50 Cfr 20

e-CFR data is current as of December 7, 2020
Title 50 → Chapter I → Subchapter B → Part 20
Title 50: Wildlife and Fisheries
PART 20—MIGRATORY BIRD HUNTING
Contents
Subpart A—Introduction
§20.1 Scope of regulations.
§20.2 Relation to other provisions.
Subpart B—Definitions
§20.11 What terms do I need to understand?
Subpart C—Taking
§20.20
§20.21
§20.22
§20.23
§20.24
§20.25
§20.26

Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program.
What hunting methods are illegal?
Closed seasons.
Shooting hours.
Daily limit.
Wanton waste of migratory game birds.
Emergency closures.

Subpart D—Possession
§20.31
§20.32
§20.33
§20.34
§20.35
§20.36
§20.37
§20.38
§20.39
§20.40

Prohibited if taken in violation of subpart C.
During closed season.
Possession limit.
Opening day of a season.
Field possession limit.
Tagging requirement.
Custody of birds of another.
Possession of live birds.
Termination of possession.
Gift of migratory game birds.

Subpart E—Transportation Within the United States
§20.41 Prohibited if taken in violation of subpart C.
§20.42 Transportation of birds of another.

§20.43 Species identification requirement.
§20.44 Marking package or container.
Subpart F—Exportation
§20.51 Prohibited if taken in violation of subpart C.
§20.52 Species identification requirement.
§20.53 Marking package or container.
Subpart G—Importations
§20.61
§20.62
§20.63
§20.64
§20.65
§20.66

Importation limits.
Importation of birds of another.
Species identification requirement.
Foreign export permits.
Processing requirement.
Marking of package or container.

Subpart H—Federal, State, and Foreign Law
§20.71 Violation of Federal law.
§20.72 Violation of State law.
§20.73 Violation of foreign law.
Subpart I—Migratory Bird Preservation Facilities
§20.81 Tagging requirement.
§20.82 Records required.
§20.83 Inspection of premises.
Subpart J—Feathers or Skins
§20.91 Commercial use of feathers.
§20.92 Personal use of feathers or skins.
Subpart K—Annual Seasons, Limits, and Shooting Hours Schedules
§20.100
§20.101
§20.102
§20.103
pigeons.
§20.104
snipe.
§20.105
§20.106
§20.107
§20.108
§20.109

General provisions.
Seasons, limits and shooting hours for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for Alaska.
Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for mourning and white-winged doves and wild
Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for rails, woodcock, and common (Wilson's)
Seasons, limits and shooting hours for waterfowl, coots, and gallinules.
Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for sandhill cranes.
Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for tundra swans.
Nontoxic shot zones.
Extended seasons, limits, and hours for taking migratory game birds by falconry.

§20.110 Seasons, limits, and other regulations for certain Federal Indian reservations, Indian
Territory, and ceded lands.
Subpart L—Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions
§20.131
§20.132
§20.133
§20.134

Extension of seasons.
Subsistence use in Alaska.
Hunting regulations for crows.
Approval of nontoxic shot types and shot coatings.

Subpart M [Reserved]
Subpart N—Special Procedures for Issuance of Annual Hunting Regulations
§20.151
§20.152
§20.153
§20.154
§20.155
A

S

Purpose and scope.
Definitions.
Regulations committee.
Flyway Councils.
Public file.
: 16 U.S.C. 703 et seq., and 16 U.S.C. 742a-j.

: 38 FR 22021, Aug. 15, 1973, unless otherwise noted.

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Subpart A—Introduction
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§20.1 Scope of regulations.
(a) In general. The regulations contained in this part relate only to the hunting of migratory
game birds, and crows.
(b) Procedural and substantive requirements. Migratory game birds may be taken,
possessed, transported, shipped, exported, or imported only in accordance with the
restrictions, conditions, and requirements contained in this part. Crows may be taken,
possessed, transported, exported, or imported only in accordance with subpart H of this part
and the restrictions, conditions, and requirements prescribed in §20.133.
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§20.2 Relation to other provisions.
(a) Migratory bird permits. The provisions of this part shall not be construed to alter the
terms of any permit or other authorization issued pursuant to part 21 of this subchapter.
(b) Migratory bird hunting stamps. The provisions of this part are in addition to the
provisions of the Migratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act of 1934 (48 Stat. 451, as amended; 16

U.S.C. 718a).
(c) National wildlife refuges. The provisions of this part are in addition to, and are not in
lieu of, any other provision of law respecting migratory game birds under the National Wildlife
Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (80 Stat. 927, as amended; 16 U.S.C. 668dd) or
any regulation made pursuant thereto.
(d) State Laws for the protection of migratory birds. No statute or regulation of any State
shall be construed to relieve a person from the restrictions, conditions, and requirements
contained in this part, however, nothing in this part shall be construed to prevent the several
States from making and enforcing laws or regulations not inconsistent with these regulations
and the conventions between the United States and any foreign country for the protection of
migratory birds or with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, or which shall give further protection to
migratory game birds.
(e) Migratory bird subsistence harvest in Alaska. The provisions of this part, except for
paragraphs (a) through (d) of this section, are not applicable to the regulations governing the
migratory bird subsistence harvest in Alaska (part 92 of this subchapter) unless specifically
referenced in part 92 of subchapter G of this chapter.
[38 FR 22021, Aug. 15, 1973, as amended at 68 FR 43027, July 21, 2003]

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Subpart B—Definitions
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§20.11 What terms do I need to understand?
For the purpose of this part, the following terms shall be construed, respectively, to mean
and to include:
(a) Migratory game birds means those migratory birds included in the terms of
conventions between the United States and any foreign country for the protection of migratory
birds, for which open seasons are prescribed in this part and belong to the following families:
(1) Anatidae (ducks, geese [including brant] and swans);
(2) Columbidae (doves and pigeons);
(3) Gruidae (cranes);
(4) Rallidae (rails, coots and gallinules); and
(5) Scolopacidae (woodcock and snipe).
A list of migratory birds protected by the international conventions and the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act appears in §10.13 of this subchapter.

(b) Seasons—(1) Open season means the days on which migratory game birds may
lawfully be taken. Each period precribed as an open season shall be construed to include the
first and last days thereof.
(2) Closed season means the days on which migratory game birds shall not be taken.
(c) Bag limits—(1) Aggregate bag limit means a condition of taking in which two or more
usually similar species may be bagged (reduced to possession) by the hunter in
predetermined or unpredetermined quantities to satisfy a maximum take limit.
(2) Daily bag limit means the maximum number of migratory game birds of single species
or combination (aggregate) of species permitted to be taken by one person in any one day
during the open season in any one specified geographic area for which a daily bag limit is
prescribed.
(3) Aggregate daily bag limit means the maximum number of migratory game birds
permitted to be taken by one person in any one day during the open season when such
person hunts in more than one specified geographic area and/or for more than one species for
which a combined daily bag limit is prescribed. The aggregate daily bag limit is equal to, but
shall not exceed, the largest daily bag limit prescribed for any one species or for any one
specified geographic area in which taking occurs.
(4) Possession limit means the maximum number of migratory game birds of a single
species or a combination of species permitted to be possessed by any one person when
lawfully taken in the United States in any one specified geographic area for which a
possession limit is prescribed.
(5) Aggregate possession limit means the maximum number of migratory game birds of a
single species or combination of species taken in the United States permitted to be possessed
by any one person when taking and possession occurs in more than one specified geographic
area for which a possession limit is prescribed. The aggegate possession limit is equal to, but
shall not exceed, the largest possession limit prescribed for any one of the species or
specified geographic areas in which taking and possession occurs.
(d) Personal abode means one's principal or ordinary home or dwelling place, as
distinguished from one's temporary or transient place of abode or dwelling such as a hunting
club, or any club house, cabin, tent or trailer house used as a hunting club, or any hotel, motel
or rooming house used during a hunting, pleasure or business trip.
(e) Migratory bird preservation facility means:
(1) Any person who, at their residence or place of business and for hire or other
consideration; or
(2) Any taxidermist, cold-storage facility or locker plant which, for hire or other
consideration; or

