Wildlife Regulations (N.S. Reg. 90/1988) (just regulations regs wimoose.htm)

N.S. Reg. 90/1988

Nova Scotia — Regulations

This consolidation is unofficial and is for reference only.

For the official version of the regulations, consult the original documents on file with the Office of the Registrar of Regulations , or refer to the Royal Gazette

Part II .

Regulations are amended frequently.

Please check the list of Regulations by Act to see if there are any recent amendments to these regulations filed with our office that are not yet included in this consolidation.

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Moose Hunting Regulations

made under

Section 113 of the

Wildlife Act

R.S.N.S. 1989, c. 504

O.I.C. 88-405 (effective May 1, 1988), N.S. Reg. 90/1988

amended to O.I.C. 2026-27 (effective January 26, 2026), N.S. Reg. 27/2026

Please note: this table of contents is provided for convenience of reference and does not form part of the regulations.

Click here to go to the text of the regulations .

Citation

Definitions

Definitions for licences, cards, permits and stamps issued in electronic form

Qualifications

Moose draw, stamp and licence

Companion licensees

Moose hunting stamps for special fundraising events

Open season for moose

Tagging and reporting

Storage permit

Transfer of moose carcass

Hunting methods and equipment

Terms/conditions of licence

Penalty

Repeal of old regulations

Effective date of new regulations

Schedule A

Moose Management Zones

Moose Management Zone 1

Moose Management Zone 2

Moose Management Zone 3

Moose Management Zone 4

Moose Management Zone 5

Citation

1 These regulations may be cited as the Moose Hunting Regulations .

Definitions

2 In these regulations

“Act” means the Wildlife Act ;

“base licence” means a base licence as defined in the General Wildlife Regulations

made under the Act;

“bull” means a male moose;

“companion licensee” means the holder of a valid companion moose hunting

licence;

“companion moose hunting licence” means a valid base licence which has affixed

to it a valid companion moose hunting stamp;

“companion moose hunting stamp” means a stamp issued by the Department that,

when affixed to a valid base licence, confers on the holder the privilege of assisting

the holder of a valid moose hunting licence, who nominated him or her, in hunting

moose in accordance with the Act and regulations;

“cow” means a female moose;

“Department” means the Department of Natural Resources;

“hailing distance” means a distance that permits effective and clear 2-way

communication and is not farther than 2 km;

“Minister” means the Minister of Natural Resources;

“moose hunting licence” means a valid base licence which has affixed to it a valid

moose hunting stamp;

“moose hunting stamp” means a stamp issued by the Department that, when

affixed to a valid base licence, confers on the holder the privilege of hunting

moose in accordance with the Act and regulations;

“Moose Management Zone” means an area of the Province described in

Schedule

“storage permit” means a permit issued under these regulations permitting the

holder thereof to store the meat of a moose during the closed season for moose;

“weapon” means a weapon as defined in the Firearm and Bow Regulations made

under the Wildlife Act ;

“Wildlife Resources Card” means a card issued to an individual under the General

Wildlife Regulations made under the Act.

Definitions for licences, cards, permits and stamps issued in electronic form

2A In the case of a hunting licence, licence card, hunting permit or hunting stamp issued in

electronic form under

Section 3D of the General Wildlife Regulations made under the

Act, the following

definitions apply:

“affix” means

(

i) to electronically link a stamp to a licence, licence card or permit or a

tag to a licence, permit or stamp, in the manner directed by the

Minister, and

(ii) to physically attach a tag to wildlife;

“signature” includes an electronic signature.

Qualifications

(1) Any person

(

a) who will be eighteen years of age or older on the last Monday in September;

(

b) whose hunting privileges under the Act have not been revoked;

(

c) who is a resident as defined in the Act; and

(

d) who has not held a moose hunting stamp in the past five years,

may apply for a moose hunting stamp by completing an application form provided

by the Department or by way of an electronic application process established by

the Department.

(2) An application for a moose hunting stamp shall be in a manner prescribed by the

Minister and shall include the applicant’s Wildlife Resources Card , the Moose

Management Zone and season applied for number and any additional information

required by the Minister.

(3) A non-refundable administration fee of $11.70 with a paper application form or

$8.04 with an electronic application shall be remitted with an application for a

moose hunting stamp.

(4) An application for a moose hunting stamp must be received by the Department not

later than the date determined by the Minister.

(5) During any calendar year, a person may apply for only the following number of

moose hunting stamps:

(a) 1 moose hunting stamp to hunt in Moose Management Zone 1, 2, 3 or 4;

and

(b) 1 moose hunting stamp to hunt in Moose Management Zone 5.

(6) An application form which is defaced or incomplete in any way is void and shall

not be considered as a valid application for a moose hunting stamp.

