMAs stocked with pheasant.
• Standardize hunting hours for pheasant and quail to sunrise to sunset statewide.
• Remove WMA hunting implement restrictions and standardize implements (shotgun and archery) for pheasant and quail. For example, bear and coyote hunters would now be permitted to use any legal hunting implement, including rifles, on WMAs stocked with pheasants. Hunters would now only be able to use shotgun and archery equipment while hunting for pheasants statewide.
• Simplify and expand the hare, cottontail, and gray squirrel seasons. Hare, cottontail, and gray squirrel hunting seasons would be extended through the end of February in a single statewide season for each species.
• Remove the black-tailed jackrabbit season. MassWildlife staff believes the species is extirpated.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

I checked the website and though they added multiple weeks to the upland season they only added 1 more stocking day.

Kind of stupid if you ask me. They don’t stock enough birds as it is. They want us to walk around for a few extra weeks shooting at nothing?

 

[RDG]

I checked the website and though they added multiple weeks to the upland season they only added 1 more stocking day.

Kind of stupid if you ask me. They don’t stock enough birds as it is. They want us to walk around for a few extra weeks shooting at nothing?

The extra season is for hunting leftover birds...

CT has a extended season that runs into Feb. They stop stocking in late Nov/ early Dec depending on the site.

I still find birds well into Feb at some spots. It's actually a lot more fun and challenging.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

The extra season is for hunting leftover birds...

CT has a extended season that runs into Feb. They stop stocking in late Nov/ early Dec depending on the site.

I still find birds well into Feb at some spots. It's actually a lot more fun and challenging.

Yeah I can’t find birds in the regular season around here. Between the lack of stock. Tons of predators. It’s been a bad couple of years.
My dog was always good for a limit of quail and a limit of pheasant every day I went out.
there’s nothing to be found lately. Opening day at one local stocking area yielded 8 shots heard in 2.25 hours. The place was barren. It was worse on regular stocking days. 3-4 shots the whole time I was out.

Hearing similar stories from other upland hunters.

I’ll enjoy the extended squirrel season more than the upland.

 

[whacko]

I checked the website and though they added multiple weeks to the upland season they only added 1 more stocking day.

Kind of stupid if you ask me. They don’t stock enough birds as it is. They want us to walk around for a few extra weeks shooting at nothing?

I've flushed leftover pheasants on wma land well into January before.....and had to let them fly because the season is technically over. The added weeks isn't to extend the stocking season.....its to let hunters clean up the leftover birds that are going to die anyway.

 

[whacko]

Yeah I can’t find birds in the regular season around here. Between the lack of stock. Tons of predators. It’s been a bad couple of years.
My dog was always good for a limit of quail and a limit of pheasant every day I went out.
there’s nothing to be found lately. Opening day at one local stocking area yielded 8 shots heard in 2.25 hours. The place was barren. It was worse on regular stocking days. 3-4 shots the whole time I was out.

Hearing similar stories from other upland hunters.

I’ll enjoy the extended squirrel season more than the upland.

I'll be out and about Saturday morning. On my nh license can hunt squirrel through end of jan.....now mass changes I can hunt em till end of Feb. I like the change.

 

[38ExtraSpecial]

I've flushed leftover pheasants on wma land well into January before.....and had to let them fly because the season is technically over. The added weeks isn't to extend the stocking season.....its to let hunters clean up the leftover birds that are going to die anyway.

That sounds great and I would have loved that in year passed but like I said the stocking has been next to nothing around here. Did they stock near you this season? Are you in MA or NH for upland?

I'll be out and about Saturday morning. On my nh license can hunt squirrel through end of jan.....now mass changes I can hunt em till end of Feb. I like the change.

Yeah I can’t wait. I always get out in the early season before upland and just get frustrated because it’s tough to see and hear well when the leaves are full on the trees. The late season is where it’s at for tree chickens.

 

[Mark from MA]

Yeah I can’t find birds in the regular season around here. Between the lack of stock. Tons of predators. It’s been a bad couple of years.
My dog was always good for a limit of quail and a limit of pheasant every day I went out.
there’s nothing to be found lately. Opening day at one local stocking area yielded 8 shots heard in 2.25 hours. The place was barren. It was worse on regular stocking days. 3-4 shots the whole time I was out.

Hearing similar stories from other upland hunters.

I’ll enjoy the extended squirrel season more than the upland.

I didn't hunt much WMA last year because my dog was sick. But reports from my buddies were it was a very good year. In my area of central, the pressure has gone down, lot of boomer gents not getting dogs anymore, and exiting the sport cause they can't walk that good. Even me, Im not getting another dog....but I have many friends that do I'll be hunting with. But still it will limit my after work, go for an hour hunts, where many times, I bag my two birds in an hour.

The year before was a bounty of pheasants like i had never seen before, but i attributed it to less older people hunting, and more birds out my way because Bolton Flats was flooded.

But in no way do the birds last that much out here beyond Thanksgiving.......too many predators. By the end of the season the owls and hawks see the stocking truck and are just waiting in the trees. At our club, same thing, we stock in the morning and owls and hawks are sitting in trees waiting.

The extra time for pheasant this year, we will likely get together as a club and buy some birds for the and stock them if people want to pay.

 

[pupchow]