(3) Any hunting club which, in the normal course of operations; receives, possesses, or
has in custody any migratory game birds belonging to another person for purposes of picking,
cleaning, freezing, processing, storage or shipment.
(f) Paraplegic means an individual afflicted with paralysis of the lower half of the body with
involvement of both legs, usually due to disease of or injury to the spinal cord.
(g) Normal agricultural planting, harvesting, or post-harvest manipulation means a
planting or harvesting undertaken for the purpose of producing and gathering a crop, or
manipulation after such harvest and removal of grain, that is conducted in accordance with
official recommendations of State Extension Specialists of the Cooperative Extension Service
of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
(h) Normal agricultural operation means a normal agricultural planting, harvesting, postharvest manipulation, or agricultural practice, that is conducted in accordance with official
recommendations of State Extension Specialists of the Cooperative Extension Service of the
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
(i) Normal soil stabilization practice means a planting for agricultural soil erosion control or
post-mining land reclamation conducted in accordance with official recommendations of State
Extension Specialists of the Cooperative Extension Service of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture for agricultural soil erosion control.
(j) Baited area means any area on which salt, grain, or other feed has been placed,
exposed, deposited, distributed, or scattered, if that salt, grain, or other feed could serve as a
lure or attraction for migratory game birds to, on, or over areas where hunters are attempting
to take them. Any such area will remain a baited area for ten days following the complete
removal of all such salt, grain, or other feed.
(k) Baiting means the direct or indirect placing, exposing, depositing, distributing, or
scattering of salt, grain, or other feed that could serve as a lure or attraction for migratory
game birds to, on, or over any areas where hunters are attempting to take them.
(l) Manipulation means the alteration of natural vegetation or agricultural crops by
activities that include but are not limited to mowing, shredding, discing, rolling, chopping,
trampling, flattening, burning, or herbicide treatments. The term manipulation does not include
the distributing or scattering of grain, seed, or other feed after removal from or storage on the
field where grown.
(m) Rice ratooning means the agricultural practice of harvesting rice by cutting the
majority of the aboveground portion of the rice plant but leaving the roots and growing shoot
apices intact to allow the plant to recover and produce a second crop yield.
(n) Post-disaster flooding means the destruction of a crop through flooding in accordance
with practices required by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation for agricultural producers to
obtain crop insurance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) on land
on which a crop was not harvestable due to a natural disaster (including any hurricane, storm,
tornado, flood, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic

eruption, landslide, mudslide, drought, fire, snowstorm, or other catastrophe that is declared a
major disaster by the President in accordance with section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170)) in the crop year—
(1) In which the natural disaster occurred; or
(2) Immediately preceding the crop year in which the natural disaster occurred.
(o) Natural vegetation means any non-agricultural, native, or naturalized plant species
that grows at a site in response to planting or from existing seeds or other propagules. The
term natural vegetation does not include planted millet. However, planted millet that grows on
its own in subsequent years after the year of planting is considered natural vegetation.
(p) Resident Canada geese means Canada geese that nest within the lower 48 States
and the District of Columbia or that reside within the lower 48 States and the District of
Columbia in the months of April, May, June, July, or August.
[53 FR 24290, June 28, 1988, as amended at 64 FR 29804, June 3, 1999; 71 FR 45986, Aug. 10,
2006; 72 FR 46407, Aug. 20, 2007; 84 FR 28773, June 20, 2019; 84 FR 38885, Aug. 8, 2019]

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Subpart C—Taking
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§20.20 Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program.
(a) Information collection requirements. The collections of information contained in §20.20
have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget under 44 U.S.C. 3501 et
seq. and assigned clearance number 1018-0015. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and
a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently
valid OMB control number. The information will be used to provide a sampling frame for the
national Migratory Bird Harvest Survey. Response is required from licensed hunters to obtain
the benefit of hunting migratory game birds. Public reporting burden for this information is
estimated to average 2 minutes per response for 3,300,000 respondents, including the time
for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data
needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Thus the total annual
reporting and record-keeping burden for this collection is estimated to be 112,000 hours. Send
comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information,
including suggestions for reducing the burden, to the Service's Information Collection
Clearance Officer at the address provided at 50 CFR 2.1(b).
(b) General provisions. Each person hunting migratory game birds in any State except
Hawaii must have identified himself or herself as a migratory bird hunter and given his or her
name, address, and date of birth to the respective State hunting licensing authority and must
have on his or her person evidence, provided by that State, of compliance with this
requirement.

(c) Tribal exemptions. Nothing in paragraph (b) of this section shall apply to tribal
members on Federal Indian Reservations or to tribal members hunting on ceded lands.
(d) State exemptions. Nothing in paragraph (b) of this section shall apply to those hunters
who are exempt from State-licensing requirements in the State in which they are hunting.
(e) State responsibilities. The State hunting licensing authority will ask each licensed
migratory bird hunter in the respective State to report approximately how many ducks, geese,
doves, and woodcock he or she bagged the previous year, whether he or she hunted coots,
snipe, rails, and/or gallinules the previous year, and, in States that have band-tailed pigeon
hunting seasons, whether he or she intends to hunt band-tailed pigeons during the current
year.
[58 FR 15098, Mar. 19, 1993, as amended at 59 FR 53336, Oct. 21, 1994; 61 FR 46352, Aug. 30,
1996; 62 FR 45708, Aug. 28, 1997; 63 FR 46401, Sept. 1, 1998; 79 FR 43965, July 29, 2014]

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§20.21 What hunting methods are illegal?
Migratory birds on which open seasons are prescribed in this part may be taken by any
method except those prohibited in this section. No persons shall take migratory game birds:
(a) With a trap, snare, net, rifle, pistol, swivel gun, shotgun larger than 10 gauge, punt
gun, battery gun, machinegun, fish hook, poison, drug, explosive, or stupefying substance;
(b) With a shotgun of any description capable of holding more than three shells, unless it
is plugged with a one-piece filler, incapable of removal without disassembling the gun, so its
total capacity does not exceed three shells. However, this restriction does not apply during:
(1) A light-goose-only season (greater and lesser snow geese and Ross' geese) when all
other waterfowl and crane hunting seasons, excluding falconry, are closed.
(2) A Canada goose only season when all other waterfowl and crane hunting seasons,
excluding falconry, are closed in the Atlantic, Central, and Mississippi Flyway portions of
Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota,
Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey, New
York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and
Wyoming, as set forth below:
(i) During the period of September 1 to September 15, when approved in the annual
regulatory schedule in subpart K of this part; and
(ii) During the period of September 16 to September 30, when approved in the annual
regulatory schedule in subpart K of this part.

(c) From or by means, aid, or use of a sinkbox or any other type of low floating device,
having a depression affording the hunter a means of concealment beneath the surface of the
water;
(d) From or by means, aid, or use of any motor vehicle, motor-driven land conveyance, or
aircraft of any kind, except that paraplegics and persons missing one or both legs may take
from any stationary motor vehicle or stationary motor-driven land conveyance;
(e) From or by means of any motorboat or other craft having a motor attached, or any
sailboat, unless the motor has been completely shut off and/or the sails furled, and its
progress therefrom has ceased: Provided, That a craft under power may be used to retrieve
dead or crippled birds; however, crippled birds may not be shot from such craft under power
except in the seaduck area as permitted in subpart K of this part;
(f) By the use or aid of live birds as decoys; although not limited to, it shall be a violation
of this paragraph for any person to take migratory waterfowl on an area where tame or captive
live ducks or geese are present unless such birds are and have been for a period of 10
consecutive days prior to such taking, confined within an enclosure which substantially
reduces the audibility of their calls and totally conceals such birds from the sight of wild
migratory waterfowl;
(g) By the use or aid of recorded or electrically amplified bird calls or sounds, or recorded
or electrically amplified imitations of bird calls or sounds. However, this restriction does not
apply during:
(1) A light-goose-only season (greater and lesser snow geese and Ross' geese) when all
other waterfowl and crane hunting seasons, excluding falconry, are closed.
(2) A Canada goose only season when all other waterfowl and crane hunting seasons,
excluding falconry, are closed in the Atlantic, Central, and Mississippi Flyway portions of
Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota,
Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey, New
York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and
Wyoming, as set forth below:
(i) During the period of September 1 to September 15, when approved in the annual
regulatory schedule in subpart K of this part; and
(ii) During the period of September 16 to September 30, when approved in the annual
regulatory schedule in subpart K of this part.
(h) By means or aid of any motordriven land, water, or air conveyance, or any sailboat
used for the purpose of or resulting in the concentrating, driving, rallying, or stirring up of any
migratory bird;

(i) By the aid of baiting, or on or over any baited area, where a person knows or
reasonably should know that the area is or has been baited. However, nothing in this
paragraph prohibits:
(1) the taking of any migratory game bird, including waterfowl, coots, and cranes, on or
over the following lands or areas that are not otherwise baited areas—
(i) Standing crops or flooded standing crops (including aquatics); standing, flooded, or
manipulated natural vegetation; flooded harvested croplands; or lands or areas where seeds
or grains have been scattered solely as the result of a normal agricultural planting, harvesting,
post-harvest manipulation, rice ratooning, post-disaster flooding, or normal soil stabilization
practice;
(ii) From a blind or other place of concealment camouflaged with natural vegetation;
(iii) From a blind or other place of concealment camouflaged with vegetation from
agricultural crops, as long as such camouflaging does not result in the exposing, depositing,
distributing or scattering of grain or other feed; or
(iv) Standing or flooded standing agricultural crops where grain is inadvertently scattered
solely as a result of a hunter entering or exiting a hunting area, placing decoys, or retrieving
downed birds.
(2) The taking of any migratory game bird, except waterfowl, coots and cranes, on or over
lands or areas that are not otherwise baited areas, and where grain or other feed has been
distributed or scattered solely as the result of manipulation of an agricultural crop or other feed
on the land where grown, or solely as the result of a normal agricultural operation.
(j)(1) While possessing loose shot for muzzle loading or shotshells containing other than
the following approved shot types.
Approved shot
type*
Percent composition by weight
Bismuth-tin
97 bismuth, and 3 tin
Iron (steel)
iron and carbon