Moose draw, stamp and licence

(1) The Minister may determine, on an annual basis,

(

a) the number of moose hunting stamps to be issued in each Moose

Management Zone; and

(

b) the number of moose hunting stamps to be issued under clause 4(1)(

a) for

each of the following in each Moose Management Zone:

(

i) the taking, hunting or killing of cows only,

(ii) the taking, hunting or killing of bulls only.

(2) For any Moose Management Zone, the Minister may determine, on an annual

basis, that no moose may be taken, hunted or killed in the Moose Management

Zone.

(3) The Minister must publish, on the Department’s website or by any other method

the Minister considers appropriate, a notice of any determinations made under

subsection (1) or (2) no later than 7 days before the start of the first open season for

that year.

(4) The Minister may issue moose hunting stamps to persons selected on a random

basis from the total number of valid applications received for each Moose

Management Zone, and each stamp must specify the zone and season for which the

stamp is valid.

(5) An applicant who is selected under subsection (4) for more than 1 moose hunting

stamp must choose which stamp they want issued to them, and forfeits any

entitlement to the stamp not chosen or compensation in lieu of the stamp not

chosen.

(6) A successful applicant must be notified in writing that they will be issued a moose

hunting stamp provided they pay a fee of $66.30.

(7) The Minister may cancel a moose hunting stamp issued in error and the person to

whom the moose hunting stamp is issued has no claim for damages or

compensation other than the refund of any fee paid.

(8) No person shall take, hunt or kill or attempt to take, hunt or kill moose unless that

person

(

a) holds a valid moose hunting licence or a valid companion moose hunting

stamp and is hunting in the Moose Management Zone and during the open

season specified on the stamp; and

(

b) is certified under the Hunter Education, Safety and Training Regulations

made under the Act as qualified to hunt with the weapon to be used.

(9) No person shall take, hunt or kill or attempt to take, hunt or kill a moose in a

Moose Management Zone other than a moose of the sex permitted by the moose

hunting stamp they are hunting under.

Companion licensees

(1) The holder of a valid moose hunting licence may, by notice in writing to the

Minister, nominate a maximum of 4 persons

(

a) who are 16 years of age or over;

(

b) who are certified to hunt with under the Hunter Education, Safety and

Training Regulations made under the Act as qualified to hunt with the

weapon to be used and whose hunting privileges under the Act have not

been revoked; and

(

c) who are residents as defined in the Act,

to be companion licensees.

(2) The notice required by subsection (1) shall

(

a) contain the name, signature, mailing address, telephone number and

Wildlife Resources Card number of each proposed companion licensee;

(

b) contain the name, signature, mailing address, telephone number and moose

hunting licence number of the moose hunting licence holder to be assisted;

and

(

c) be accompanied by the fee required in subsection (4).

(3) Subject to subsections (1) and (2), the Minister shall issue a companion moose

hunting stamp to each person nominated to be a companion licensee.

(4) The fee for a companion moose hunting stamp is $24.96.

(5) All activities requiring a moose hunting licence that are performed by a

companion licensee are deemed conducted as agent of and in the name of the

moose hunting licence holder.

(6) No companion licensee shall take, hunt or kill or attempt to take, hunt or kill

moose unless the companion licensee is accompanied by and within hailing

distance of the moose hunting licence holder.

Moose hunting stamps for special fundraising events

4B Despite Sections 3 and 4, the Minister may issue a moose hunting stamp as a result of a

special fundraising event approved by the Minister for which the Minister has made a

moose hunting stamp available, to a person who is 18 years of age or older and whose

hunting privileges have not been revoked.

Open season for moose

(1) In all Moose Management Zones, there shall be the following open seasons for

hunting moose:

(

a) the period from the last Monday in September until the following Saturday

in any year; and

(

b) the period from the first Monday in October until the following Saturday in

any year.

(1A) In Moose Management Zones 1 and 5, there shall be a winter open season for

hunting moose from the second Tuesday in December until the following Thursday

in any year.

(1B) In Moose Management Zone 5, there shall be the following open seasons for

hunting moose:

(

a) the period from the second Monday in October to the following Saturday in

any year;

(

b) the period from the third Monday in October to the following Saturday in

any year;

(

c) the period from the fourth Monday in October to the following Saturday in

any year;

(

d) the period from the Monday following the fourth Monday in October to the

following Saturday in any year.

(1C) The bag limit for hunting moose is 1 moose.

(2) Except as provided by the Act or the regulations, no person shall take, hunt or kill

or attempt to take, hunt or kill a moose other than during an open season for

hunting moose.

(3) No person shall take, hunt or kill or attempt to take, hunt or kill or have in their

possession a greater number of moose than the total bag limit prescribed in these

regulations.

