§ 10-410. Game bird or mammal hunting restrictions
West's Annotated Code of MarylandNatural ResourcesEffective: July 1, 2022
Effective: July 1, 2022
MD Code, Natural Resources, § 10-410
§ 10-410. Game bird or mammal hunting restrictions
(a)(1)(i) The Department may allow a person to hunt on each Sunday of the game bird and game mammal seasons in:
(b) A person may not hunt any game bird or mammal, except raccoon and opossum, at nighttime.
(c)(1) A person may not shoot at any species of wildlife from an automobile or other vehicle or, except as provided in § 4-203(b) of the Criminal Law Article and Title 5, Subtitle 3 of the Public Safety Article, possess in or on an automobile or other vehicle a loaded handgun or shotgun, or a rifle containing any ammunition in the magazine or chamber.
(2) If this subsection is violated by an occupant of a vehicle which has 2 or more occupants and it cannot be determined which occupant is the violator, the owner of the vehicle, if present, shall be presumed to be responsible for the violation. In the absence of the owner of the vehicle, the operator of the vehicle shall be presumed to be responsible for the violation.
(d)(1)(i) For the purposes of this subsection, “off-road vehicle” means a motorized vehicle designed for or capable of cross-country travel on land, water, snow, ice, marsh, swampland, or other natural terrain.
(ii) “Off-road vehicle” includes four-wheel drive or low-pressure tire vehicles, automobiles, trucks, motorcycles and related two-wheel vehicles, amphibious machines, ground-effect or air-cushion vehicles, snowmobiles, boats, farm-type tractors, earth-moving or construction equipment, lawn mowers, snowblowers, garden or lawn tractors, or golf carts.
(e)(1) A person or 2 or more persons together may not hunt or attempt to hunt at nighttime any species of wild bird or wild quadruped with a light, including the headlights of any vehicle, and a person may not cast the rays of any artificial light when the rays emanate from a vehicle on any woods, fields, orchards, livestock, wild animals or birds, dwellings, or buildings. The provisions of this paragraph do not apply to the normal use of headlights of a vehicle traveling on any public or private road in a normal manner, to any police, emergency or utility company vehicle using spotlights in the performance of their duties, or to any farmer or landowner on the farmer's or landowner's own or leased land using artificial lights to check on the farmer's or landowner's land, crops, livestock, or poultry. However, raccoons, fox, or opossum may be hunted on foot at nighttime during open season with the use of a dog or light, or both.
(f) A person may not shoot at any species of wildlife on, from, or across any paved public highway or the shoulder of the highway. A person may not shoot from any public highway, whether paved or unpaved, in Kent County and Queen Anne's County or shoot from any public road, whether paved or unpaved, within the boundaries of the Hanover municipal waterworks property in Carroll County.
(g)(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection, a person, other than the owner or occupant, while hunting for any wild bird or mammal may not shoot or discharge any firearm or other deadly weapon within 150 yards, known as the “safety zone”, of a dwelling house, residence, church, or other building or camp occupied by human beings, or shoot at any wild bird or mammal while it is within this area, without the specific advance permission of the owner or occupant.
(3)(i) For archery hunters in Allegany County, Calvert County, Carroll County, Cecil County, Frederick County, Garrett County, Harford County, Montgomery County, St. Mary's County, or Washington County, the safety zone described in paragraph (1) of this subsection extends for 50 yards from a dwelling house, residence, church, or any other building or camp occupied by human beings.
(6) In Montgomery County or Washington County, an archery hunter shall be in an elevated position that allows the hunter to shoot in a downward trajectory when hunting any wild bird or mammal within 50 to 100 yards of a dwelling house, residence, church, public or nonpublic school, or other building or camp occupied by human beings.
(h) A person may not dig in or drive a motor vehicle on any cleared field while hunting, except with the permission of the owner, tenant, or other person in charge of the land, or park or leave standing any motor vehicle so that the motor vehicle blocks the means of ingress or egress to any person's property, cattle ways, or fields.
(i) A person may not carry a firearm to hunt any wild bird, mammal, amphibian, or reptile while intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol or any narcotic drug.
(j)(1) A person may not hunt or attempt to hunt wild birds or mammals from an aircraft within the State.
(k) A person may not set any trap, except box traps for rabbits, net, or snare of any description to take any game birds or mammals, except fur-bearing mammals. A trap, net, or snare found in the possession of any person shall be prima facie evidence that the device was used to violate this subsection. A law enforcement officer of the State shall confiscate and destroy the device. A person may not place traps of any description on another person's property without the other person's written permission.
(m) A person may not kill, attempt to kill, or injure by poison wildlife or domestic poultry.
(n) A person may not smoke, burn, injure, hunt, or molest any game birds or mammals in any den or damage or destroy the den of any game bird or mammal.
(o)(1) In Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Howard, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties, a person may not use, set, place, or maintain any steel jaw leghold trap on land. The steel jaw leghold trap may be used for the capture of fur-bearing mammals in water only.