Field testing
device**
Hot Shot®***
Magnet or Hot
Shot®.
Iron-tungsten
any proportion of tungsten, and ≥1 iron
Magnet or Hot
Shot®.
Iron-tungsten≥1 iron, any proportion of tungsten, and up to 40 nickel
Magnet or Hot
nickel
Shot®.
Copper-clad iron 84 to 56.59 iron core, with copper cladding up to 44.1 of the Magnet or Hot Shot®
shot mass
Corrosion≥99.9 copper with benzotriazole and thermoplastic
Ultraviolet Light.
inhibited copper fluorescent powder coatings
Tungsten-bronze 51.1 tungsten, 44.4 copper, 3.9 tin, and 0.6 iron, or 60
Rare Earth Magnet.
tungsten, 35.1 copper, 3.9 tin, and 1 iron
Tungsten-iron40-76 tungsten, 10-37 iron, 9-16 copper, and 5-7 nickel
Hot Shot® or Rare
copper-nickel
Earth Magnet.
Tungsten-matrix 95.9 tungsten, 4.1 polymer
Hot Shot®.

Tungsten95.5 tungsten, 4.5 Nylon 6 or 11
polymer
Tungsten-tin-iron any proportions of tungsten and tin, and ≥1 iron

Hot Shot®.
Magnet or Hot
Shot®.
Rare Earth Magnet.

Tungsten-tinany proportions of tungsten, tin, and bismuth
bismuth
Tungsten-tin-iron- 65 tungsten, 21.8 tin, 10.4 iron, and 2.8 nickel
Magnet.
nickel
Tungsten-iron41.5-95.2 tungsten, 1.5-52.0 iron, and 3.5-8.0 fluoropolymer Rare Earth Magnet
polymer
or Hot Shot®.

* Coatings of copper, nickel, tin, zinc, zinc chloride, zinc chrome, fluoropolymers, and
fluorescent thermoplastic on approved nontoxic shot types also are approved.
** The information in the “Field Testing Device” column is strictly informational, not
regulatory.
*** The “HOT*SHOT” field testing device is from Stream Systems of Concord, CA.
(2) Each approved shot type must contain less than 1 percent residual lead (see§20.134).
(3) This shot type restriction applies to the taking of ducks, geese (including brant),
swans, coots (Fulica americana), and any other species that make up aggregate bag limits
with these migratory game birds during concurrent seasons in areas described in §20.108 as
nontoxic shot zones.
[38 FR 22021, Aug. 15, 1973, as amended at 38 FR 22896, Aug. 27, 1973; 44 FR 2599, Jan. 12,
1979; 45 FR 70275, Oct. 23, 1980; 49 FR 4079, Feb. 2, 1984; 52 FR 27364, July 21, 1987; 53 FR
24290, June 28, 1988; 60 FR 64, Jan. 3, 1995; 60 FR 43316, Aug. 18, 1995; 61 FR 42494, Aug. 15,
1996; 62 FR 43447, Aug. 13, 1997; 64 FR 29804, June 3, 1999; 64 FR 32780, June 17, 1999; 64 FR
45405, Aug. 19, 1999; 64 FR 71237, Dec. 20, 1999; 65 FR 53940, Sept. 6, 2000; 66 FR 742, Jan. 4,
2001; 66 FR 32265, June 14, 2001; 68 FR 1392, Jan. 10, 2003; 69 FR 48165, Aug. 9, 2004; 70 FR
49196, Aug. 23, 2005; 71 FR 4297, Jan. 26, 2006; 71 FR 45986, Aug. 10, 2006; 72 FR 46407, Aug.
20, 2007; 73 FR 65277, Nov. 3, 2008; 73 FR 70914, Nov. 24, 2008; 74 FR 53671, Oct. 20, 2009; 74
FR 57615, Nov. 9, 2009; 78 FR 65575, Nov. 1, 2013; 82 FR 51362, Nov. 6, 2017; 84 FR 38885, Aug.
8, 2019]

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§20.22 Closed seasons.
No person shall take migratory game birds during the closed season except as provided
in part 21 of this chapter.
[73 FR 65951, Nov. 5, 2008]

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§20.23 Shooting hours.

No person shall take migratory game birds except during the hours open to shooting as
prescribed in subpart K of this part and subpart E of part 21 of this chapter.
[73 FR 65951, Nov. 5, 2008]

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§20.24 Daily limit.
No person shall take in any 1 calendar day, more than the daily bag limit or aggregate
daily bag limit, whichever applies.
[38 FR 22021, Aug. 15, 1973, as amended at 38 FR 22626, Aug. 23, 1973]

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§20.25 Wanton waste of migratory game birds.
No person shall kill or cripple any migratory game bird pursuant to this part without
making a reasonable effort to retrieve the bird, and retain it in his actual custody, at the place
where taken or between that place and either (a) his automobile or principal means of land
transportation; or (b) his personal abode or temporary or transient place of lodging; or (c) a
migratory bird preservation facility; or (d) a post office; or (e) a common carrier facility.
[41 FR 31536, July 29, 1976]

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§20.26 Emergency closures.
(a) The Director may close or temporarily suspend any season established under subpart
K of this part:
(1) Upon a finding that a continuation of such a season would constitute an imminent
threat to the safety of any endangered or threatened species or other migratory bird
populations.
(2) Upon issuance of local public notice by such means as publication in local
newspapers of general circulation, posting of the areas affected, notifying the State wildlife
conservation agency, and announcement on local radio and television.
(b) Any such closure or temporary suspension shall be announced by publication of a
notice to that effect in the F
R
simultaneous with the local public notice
referred to in paragraph (a)(2) of this section. However, in the event that it is impractical to
publish a F
R
notice simultaneously, due to the restriction in time available and
the nature of the particular emergency situation, such notice shall follow the steps outlined in
paragraph (a) of this section as soon as possible.
(c) Any closure or temporary suspension under this section shall be effective on the date
of publication of the F
R
notice; or if such notice is not published

simultaneously, then on the date and at the time specified in the local notification to the public.
Every notice of closure shall include the date and time of closing of the season and the area or
areas affected. In the case of a temporary suspension, the date and time when the season
may be resumed shall be provided by a subsequent local notification to the public, and by
publication in the F
R
.
[41 FR 31536, July 29, 1976]

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Subpart D—Possession
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§20.31 Prohibited if taken in violation of subpart C.
No person shall at any time, by any means, or in any manner, possess or have in custody
any migratory game bird or part thereof, taken in violation of any provision of subpart C of this
part.
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§20.32 During closed season.
No person shall possess any freshly killed migratory game birds during the closed
season.
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§20.33 Possession limit.
No person shall possess more migratory game birds taken in the United States than the
possession limit or the aggregate possession limit, whichever applies.
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§20.34 Opening day of a season.
No person on the opening day of the season shall possess any freshly killed migratory
game birds in excess of the daily bag limit, or aggregate daily bag limit, whichever applies.
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§20.35 Field possession limit.
No person shall possess, have in custody, or transport more than the daily bag limit or
aggregate daily bag limit, whichever applies, of migratory game birds, tagged or not tagged, at
or between the place where taken and either (a) his automobile or principal means of land
transportation; or (b) his personal abode or temporary or transient place of lodging; or (c) a
migratory bird preservation facility; or (d) a post office; or (e) a common carrier facility.