6 [repealed]

Tagging and reporting

(1) Whether a moose is killed by the moose hunting licence holder or companion

licensee, the moose hunting licence holder shall, immediately after the moose has

been killed and prior to transporting the moose, securely lock a tag issued by the

Department to each quarter of the moose.

(1A) Every person who takes a moose must keep evidence of its sex with the carcass

until the carcass has been taken to the place where it is intended to be processed.

(1B) For the purposes of subsection (1A), “evidence of sex” includes all of the

following:

(

a) if the moose has antlers, the head with antlers attached;

(

b) if the moose does not have antlers, the head.

(2) No person shall transport a moose or any portion thereof before affixing the tags in

accordance with subsection (1).

(3) The holder of a moose hunting licence under the authority of which a moose has

been killed shall, not later than two weeks after the end of the open season in

which the moose was killed, deliver the lower jawbone of the moose to a district

office of the Department.

(4) The holder of a moose hunting licence who kills a moose shall, not later than two

weeks after the end of the open season for which the moose hunting licence was

issued, and whether or not the holder of the moose hunting licence killed a moose,

complete and return to a district office of the Department the Moose Hunter Report

Form as prescribed by the Minister.

(5) Any person who fails to comply with subsection (1A), (3) or (4) is prohibited from

applying for a moose hunting licence for a period of seven years from the date of

the failure to comply.

Storage permit

(1) Where a moose has been killed under the authority of a moose hunting licence, the

moose hunting licence and companion moose hunting licences issued to the

persons who killed the moose shall serve as valid storage permits authorizing those

persons to possess meat from the carcass until July 31 of the year next following.

(2) The Department may renew a storage permit after July 31st of the year next

following.

Transfer of moose carcass

(1) Where a moose has been killed under the authority of a moose hunting licence and

Section 7 has been complied with, the moose hunting licence holder may transfer

not more than 15 pounds of moose meat to the occupants of another household

who may possess the moose meat without a storage permit until July 31st of the

year next following the kill of the moose.

(2) Where a moose has been killed, neither the moose hunting licence holder nor the

companion licensee shall transfer more than 15 pounds of moose meat to the

occupants of another household unless

(

a) the Department is provided with one copy of the storage permit issued

under

Section 8 and the name and address of the person or persons who are

to receive the moose meat and the number of pounds to be transferred to

each person; and

(

b) the person who is to receive the moose meat is the holder of a storage

permit issued by the Department which is valid until July 31st of the year

next following the kill of the moose.

(3) The Department may renew a storage permit issued under these regulations.

(4) No person shall possess more than 15 pounds of meat unless that person holds a

valid storage permit issued by the Department.

(5) After July 31st of the year next following the kill of the moose, it shall be an

offence for any person to possess moose meat without a valid storage permit issued

by the Department.

(6) For purposes of subsections (1), (2) and (4), the possession of moose meat in any

one household is limited to 15 pounds regardless of the number of occupants of a

household.

Hunting methods and equipment

(1) Notwithstanding the Firearm and Bow Regulations , no person while hunting

moose shall possess a bow with a draw weight of less than 50 pounds within the

archer’s draw length.

(2) A person who does not hold a valid moose hunting licence or a companion moose

hunting stamp shall not possess a bow, crossbow, rifle, slug or ball when

accompanying a person who is legally hunting moose.

11 [repealed]

Terms/conditions of licence

12 It shall be an offence for any person to contravene any term or condition contained on a

moose hunting licence.

Penalty

13 A person convicted of an offence under subsection 4(8) or (9) of these regulations is

liable to a fine of not less than one thousand five hundred dollars and not more than two

thousand dollars.

Repeal of old regulations

14 Regulations made by Order in Council 86-476 dated the 5th day of May, 1986, as

amended by Order in Council 87-708 dated the 9th day of June, 1987, respecting the

hunting of moose, are rescinded as of and from the 1st day of May, 1988.

Effective date of new regulations

15 These regulations shall come into force on and after the 1st day of May, 1988.

________________________________________________________________

Schedule A— Moose Management Zones

Moose Management Zone 1

Moose Management Zone 1 includes certain lands within Nova Scotia and is more particularly

described as follows:

Beginning at a point where the northern boundary of The Cape Breton Highlands National Park

meets the ordinary high water mark (OHWM) of the northern shoreline of Neils Harbour;

Thence , in a generally westerly direction following the northern boundary of the said Park

across the northern peninsula of Cape Breton Island to the OHWM of the Gulf of St. Lawrence

at the mouth of the MacKenzie River;

Thence , in a northerly direction along the OHWM of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Cape St.