(p)(1)(i) “Snare trap” means a device made of wire, synthetic cord, or other material that:
Credits
Added by Acts 1973, 1st Sp. Sess., c. 4, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974. Amended by Acts 1974, c. 419; Acts 1976, c. 466; Acts 1976, c. 508; Acts 1977, c. 795; Acts 1978, c. 15; Acts 1978, c. 893; Acts 1979, c. 568; Acts 1980, c. 193; Acts 1981, c. 52; Acts 1981, c. 116; Acts 1981, c. 176; Acts 1981, c. 481; Acts 1982, c. 17, § 7; Acts 1982, c. 154; Acts 1982, c. 408; Acts 1983, c. 271; Acts 1984, c. 136; Acts 1984, c. 193; Acts 1984, c. 448; Acts 1985, c. 455; Acts 1987, c. 117; Acts 1987, c. 201; Acts 1987, c. 513; Acts 1987, c. 657; Acts 1988, c. 6, § 1; Acts 1988, c. 52; Acts 1988, c. 462; Acts 1989, c. 5, § 1; Acts 1990, c. 6, § 2; Acts 1990, c. 541; Acts 1991, c. 55, § 1; Acts 1991, c. 100; Acts 1991, c. 359, §§ 1, 2; Acts 1992, c. 22, § 1; Acts 1993, c. 298; Acts 1994, c. 500, § 2, eff. July 1, 1994; Acts 1995, c. 513, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 1995; Acts 2002, c. 213, § 6, eff. Oct. 1, 2002; Acts 2003, c. 17, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2003; Acts 2003, c. 170, § 1, eff. July 1, 2003; Acts 2004, c. 25, § 1, eff. April 13, 2004; Acts 2005, c. 267, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2005; Acts 2006, c. 303, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2006; Acts 2006, c. 361, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2006; Acts 2006, c. 460, § 1, eff. July 1, 2006; Acts 2007, c. 346, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2007; Acts 2007, c. 347, § 1, eff. July 1, 2007; Acts 2008, c. 94, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2008; Acts 2008, c. 323, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2008; Acts 2009, c. 291, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2009; Acts 2010, c. 139, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2010, c. 366, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2010, c. 478, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2010, c. 532, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2010, c. 666, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2011, c. 64, § 1, eff. April 12, 2011; Acts 2011, c. 120, § 1, eff. June 1, 2011; Acts 2011, c. 237, § 1, eff. July 1, 2011; Acts 2012, c. 18, § 1, eff. April 10, 2012; Acts 2012, c. 145, § 1, eff. April 10, 2012; Acts 2012, c. 355, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2012; Acts 2012, c. 490, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2012; Acts 2012, c. 497, § 1, eff. July 1, 2012; Acts 2012, c. 725, § 1, eff. July 1, 2012; Acts 2013, c. 357, § 1, eff. July 1, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 427, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 432, § 1, eff. May 16, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 433, § 1, eff. May 16, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 600, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 601, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 616, § 1, eff. July 1, 2013; Acts 2013, c. 618, § 1, eff. July 1, 2013; Acts 2014, c. 290, § 1, eff. July 1, 2014; Acts 2014, c. 505, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2014; Acts 2014, c. 506, § 1, eff. July 1, 2014; Acts 2014, c. 507, § 1, eff. July 1, 2014; Acts 2016, c. 180, § 1, eff. April 26, 2016; Acts 2016, c. 246, § 1, eff. July 1, 2016; Acts 2016, c. 269, § 1, eff. July 1, 2016; Acts 2016, c. 333, § 1, eff. July 1, 2016; Acts 2016, c. 334, § 1, eff. July 1, 2016; Acts 2017, c. 304, § 1, eff. April 18, 2017; Acts 2017, c. 443, § 1, eff. July 1, 2017; Acts 2017, c. 458, § 1, eff. July 1, 2017; Acts 2017, c. 459, § 1, eff. July 1, 2017; Acts 2017, c. 460, § 1, eff. May 4, 2017; Acts 2018, c. 123, § 1, eff. July 1, 2018; Acts 2019, c. 171, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 188, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 189, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 190, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 191, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 192, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 193, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 242, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 265, § 1, eff. July 1, 2019; Acts 2019, c. 592, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2019; Acts 2020, c. 95, § 1, eff. June 1, 2020; Acts 2020, c. 95, § 2, eff. July 1, 2022; Acts 2021, c. 279, § 1, eff. July 1, 2021; Acts 2021, c. 280, § 1, eff. July 1, 2021; Acts 2022, c. 389, § 1, eff. July 1, 2022; Acts 2022, c. 390, § 1, eff. July 1, 2022; Acts 2022, c. 424, § 1, eff. July 1, 2022; Acts 2022, c. 429, § 1, eff. July 1, 2022; Acts 2022, c. 444, § 1, eff. July 1, 2022; Acts 2022, c. 458, § 1, eff. July 1, 2022.
MD Code, Natural Resources, § 10-410, MD NAT RES § 10-410
Current through all legislation from the 2022 Regular Session of the General Assembly. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
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