[41 FR 31536, July 29, 1976]

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§20.36 Tagging requirement.
No person shall put or leave any migratory game birds at any place (other than at his
personal abode), or in the custody of another person for picking, cleaning, processing,
shipping, transportation, or storage (including temporary storage), or for the purpose of having
taxidermy services performed, unless such birds have a tag attached, signed by the hunter,
stating his address, the total number and species of birds, and the date such birds were killed.
Migratory game birds being transported in any vehicle as the personal baggage of the
possessor shall not be considered as being in storage or temporary storage.
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§20.37 Custody of birds of another.
No person shall receive or have in custody any migratory game birds belonging to
another person unless such birds are tagged as required by §20.36.
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§20.38 Possession of live birds.
Every migratory game bird wounded by hunting and reduced to possession by the hunter
shall be immediately killed and become a part of the daily bag limit. No person shall at any
time, or by any means, possess or transport live migratory game birds taken under authority of
this part.
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§20.39 Termination of possession.
Subject to all other requirements of this part, the possession of birds taken by any hunter
shall be deemed to have ceased when such birds have been delivered by him to another
person as a gift; or have been delivered by him to a post office, a common carrier, or a
migratory bird preservation facility and consigned for transport by the Postal Service or a
common carrier to some person other than the hunter.
[41 FR 31537, July 29, 1976]

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§20.40 Gift of migratory game birds.
No person may receive, possess, or give to another, any freshly killed migratory game
birds as a gift, except at the personal abodes of the donor or donee, unless such birds have a

tag attached, signed by the hunter who took the birds, stating such hunter's address, the total
number and species of birds and the date such birds were taken.
[42 FR 39668, Aug. 5, 1977]

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Subpart E—Transportation Within the United States
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§20.41 Prohibited if taken in violation of subpart C.
No person shall at any time, by any means, or in any manner, transport any migratory
game bird or part thereof, taken in violation of any provision of subpart C of this part.
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§20.42 Transportation of birds of another.
No person shall transport migratory game birds belonging to another person unless such
birds are tagged as required by §20.36.
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§20.43 Species identification requirement.
No person shall transport within the United States any migratory game birds, except
doves and band-tailed pigeons (Columba fasciata), unless the head or one fully feathered
wing remains attached to each such bird at all times while being transported from the place
where taken until they have arrived at the personal abode of the possessor or a migratory bird
preservation facility.
[41 FR 31537, July 19, 1976]

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§20.44 Marking package or container.
No person shall transport by the Postal Service or a common carrier migratory game birds
unless the package or container in which such birds are transported has the name and
address of the shipper and the consignee and an accurate statement of the numbers of each
species of birds therein contained clearly and conspicuously marked on the outside thereof.
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Subpart F—Exportation
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§20.51 Prohibited if taken in violation of subpart C.
No person shall at any time, by any means, or in any manner, export or cause to be
exported, any migratory game bird or part thereof, taken in violation of any provision of
subpart C of this part.
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§20.52 Species identification requirement.
No person shall export migratory game birds unless one fully feathered wing remains
attached to each such bird while being transported from the United States and/or any of its
possessions to any foreign country.
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§20.53 Marking package or container.
No person shall export migratory game birds via the Postal Service or a common carrier
unless the package or container has the name and address of the shipper and the consignee
and an accurate statement of the numbers of each species of birds therein contained clearly
and conspicuously marked on the outside thereof.
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Subpart G—Importations
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§20.61 Importation limits.
No person shall import migratory game birds in excess of the following importation limits:
(a) Doves and pigeons. (1) From any foreign country except Mexico, during any one
calendar week beginning on Sunday, not to exceed 25 doves, singly or in the aggregate of all
species, and 10 pigeons, singly or in the aggregate of all species.
(2) From Mexico, not to exceed the maximum number permitted by Mexican authorities to
be taken in any one day: Provided, That if the importer has his Mexican hunting permit datestamped by appropriate Mexican wildlife authorities on the first day he hunts in Mexico, he
may import the applicable Mexican possession limit corresponding to the days actually hunted
during that particular trip.
(b) Waterfowl. (1) From any foreign country except Canada and Mexico, during any one
calendar week beginning on Sunday, not to exceed 10 ducks, singly or in the aggregate of all
species, and five geese including brant, singly or in the aggregate of all species.
(2) From Canada, not to exceed the maximum number permitted to be exported by
Canadian authorities.

(3) From Mexico, not to exceed the maximum number permitted by Mexican authorities to
be taken in any one day: Provided, That if the importer has his Mexican hunting permit datestamped by appropriate Mexican wildlife authorities on the first day he hunts in Mexico, he
may import the applicable Mexican possession limit corresponding to the days actually hunted
during that particular trip.
[40 FR 36346, Aug. 20, 1975]

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§20.62 Importation of birds of another.
No person shall import migratory game birds belonging to another person.
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§20.63 Species identification requirement.
No person shall import migratory game birds unless each such bird has one fully
feathered wing attached, and such wing must remain attached while being transported
between the port of entry and the personal abode of the possessor or between the port of
entry and a migratory bird preservation facility.
[41 FR 31537, July 19, 1976]

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§20.64 Foreign export permits.
No person shall import, possess or transport, any migratory game birds killed in a foreign
country unless such birds are accompanied by export permits, tags, or other documentation
required by applicable foreign laws or regulations.
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§20.65 Processing requirement.
No person shall import migratory game birds killed in any foreign country, except Canada,
unless such birds are dressed (except as required in §20.63), drawn, and the head and feet
are removed: Provided, That this shall not prohibit the importation of legally taken, fully
feathered migratory game birds consigned for mounting purposes to a taxidermist who holds a
current taxidermist permit issued to him pursuant to §21.24 of this chapter and who is also
licensed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to decontaminate such birds.
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§20.66 Marking of package or container.
No person shall import migratory game birds via the Postal Service or a common carrier
unless the package or container has the name and address of the shipper and the consignee

and an accurate statement of the numbers of each species of birds therein contained clearly
and conspicuously marked on the outside thereof.
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Subpart H—Federal, State, and Foreign Law
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§20.71 Violation of Federal law.
No person shall at any time, by any means or in any manner, take, possess, transport, or
export any migratory bird, or any part, nest, or egg of any such bird, in violation of any act of
Congress or any regulation issued pursuant thereto.
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§20.72 Violation of State law.
No person shall at any time, by any means or in any manner, take, possess, transport, or
export any migratory bird, or any part, nest, or egg of any such bird, in violation of any
applicable law or regulation of any State.
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§20.73 Violation of foreign law.
No person shall at any time, by any means, or in any manner, import, possess, or
transport, any migratory bird, or any part, nest, or egg of any such bird taken, bought, sold,
transported, possessed, or exported contrary to any applicable law or regulation of any foreign
country, or State or province thereof.
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Subpart I—Migratory Bird Preservation Facilities
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§20.81 Tagging requirement.
No migratory bird preservation facility shall receive or have in custody any migratory
game birds unless such birds are tagged as required by §20.36.
[41 FR 31537, July 29, 1976]

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§20.82 Records required.
(a) No migratory bird preservation facility shall:

(1) Receive or have in custody any migratory game bird unless accurate records are
maintained which can identify each bird received by, or in the custody of, the facility by the
name of the person from whom the bird was obtained, and show (i) the number of each
species; (ii) the location where taken; (iii) the date such birds were received; (iv) the name and
address of the person from whom such birds were received; (v) the date such birds were
disposed of; and (vi) the name and address of the person to whom such birds were delivered,
or
(2) Destroy any records required to be maintained under this section for a period of 1 year
following the last entry on the record.
(b) Record keeping as required by this section will not be necessary at hunting clubs
which do not fully process migratory birds by removal of both the head and wings.
[41 FR 38510, Sept. 10, 1976]

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§20.83 Inspection of premises.
No migratory bird preservation facility shall prevent any person authorized to enforce this
part from entering such facilities at all reasonable hours and inspecting the records and the
premises where such operations are being carried.
[41 FR 31537, July 19, 1976]

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Subpart J—Feathers or Skins
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§20.91 Commercial use of feathers.
Any person may possess, purchase, sell, barter, or transport for the making of fishing
flies, bed pillows, and mattresses, and for similar commercial uses the feathers of migratory
waterfowl (ducks, geese, brant, and swans) killed by hunting pursuant to this part, or seized
and condemned by Federal or State game authorities, except that:
(a) No person shall purchase, sell, barter, or offer to purchase, sell, or barter for millinery
or ornamental use the feathers of migratory game birds taken under authority of this part; and
(b) No person shall purchase, sell, barter, or offer to purchase, sell, or barter mounted
specimens of migratory game birds taken under authority of this part.
[38 FR 22021, Aug. 15, 1973, as amended at 45 FR 70275, Oct. 23, 1980]

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§20.92 Personal use of feathers or skins.

