New regulations booklet has some significant changes from last year
The NCWRC has released its 2018-19 Inland Fishing, Hunting & Trapping regulations digest, and it is available for download from their website. You can also request a copy of the regulations be mailed to your home.
Click here if you would like a copy of the regulations digest mailed to you.
The digest lists information on license fees, regulations, and dates for each season and area of the state.
The Commission would like outdoorsmen to know that every year, some changes are made to the regulations that anyone involved in fishing, hunting, or trapping within the state of North Carolina needs to be aware of. Following a regulation digest from a previous year is never a good idea.
One part of the new digest every year deals with some of what the NCWRC deems the most significant changes from the previous year. Keep in mind, this is not the entire list of changes, just the changes the Commission feels are the most significant. Other changes from last year’s regulations are listed throughout the digest in red.
For this year, the changes listed as most significant by NCWRC are as follows:
Fishing
When fishing, anglers may not change the appearance of nongame fishes subject to a size and/or creel limit in such way that the fish cannot be identified, measured or counted, see Nongame Fish Regulations.
Hunting
Clarified that no firearms capable of using fixed ammunition may be used for hunting during the blackpowder-only deer season, regardless of when the firearm was manufactured, see Blackpowder on General Hunting Regulations.
Changed the deer bag limits to 4 antlerless deer and 2 antlered deer statewide, see Bag Limits on Deer Seasons.
Eliminated the use of Bonus Antlerless Deer Licenses/Harvest Report Cards except during the Urban Archery Season, see Deer Seasons.
Moved either-sex days to the start of the Introductory, Conservative, and Moderate antlerless deer seasons, see Either-Sex Deer Seasons on Deer Seasons.
Big game harvest report statistics are no longer printed in this publication. County, regional or statewide harvest totals and multi-year trend comparisons for deer, bear or turkey are available at ncwildlife.org/HarvestReport. Current and prior year’s harvest statistics can be found at ncwildlife.org/harvestreport.
Big game harvest counts for the current hunting season can be generated in real-time through the Commission’s online, electronic reporting system at ncwildlife.org/IGotOne. County, regional or statewide harvest totals and multi-year trend comparisons for deer, bear or turkey are available.
Changed the bear hunting seasons in the Coastal Bear Management Unit (CBMU) to align hunting seasons with the five bear hunting zones. Counties in CBMU Zones 1-4 now have Saturday opening dates and Sunday closing dates for the 1st and 2nd segment of the bear seasons, see Bear Regulations.
Game Lands
The Commission has added two new areas to its Game Lands Program. They are Dan River Game Land in Rockingham County and Headwaters State Forest in Transylvania County. For more information, refer to the “Game Lands” Section starting on Game Lands.
Enforcement
The Commission formally entered the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact joining 46 other member states on October 1, 2017. As a compact member, North Carolina has agreed to treat nonresidents from member states as if they were residents for purposes of hunting, fishing, trapping and wildlife violations. The compact does not cover boating violations. Likewise, North Carolina residents will be treated the same way in other member states.
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