Lawrence;

Thence , in an easterly direction along the OHWM of the Cabot Strait and Bay St. Lawrence to

Money Point;

Thence , in a southerly direction along the OHWM of Aspy Bay, Cabot Strait and Neils

Harbour to the point of beginning. Together with all inshore and offshore islands, and including

all harbours, bays, coves, rivers and inlets.

Saving and excepting all lands located in Moose Management Zone 5.

Moose Management Zone 2

Moose Management Zone 2 includes certain lands within Nova Scotia and comprises parcels

“A” and “B”, being more particularly described as follows:

Parcel “A”

Beginning at a point where the southern boundary of The Cape Breton Highlands National

Park meets the ordinary high water mark (OHWM) of the western shoreline of South Bay

Ingonish;

Thence , in a generally westerly direction along the southern boundary of the said Park across

the northern peninsula of Cape Breton Island to the OHWM of the Gulf of St. Lawrence at the

mouth of the Cheticamp River;

Thence , in a generally southerly direction along the OHWM of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the

mouth of the Margaree River;

Thence , in a southeasterly direction along OHWM of the southern shoreline of the Margaree

River to the Cabot Trail;

Thence , in a southerly and easterly direction along the Cabot Trail to North East Margaree at a

point where the road southerly from Kingross meets the Cabot Trail;

Thence , in a northerly direction along the said Kingross Road a distance of approximately

4.5 km to Margaree Valley at a point where the Frasers Mountain Road to the Highlands joins

the said Kingross Road;

Thence , in a generally easterly direction along the said Frasers Mountain Road to the point

where it meets the main road in the Highlands running northerly from Hunters Mountain;

Thence , in a northerly direction along the main road through the Highlands a distance of

approximately 2.5 km to a secondary road just past the Middle Branch North River, the said

road leading easterly to the MacDonalds Mountain fire tower;

Thence, in an easterly and northerly direction along the said secondary road a distance of

approximately 11 km to the point where it crosses the Barachois River;

Thence , in a generally southeasterly direction downstream along the said River to the point

where the said River meets the OHWM of St. Anns Bay;

Thence , in a northeasterly direction along the OHWM of St. Anns Bay and the Atlantic Ocean

to Stanley Point at the northerly edge of Cape Smokey;

Thence , westerly along the OHWM of the southern and western shorelines of South Bay

Ingonish to the point of beginning. Together with all inshore and offshore islands, and

including all harbours, bays, coves, rivers and inlets .

Parcel “B”

Beginning at a point where the southern boundary of the Cape Breton Highlands National Park

(CBHNP), just to the north of Ingonish, meets the ordinary high water mark (OHWM) of the

Atlantic Ocean;

Thence , in a westerly, southerly and easterly direction following the said boundary of the

CBHNP, and enclosing the communities of Ingonish Centre and Ingonish, and the surrounding

area, to a point where the said boundary meets the OHWM of the Clyburn Brook;

Thence , in an easterly direction downstream along the OHWM of the Clyburn Brook to the

point where the said Brook meets the OHWM of North Bay Ingonish.

Thence , in a generally westerly, northerly, easterly and northerly direction following the

OHWM of the western shoreline of North Bay Ingonish and the Atlantic Ocean to the point of

beginning. Together with all inshore and offshore islands, and including all harbours, bays,

coves, rivers and inlets.

Moose Management Zone 3

Moose Management Zone 3 includes certain lands within Nova Scotia and is more particularly

described as follows:

Beginning at a point where the Barachois River meets the ordinary high water mark (OHWM)

of the western shoreline of St. Anns Bay;

Thence , in a southerly and easterly direction following the OHWM of the western, southern

and eastern shorelines of St. Anns Bay to Cape Dauphin;

Thence , easterly in a straight line across the mouth of The Great Bras d’Or to Table Head;

Thence , easterly along the OHWM of the Atlantic Ocean to the county boundary between

Victoria and Cape Breton Counties;

Thence , in a generally southwesterly direction along the said County boundary across

Boularderie Island and the waters of St. Andrews Channel to a point where the waters of the St.

Andrews Channel join the waters of the Great Bras d’Or;

Thence , northwesterly in a straight line to a point midway between McKay Point to the south

and Red Head to the north;

Thence , in a westerly direction along the centre line of St. Patricks Channel to the mouth of

Nyanza Bay;

Thence , northerly and easterly along the centre line of Nyanza Bay to the mouth of the Baddeck

River;

Thence , upstream along the centre of Baddeck River to its intersection with the centre line of

Highway No. 105;

Thence , northwesterly along the said Highway to its intersection with the Cabot Trail;

Thence , northerly along the Cabot Trail to North East Margaree at a point where the road

southerly from Kingross meets the Cabot Trail;