Any person for his own use may possess, transport, ship, import, and export without a
permit the feathers and skins of lawfully taken migratory game birds.
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Subpart K—Annual Seasons, Limits, and Shooting Hours Schedules
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§20.100 General provisions.
(a) The taking, possession, transportation, and other uses of migratory game birds by
hunters is generally prohibited unless it is specifically provided for under regulations
developed in accordance with the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Consequently, hunting is
prohibited unless regulatory schedules are established for seasons, daily bag and possession
limits, and shooting (or hawking) hours. Migratory game bird population levels, including
production and habitat conditions, vary annually. These conditions differ over North America,
and within the United States, by flyways, States, and frequently areas within States. Thus, it is
necessary to make annual adjustments in the schedules to limit the harvests of migratory
game birds to permissible levels.
(b) The development of these schedules involves annual data gathering programs to
determine migratory game bird population status and trends, evaluations of habitat conditions,
harvest information, and other factors having a bearing on the anticipated size of the fall flights
of these birds. The proposed hunting schedules are announced early in the spring, and
following consideration of additional information as it becomes available, as well as public
comment, they are modified and published as supplemental proposals. These are also open
to public comment. Public hearings are held for the purpose of providing additional opportunity
for public participation in the rulemaking process.
[44 FR 7147, Feb. 6, 1979]

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§20.101 Seasons, limits and shooting hours for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
This section provides for the annual hunting of certain doves, pigeons, ducks, coots,
gallinules and snipe in Puerto Rico; and for certain doves, pigeons and ducks in the Virgin
Islands. In these Commonwealths, the hunting of waterfowl and coots (and other certain
species, as applicable) must be with the use of nontoxic shot beginning in the 1991-92
waterfowl season.
[53 FR 24290, June 28, 1988]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.102 Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for Alaska.
This section provides for the annual hunting of certain waterfowl (ducks, tundra swans,
geese, and brant), common snipe, and sandhill cranes in Alaska. In Alaska, the hunting of
waterfowl must be with the use of nontoxic shot beginning in the 1991-92 waterfowl season.
[55 FR 35267, Aug. 28, 1990]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.103 Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for mourning and white-winged doves
and wild pigeons.
This section provides for the annual hunting of certain doves and pigeons in the 48
contiguous United States. The mourning dove hunting regulations are arranged by the
Eastern, Central, and Western Management Units.
[44 FR 7147, Feb. 6, 1979]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.104 Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for rails, woodcock, and common
(Wilson's) snipe.
This section provides for the annual hunting of certain rails, woodcock, and snipe in the
48 contiguous United States.
[44 FR 7148, Feb. 6, 1979]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.105 Seasons, limits and shooting hours for waterfowl, coots, and gallinules.
This section provides for the annual hunting of certain waterfowl (ducks, geese [including
brant]), coots and gallinules in the 48 contiguous United States. The regulations are arranged
by the Atlantic, Mississippi, Central and Pacific Flyways. These regulations often vary within
Flyways or States, and by time periods. Those areas of the United States outside of State
boundaries, i.e., the United States' territorial waters seaward of county boundaries, and
including coastal waters claimed by the separate States, if not already included under the

zones contained in §20.108, are designated for the purposes of §20.21(j) as nontoxic shot
zones for waterfowl hunting beginning in the 1991-92 season.
[53 FR 24290, June 28, 1988, as amended at 56 FR 22102, May 13, 1991]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.106 Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for sandhill cranes.
This section provides for the annual hunting of sandhill cranes in designated portions of
the 48 contiguous United States.
[55 FR 35267, Aug. 28, 1990]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.107 Seasons, limits, and shooting hours for tundra swans.
This section provides for the annual hunting of tundra swans in designated portions of the
48 contiguous United States.
[55 FR 39829, Sept. 28, 1990]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.108 Nontoxic shot zones.
Beginning September 1, 1991, the contiguous 48 United States, and the States of Alaska
and Hawaii, the Territories of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and the territorial waters of
the United States, are designated for the purpose of §20.21(j) as nontoxic shot zones for
hunting waterfowl, coots and certain other species. “Certain other species” refers to those
species, other than waterfowl or coots, that are affected by reason of being included in
aggregate bags and concurrent seasons.
[56 FR 22102, May 13, 1991]

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§20.109 Extended seasons, limits, and hours for taking migratory game birds by
falconry.

This section provides annual regulations by which falconers may take permitted migratory
game birds.
[44 FR 7148, Feb. 6, 1979]
E
N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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§20.110 Seasons, limits, and other regulations for certain Federal Indian reservations,
Indian Territory, and ceded lands.
This section provides for establishing annual migratory bird hunting regulations for certain
tribes on Federal Indian reservations, Indian Territory, and ceded lands.
[50 FR 35764, Sept. 3, 1985]
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N
: For F
R
citations affecting annual regulatory schedules for this section,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and
at www.govinfo.gov.

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Subpart L—Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions
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§20.131 Extension of seasons.
Whenever the Secretary shall find that emergency State action to prevent forest fires in
any extensive area has resulted in the shortening of the season during which the hunting of
any species of migratory game bird is permitted and that compensatory extension or
reopening the hunting season for such birds will not result in a diminution of the abundance of
birds to any greater extent than that contemplated for the original hunting season, the hunting
season for the birds so affected may, subject to all other provisions of this subchapter, be
extended or reopened by the Secretary upon request of the chief officer of the agency of the
State exercising administration over wildlife resources. The length of the extended or
reopened season in no event shall exceed the number of days during which hunting has been
so prohibited. The extended or reopened season will be publicly announced.
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§20.132 Subsistence use in Alaska.
In Alaska, any person may, for subsistence purposes, take, possess, and transport, in any
manner, from September 1 through April 1, snowy owls and cormorants for food and their
skins for clothing, but birds and their parts may not be sold or offered for sale.
[68 FR 43027, July 21, 2003]

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§20.133 Hunting regulations for crows.
(a) Crows may be taken, possessed, transported, exported, or imported, only in
accordance with such laws or regulations as may be prescribed by a State pursuant to this
section.
(b) Except in the State of Hawaii, where no crows shall be taken, States may by statute or
regulation prescribe a hunting season for crows. Such State statutes or regulations may set
forth the method of taking, the bag and possession limits, the dates and duration of the
hunting season, and such other regulations as may be deemed appropriate, subject to the
following limitations for each State:
(1) Crows shall not be hunted from aircraft;
(2) The hunting season or seasons on crows shall not exceed a total of 124 days during a
calendar year;
(3) Hunting shall not be permitted during the peak crow nesting period within a State; and
(4) Crows may only be taken by firearms, bow and arrow, and falconry.
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§20.134 Approval of nontoxic shot types and shot coatings.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducts a process to approve shot material
determined not to impose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds and other wildlife or
their habitats. The regulations in this section set forth the approval process. Upon receipt of an
application and supporting data submitted in accordance with this section, the Service will
review the application materials together with all other relevant available evidence, including
public comment. If the Director concludes that the spent shot material will not present a
significant toxicity danger to migratory birds and other wildlife or their habitats, we will add the
shot material to the list of approved nontoxic shot materials at 50 CFR 20.21(j).
(a) Information collection approval. The Office of Management and Budget approved the
information collection requirements contained in this section under 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.and
assigned OMB Control No. 1018-0067. We collect this information so that we can conduct a
methodical and objective review of a shot type you submit as nontoxic for hunting waterfowl.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor and you are not required to respond to a collection of
information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. You may submit
comments on this information collection to the Service Information Collection Officer, U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, 1849 C Street NW., Washington, DC 20240.
(b) Limitations on nontoxic shot type approval. We will not approve as nontoxic any shot
type or shot coating with a lead content of 1 percent or more.

(1) Before we will approve any shot type or shot coating as nontoxic, a shotshell loaded
with the shot type or coated shot must be demonstrated to be identifiable as not being lead in
a portable field testing device for use by enforcement officers.
(2) The testing device can be regular magnets, rare-earth magnets, or the “HOT*SHOT”
field-testing device from Stream Systems of Concord, CA. We will consider other field-testing
devices that may be readily available to law enforcement officers.
(c) Application submission and review. We use a 3-tier strategy for approval of nontoxic
shot types and shot coatings. You must submit any application for approval under this section
with supporting documentation in accordance with the following procedures and must include
at least the supporting materials and information for Tier 1 in the approval system. If your
application is not complete, we will return it to you with an explanation of the additional
information we need to initiate review of your submission.
(d) Tier 1 application fee. The fee for consideration of a Tier 1 application is $1,630.
Submit the fee, payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, with your application.
(e) Tier 1 application. If you wish to submit a shot type or shot coating for consideration as
nontoxic for waterfowl hunting, you must provide statements of use, chemical characterization,
production variability, volume of use of the candidate material, and a sample of the shot or
shot coating.
(1) Provide a statement of how you propose to use the candidate material in creating
waterfowl hunting shotshells.
(2) Provide a description of the chemical composition of the material comprising the shot.
(i) Provide the chemical names, Chemical Abstracts Service numbers (consult the
American Chemical Society), and structures of the components of the shot.
(ii) Provide a chemical characterization for organics and organometallics for the core
and/or coating, including the empirical formula, melting point, molecular weight, solubility,
specific gravity, partition coefficients, hydrolysis half-life, leaching rate in water and in soil,
degradation half-life, vapor pressure, stability, and other relevant characteristics for each
component.
(iii) Provide data on the composition, weight, and sectional density of the shot material.
(iv) Provide data on the thickness, quantity in milligrams (mg) per shot, and chemical
composition of any coating on the shot.
(3) Provide documentation that the shot can be readily identified as nontoxic with a
standard field shotshell testing device.
(4) Provide a statement of the hardness of the candidate shot type and the method used
to determine the hardness.

(5) Provide a statement of the expected variability of shot during production.
(6) Provide an estimate of yearly volume of candidate shot type and/or coated shot
expected to be produced for use in hunting migratory birds in the United States.
(7) Provide 5 pounds (approximately 2.18 kilograms (kg)) of the candidate shot type or
shot with the proposed coating in size equivalent to U.S. standard size No. 4 of 0.13 inches
(approximately 3.3 millimeters (mm)) in diameter.
(i) We or an independent laboratory may analyze the composition of the shot or the shot
coating.
(ii) We will reject your application if the composition of the shot or shot coating differs
substantially from what you describe in your application.
(f) Toxicological effects. You must provide information on the toxicological effects of the
shot or any coating on it.
(1) Provide a summary of the acute and chronic toxicity data of the metals or compounds
in the shot or the shot coating, ranking the toxicity of each. Use the following criteria to assess
the toxicity of the shot or shot coating. These criteria are based on the estimated median lethal
dose of the candidate shot type or shot coating. That is, the statistically derived single dose
estimate of the candidate material that can be expected to cause death in 50 percent of the
animals tested (LD50).
If the LD50 is
no more than 5 mg/kg,
over 5 to 50 mg/kg,
over 50 to 500 mg/kg,
over 500 to 5,000 mg/kg,
over 5,000 to 15,000 mg/kg,
over 15,000 mg/kg,

the material is considered
super toxic.
extremely toxic.
very toxic.
moderately toxic.
slightly toxic.
nontoxic.

(2) Provide a summary of known acute, chronic, and reproductive toxicological data of the
chemicals comprising the shot or shot coating with respect to birds, particularly waterfowl.
Include LD50 or LC50 (concentrations in water lethal to 50 percent of test populations) data,
and sublethal effects, with citations.
(3) Provide a narrative description, with citations to relevant data, predicting the toxic
effect in waterfowl of complete erosion and absorption of one shot or coated shot in a 24-hour
period. Define the nature of the toxic effect, such as mortality, impaired reproduction,
substantial weight loss, disorientation, or other relevant associated clinical observations.
(4) Provide a statement with supporting rationale and citations to relevant data about
whether ingestion of the shot or shot coating by invertebrates, fish, amphibians, reptiles, or
mammals is cause for concern. If there is a recognized impact on invertebrates, fish,
amphibians, reptiles, or mammals, we reserve the right to require additional study of the shot
or shot coating.

(g) Environmental fate and transport. You must provide information on the environmental
fate and transport, if any, of the shot and any coating on it.
(1) Provide a statement describing any chemical or physical alteration of the shot and
shot coating upon firing.
(2) Provide an estimate of the environmental half-life of the organic or organometallic
components of the shot and shot coating, and a description of the chemical form of the
breakdown products of the component(s).
(3) For each metal or other component of the shot or shot coating, determine the
Estimated Environmental Concentration (EEC).
(i) Determine the EEC in a terrestrial ecosystem if 69,000 U.S. standard size No. 4 shot of
0.13 in (3.3 mm) in diameter are completely dissolved in 1 hectare (ha) (107,639 square feet
(ft2)) of soil 5 centimeters (cm) (1.97 in) deep. Assess whether the EEC would exceed the
clean soil standards for the Use or Disposal of Sewage Sludge at 40 CFR part 503. Explain
how the estimated EEC relates to the toxicity thresholds for plants, invertebrates, and other
wildlife.
(ii) Determine the EEC in an aquatic ecosystem if 69,000 U.S. standard size No. 4 shot of
0.13 in (3.3 mm) in diameter are completely dissolved in 1 ha, or 107,639 ft2, of water 1 ft
(30.48 cm) deep. Express the calculated concentrations in standard units such as micrograms
per liter, for water with pH of 6.5 to 9.0. Explain how the estimated EEC compares to the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Water Quality Criteria and toxicity thresholds in
plants, invertebrates, fish, and wildlife.
(4) Conduct a risk assessment using the Quotient Method. Calculate the risk of the
submitted shot material, the EEC/the Toxicological Level of Concern. For example, compare
the EEC in parts per million (p/m) to an effect level such as the LD50 in p/m. Use the following
criteria to assess the risk of the components of the shot or shot coating.
If the risk ratio is
less than 0.1,
0.1 to 10.0,
greater than 10.0,

then
adverse effects are not likely.
adverse effects are possible.
adverse effects are likely.

(h) In vitro evaluation. You must evaluate the candidate shot type or shot coating in a
standardized test under conditions that will assess its erosion and any release of components
into a liquid medium in an environment simulating the conditions of a waterfowl gizzard (see
W.H. Kimball and Z.A. Munir, 1971, The corrosion of lead shot in a simulated waterfowl
gizzard, Journal of Wildlife Management 35:360-365) for basic test procedures. Compare the
erosion characteristics to those of lead shot and steel shot of comparable size.
(1) Test materials. You will need appropriate analysis equipment, such as for atomic
absorption spectrophotometry or inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, a drilled
aluminum block to support test tubes, a thermostatically controlled stirring hot plate, small

Teflon®-coated magnets, hydrochloric acid of pH 2.0, pepsin, capped test tubes, and U.S. No.
4 lead, steel, and candidate shot type or shot with the proposed coating.
(2) Test procedures.
(i) Add hydrochloric acid and pepsin to each capped test tube at a volume and
concentration that will erode a single U.S. No. 4 lead shot at the rate of 5 mg per day.
(ii) Place three test tubes, each containing lead shot, steel shot, or the candidate shot
type or shot with the proposed coating in an aluminum block on the stirring hot plate. Add a
Teflon®-coated magnet to each test tube and set the hot plate at 42 degrees Centigrade and
500 revolutions per minute.
(iii) Determine the erosion of shot or shot with the proposed coating daily for 14
consecutive days by weighing the shot and analyzing the digestion solution with an atomic
absorption spectrophotometer.
(iv) Replicate the 14-day procedure five times.
(3) Test analyses. Compare erosion rates of the three types of shot by appropriate
analysis of variance and regression procedures. The statistical analyses will determine
whether the rate of erosion of the shot and/or shot coating is significantly greater or less than
that of lead and/or steel shot. This determination is important to any subsequent toxicity
testing.
(i) Tier 1 application review. Upon receipt of your completed Tier 1 application, we will
promptly perform an overview. We will notify you within 30 days of receipt that our thorough
review of the application will commence, and we will complete our review within 60 days of the
date of publication. We will use half of the LD50/ft2 in terrestrial and aquatic systems as the
level of concern in evaluating your application.
(j) Approval after Tier 1 testing. If we determine that the Tier 1 data show that the shot or
shot coating does not pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other wildlife, or
their habitats, we will notify you and request payment of a $20,000 final review and publication
fee (payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service).
(1) After receipt of payment, we will publish a proposed rule in the F
R
stating that we intend to approve this shot or shot coating as nontoxic and provide
the public with the opportunity to comment on our decision. The proposed rule will include a
description of the chemical composition of the shot or shot coating and a synopsis of findings
under the standards required by Tier 1.
(2) If, after considering public comment on the proposed rule, we conclude that the shot
or shot coating does not pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other wildlife, or
their habitats, we will approve the shot or coating as nontoxic with publication of a final rule in
the F
R
and addition of the shot or coating to the list in §20.21(j).

(k) Additional testing. If we conclude that the Tier 1 data are inconclusive, or if we
conclude that the shot or shot coating may pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory
birds, other wildlife, or their habitats, we will advise you to proceed with some or all of the
additional testing described for Tier 2, Tier 3, or both.
(1) We will inform you that we consider the Tier 1 test results to be inconclusive. We will
request Tier 2, and possibly Tier 3, testing before we evaluate the shot any further.
(2) If you choose not to do further testing, we will deny approval of the candidate shot
type or shot coating.
(l) Tier 2 application fee. The fee for consideration of a Tier 2 application is $1,530.
Submit the fee, payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, with your application.
(m) Tier 2 testing. Your Tier 2 testing procedures must be in compliance with the Good
Laboratory Practice Standards (40 CFR part 160) except where they conflict with the
requirements in this section or with a provision of an approved plan. We reserve the right for
us or an authorized representative to inspect your laboratory facilities. We will not approve the
plan and will cease further consideration of the candidate shot type if the laboratory does not
meet the Good Laboratory Practice Standards.
(n) Tier 2 plan review. We will review the Tier 2 testing plan you submit within 30 days of
the day on which we receive it. We may decline to approve the plan, or any part of it, if we
deem it deficient in any manner with regard to timing, format, or content. We will inform you
regarding what parts, if any, of the submitted testing procedures to disregard and any
modifications to incorporate into the Tier 2 testing plan to gain plan approval. After we accept
your plan, you may conduct Tier 2 testing.
(o) Tier 2 in vivo evaluation. Conduct a 30-day acute toxicity test in mallards using the
following method unless we specify otherwise. The testing should be done in accordance with
Good Laboratory Practices Standards at 40 CFR part 160.
(1) Test materials. You will need 30 male and 30 female hand-reared mallards
approximately 6 to 8 months old with plumage and body conformation of wild mallards; 60
elevated outdoor pens equipped with feeders and waterers; a laboratory equipped to perform
fluoroscopy, required blood and tissue assays, and necropsies; commercial duck maintenance
mash; and lead, steel, and candidate shot type.
(2) Test procedures.
(i) House the mallards individually in pens and give them unrestricted access to food and
water.
(ii) After 3 weeks, randomly assign them to 3 groups of 10 males and 10 females per
group. Dose each duck with 8 pellets of either U.S. No. 4 lead shot (positive control), steel
shot (negative control), or the candidate shot type or shot with the proposed coating.
(iii) Fluoroscope each bird at 1 week after dosing to check for shot retention.

(iv) For 30 days, observe the birds daily for signs of intoxication and mortality.
(v) Determine the body weight for each bird at the time of dosing and at days 15 and 30.
(vi) On days 15 and 30, collect blood by venipuncture and determine hematocrit,
hemoglobin concentration, and other measures of blood chemistry.
(vii) Euthanize all survivors on day 30. Remove the liver and other appropriate organs
from each bird and those from birds that died prior to day 30.
(viii) Analyze the organs for lead and compounds contained in the candidate shot type or
shot with the proposed coating.
(ix) Perform a necropsy of all birds to determine any gross and/or microscopic
pathological conditions.
(x) Weigh all recovered shot and determine shot erosion.
(3) Test analyses.
(i) Analyze mortality among the specified groups with appropriate statistical procedures,
such as chi-square, with α = 0.05, and β = 0.8.
(ii) Analyze physiological data and tissue contaminant data by analysis of variance or
other appropriate statistical procedures to include the factors of shot type and sex, with α =
0.05 and β = 0.8.
(iii) Compare euthanized birds and birds that died prior to day 30 whenever sample sizes
are adequate for meaningful comparison.
(p) Daphnia and fish early-life toxicity tests. Determine the toxicity of the compounds that
comprise the shot or shot coating (at conditions maximizing solubility without adversely
affecting controls) to selected invertebrates and fish. These methods are subject to the
environmental effects test regulations developed under the authority of the Toxic Substances
Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.), as follows:
(1) The first test, the Daphnia (Daphnia species) Acute Toxicity Test, must be conducted
in accordance with 40 CFR 797.1300. It provides data on the acute toxicity of chemical
substances. The guideline prescribes an acute toxicity test in which Daphnia are exposed to a
chemical in static and flow-through systems for assessing the hazard the compound(s) may
present to an aquatic environment.
(2) The second test, the Daphnia Chronic Toxicity Test, must be conducted in accordance
with 40 CFR 797.1330. It provides data on the chronic toxicity of chemical substances in
which Daphnia are exposed to a chemical in a renewal or flow-through system. The data from
this test also are used to assess the hazard that the compound(s) may present to an aquatic
environment.

(3) The third test, the Fish Early-Life-Stage Toxicity Test, must be conducted in
accordance with 40 CFR 797.1600. It assesses the adverse effects of chemical substances to
fish in the early stages of their growth and development. Data from this test also are used to
determine hazards of the compound(s) in an aquatic environment.
(q) Evaluation of Tier 2 testing. If, after Tier 2 testing, you wish to continue the application
process, send the Tier 2 testing results and analyses to us. You must ensure that copies of all
the raw data and statistical analyses accompany the laboratory reports and final
comprehensive report of this test. We will review the data within 60 days of the day on which
we receive your Tier 2 application materials.
(r) Approval after Tier 2 testing. If we determine that the Tier 2 test data show that the
shot or shot coating does not pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other
wildlife, or their habitats, we will notify you and request payment of a $20,000 final review and
publication fee (payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service).
(1) After receipt of payment, we will publish a proposed rule in the F
R
stating that we intend to approve this shot or shot coating and provide the public
with the opportunity to comment. The proposed rule will include a description of the chemical
composition of the shot or shot coating and a synopsis of findings under the standards
required by Tier 2.
(2) If, at the end of the comment period, we conclude that the shot or shot coating does
not pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other wildlife, or their habitats, we will
approve the shot or coating as nontoxic with publication of a final rule in the F
R
and subsequent addition of the shot or coating to the list in §20.21(j).
(s) Additional testing. If we conclude that the Tier 2 data are inconclusive, or if we
conclude that the shot or shot coating may pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory
birds, other wildlife, or their habitats, or if public comment on the proposed rule indicates that
we should require further testing, we will advise you to proceed with the additional testing
described for Tier 3. We will require Tier 3 testing before we evaluate the shot any further. If
you choose not to do Tier 3 testing, we will deny approval of the candidate shot type or shot
coating.
(t) Tier 3 application fee. The fee for consideration of a Tier 3 application is $1,530.
Submit the fee, payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, with your application.
(u) Tier 3 testing. We will review your Tier 3 testing plan within 30 days of the day on
which we receive it. All testing procedures in the plan should be in compliance with the Good
Laboratory Practice Standards (40 CFR part 160), except where they conflict with the
requirements in this section or with a provision of an approved plan. We, or our authorized
representative, may elect to inspect your laboratory facilities and may decline to approve the
plan and further consideration of the candidate shot type and/or shot coating if the facility is
not in compliance with the Good Laboratory Practice Standards.
(1) We will not approve the plan, or any part of it, if we deem it deficient in any manner
with regard to timing, format, or content. We will tell you what parts, if any, of the submitted

testing procedure to disregard, and any modifications to incorporate into the Tier 3 plan
needed for us to approve it.
(2) After acceptance of the plan, you may conduct the Tier 3 testing. You must ensure that
copies of the raw data and the statistical analyses accompany the laboratory reports and final
comprehensive report on this test.
(i) Chronic toxicity test. This is a long-term toxicity test under depressed temperature
conditions using a nutritionally deficient diet. Conduct a chronic exposure test under adverse
conditions that complies with the following general guidelines unless we tell you otherwise.
(A) Test materials. You will need 36 male and 36 female hand-reared mallards
approximately 6 to 8 months old with plumage and body conformation of wild mallards; 72
elevated outdoor pens equipped with feeders and waterers; a laboratory equipped to perform
fluoroscopy, required blood and tissue assays, and necropsies; whole kernel corn; and lead,
steel, and candidate shot type or shot with the proposed coating.
(B) Test procedures. (1) Conduct this test at a location where the mean monthly low
temperature during December through March is between 20 and 40 degrees Fahrenheit (−6.6
and 4.4 degrees Centigrade, respectively).
(2) Assign individual mallards to elevated outdoor pens during the first week of December
and give them an unrestricted diet of whole kernel corn for 2 weeks.
(3) Randomly assign birds to five groups—a lead group of 4 males and 4 females, and 4
other groups of 8 males and 8 females per group.
(4) Dose each bird in the lead group (the positive control) with one U.S. No. 4 pellet of
lead shot. Dose each bird in one group of 8 males and 8 females with 8 U.S. No. 4 pellets of
steel shot (the negative control). Dose each bird in 1 remaining group of 8 males and 8
females with one U.S. No. 4 pellet of the candidate shot type or shot with the proposed
coating, each bird in 1 of the remaining 2 groups of 8 males and 8 females with 4 U.S. No. 4
pellets of the candidate shot type or shot with the proposed coating, and each bird in the final
group of 8 males and 8 females with 8 U.S. No. 4 pellets of the candidate shot type or shot
with the proposed coating.
(5) Weigh and fluoroscope the birds weekly.
(6) Weigh all recovered shot and determine shot erosion.
(7) Determine blood parameters given in the 30-day acute toxicity test. Provide body
weight and blood parameter measurements on samples drawn at 24 hours after dosing, and
at the end of days 30 and 60.
(8) Remove the liver and other appropriate organs from all birds that die prior to day 60.
(9) At the end of 60 days, euthanize all survivors. Remove the liver and other appropriate
organs from the euthanized birds. Analyze the organs for lead and other metals in the

candidate shot type or shot coating.
(10) Necropsy all birds that died prior to day 60 to determine any gross and/or
microscopic pathological conditions associated with their deaths.
(C) Test analyses. (1) Analyze mortality among the specified groups with appropriate chisquare statistical procedures. Any effects on the previously mentioned physiological
parameters caused by the shot or shot coating must be significantly less than those caused by
lead shot and must not be significantly greater than those caused by steel shot, with α = 0.05,
and β = 0.8.
(2) Analyze physiological data and tissue contaminant data by analysis of variance or
appropriate statistical procedures to include the factors of shot type, dose, and sex with α =
0.05, and β = 0.8.
(3) Compare euthanized birds and birds that died prior to being euthanized whenever
sample sizes are adequate for a meaningful comparison.
(ii) Chronic dosing study. This moderately long-term study includes an assessment of
reproduction. Conduct a chronic exposure reproduction trial within the following general
guidelines unless we tell you otherwise.
(A) Test materials. You will need 44 male and 44 female hand-reared first-year mallards
with plumage and body conformation of wild mallards; pens suitable for quarantine and
acclimation and for reasonably holding 5 to 10 ducks each; 44 elevated pens equipped with
feeders, waterers, and nest boxes; a laboratory equipped to perform fluoroscopy, required
blood and tissue assays, and necropsies; whole kernel corn, and commercial duck
maintenance and breeder mash; and U.S. No. 4 lead, steel, and candidate shot type or shot
with the proposed coating.
(B) Test procedures. (1) In December, randomly assign the mallards to 3 groups—a
positive control group of 4 males and 4 females that will be tested with lead; a negative control
group of 20 males and 20 females that will be tested with steel; and a final group with 20
males and 20 females that will be tested with the candidate shot type or shot with the
proposed coating. Hold the ducks in same-sex groups until mid-January. If the test is not
conducted in the northern United States or comparable latitudes, the test must be completed
in low-temperature units.
(2) After a 3-week acclimation period in which the ducks are fed with commercial
maintenance mash, provide them an unrestricted diet of corn for 60 days and then pair them,
put one pair in each pen, and provide them with commercial breeder mash.
(3) After the acclimation period, dose each bird in the lead group with 1 pellet of U.S. No.
4 lead shot, each bird in one of the groups of 20 males and 20 females with 8 pellets of U.S.
No. 4 steel shot, and each bird in the remaining group of 20 males and 20 females with 8
pellets of U.S. No. 4 candidate shot type or shot with the proposed coating.

(4) Redose each bird with the appropriate shot after 30, 60, and 90 days. Few, if any, of
the lead-dosed birds should survive and reproduce.
(5) Fluoroscope each bird 1 week after dosing it to check for shot retention.
(6) Weigh each bird the day of initial dosing (day 0), at each subsequent dosing, and at
death.
(7) Collect a blood sample from each bird on the days on which it is dosed and
immediately prior to euthanizing it.
(8) Check nests daily and collect any eggs laid. Note the date of first egg laid and the
mean number of days per egg laid. Conclude monitoring of laying after 21 normal, uncracked
eggs are laid or after 150 days.
(9) Collect eggs and discard any eggs laid before pairing.
(10) Euthanize the adults after they complete laying or after 150 days.
(11) Remove the liver and other appropriate organs from each euthanized bird and from
each bird that dies prior to being euthanized.
(12) Analyze the organs and the eleventh egg for compounds contained in the shot or
shot coating.
(13) Necropsy all the birds to determine any gross and/or microscopic pathological
conditions that affected them.
(14) Artificially incubate the normal eggs and calculate the percent shell thickness for
each (compared to typical shell thickness), the percent of eggs cracked, the percent fertility
(as determined by candling), and the percentage of fertile eggs hatched for each female.
(15) Provide ducklings that hatch with starter mash. Euthanize all ducklings at 14 days of
age.
(16) Determine survival to day 14 and weight of the ducklings at hatching and at being
euthanized.
(17) Measure duckling blood for hemoglobin concentration and other blood chemistries
using blood samples drawn when the ducklings are euthanized.
(C) Test analyses. Any mortality, reproductive inhibition, or effects on physiological
parameters due to the shot or shot coating must not be significantly greater than those caused
by steel shot. If necessary, transform percentage data with an arcsine, square root, or other
suitable transformation prior to statistical analyses. Analyze the physiological and reproductive
data with one-tailed t-tests or other appropriate statistical procedures with α = 0.05, and β =
0.8.

(v) Evaluation of Tier 3 testing. Report the results of your Tier 3 testing to us. We will
review the data within 60 days of the day on which we receive your Tier 3 application
materials. You must ensure that copies of the raw data and the statistical analyses accompany
the laboratory reports and final comprehensive report on this test.
(w) Approval after Tier 3 testing. If we determine that the Tier 3 test data show that the
shot or shot coating does not pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other
wildlife, or their habitats, we will notify you and request payment of a $20,000 final review and
publication fee (payable to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service).
(1) After receipt of payment, we will publish a proposed rule in the F
R
stating that we intend to approve this shot or shot coating and provide the public
with the opportunity to comment. The proposed rule will include a description of the chemical
composition of the shot or shot coating and a synopsis of findings under the standards
required by Tier 3.
(2) If, at the end of the comment period, we conclude that the shot or shot coating does
not pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other wildlife, or their habitats, we will
approve the shot or coating as nontoxic with publication of a final rule in the F
R
and subsequent addition of the shot or coating to the list in §20.21(j).
(x) Additional testing after Tier 3. If we conclude that the Tier 3 data are inconclusive, or if
we conclude that the shot or shot coating may pose a significant toxicity danger to migratory
birds, other wildlife, or their habitats, we may ask you to repeat tests we deem inconclusive. If
you choose not to repeat the tests, we will deny approval of the candidate shot type or shot
coating.
(y) Denial after Tier 3 testing. If we conclude that the shot or shot coating may pose a
significant toxicity danger to migratory birds, other wildlife, or their habitats, we will notify you
that we deny approval of the candidate shot type or shot coating.
(z) Withdrawal of the approval of a shot type or shot coating. If we find that an approved
shot type or shot coating is not readily detectable in the field or has environmental effects or
direct toxicological effects on biota, we may withdraw our approval of the shot type or shot
coating. This includes any previously approved shot type or shot coating.
(1) We may consult the Service Law Enforcement Laboratory to determine whether any
particular shot type or shot coating is readily detectable in the field by law enforcement
officers. If the shot type is not readily detectable in the field, we will give the shotshell producer
180 days to remedy the situation by improving either the shot or the detection method.
(2) We may consider new evidence, consistent with the provisions of the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act and the Information Quality Act (Pub. L. 106-554, 2001; Office of Management and
Budget Guidance, 67 FR 8452-8460, February 22, 2002) that shows that an approved shot
type or shot coating has significant environmental effects or direct toxicological effects that
were not known when we approved the shot type or shot coating.

(3) After the 180-day period for a shot type that cannot be tested in the field (see
paragraph (z)(1) of this section), or at any time after we learn of significant environmental
effects or direct toxicological effects, we will publish a notice in the F
R
informing manufacturers and the public of our pending withdrawal of the approval of
the shot type or shot coating. We will revise the table of approved shot types at §20.21(j) to
reflect the withdrawal of the approval, to be effective on January 1st, after allowing
manufacturers 1 full calendar year to prepare for the change.
[78 FR 78280, Dec. 26, 2013]

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Subpart M [Reserved]
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Subpart N—Special Procedures for Issuance of Annual Hunting
Regulations
S

: 46 FR 62079, Dec. 22, 1981, unless otherwise noted.

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§20.151 Purpose and scope.
The rules of this subpart N apply to the issuance of the annual regulations establishing
seasons, bag limits, and other requirements for the seasonal hunting of migratory birds. The
rules of this subpart N do not apply to the issuance of regulations under part 21 of this title or
under subparts A through J and L through M of this part 20.
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§20.152 Definitions.
As used in this subpart N:
(a) Flyway Council means the Atlantic, Mississippi, Central, or Pacific Flyway Council;
(b) Regulations Committee means the Migratory Bird Regulations Committee of the Fish
and Wildlife Service; and
(c) Significant, as used in reference to a communication or other form of information or
data, means related to the merits of the regulation and received, utilized, or transmitted by an
official of the Department who is or may reasonably be expected to be involved in the
decisional process on the regulation.
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§20.153 Regulations committee.

(a) Notice of meetings. Notice of each meeting of the Regulations Committee to be
attended by any person outside the Department will be published in the F
R
least two weeks before the meeting. The notice will state the time, place, and general
subject(s) of the meeting, as well as the extent of public involvement.

at

(b) Public observation and written comment. Each meeting of the Regulations Committee
for which notice is published pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section will be open to the public
for observation and the submission of written comments.
(c) Public participation. Except for the mid-summer meetings held in Washington, DC, in
conjuction with the public hearing on waterfowl and other late season frameworks, the public
may participate in any meeting of the Regulations Committee for which notice is published
pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section through the submission of oral statements that
comply with the rules stated in the notice.
(d) Minutes of meetings. Minutes will be made of each meeting of the Regulations
Committee for which notice is published pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section.
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§20.154 Flyway Councils.
(a) Notice of meetings. Notice of each meeting of a Flyway Council to be attended by any
official of the Department will be published in the F
R
at least two weeks
before the meeting or as soon as practicable after the Department learns of the meeting. The
notice will state the time, place, and general subject(s) of the meeting.
(b) [Reserved]
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§20.155 Public file.
(a) Establishment. A public file will be established for each rulemaking to which this
subpart N is applicable.
(b) Contents. Except for information exempt from disclosure under 5 U.S.C. 552, a public
file established pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section will contain:
(1) The minutes of Regulations Committee meetings made pursuant to paragraph (d) of
§20.153;
(2) Any written comments and other significant written communications which occur after
the notice of proposed rulemaking;
(3) Summaries, identifying the source, of any significant oral communications which
occure after the notice of proposed rulemaking; and
(4) Copies of or references to any other significant data or information.