Hunting Grouse During Closed Season in Ontario:

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Last Updated: September 17 2026

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Question:I received a ticket for hunting grouse during closed season in Ontario, what should I do next?

Answer:If you’ve been charged with Hunting Grouse During Closed Season in Ontario, do not ignore the summons or miss the court date; gather the exact offence wording and section number, confirm the grouse species, date, Wildlife Management Unit, hunting method (ordinary vs falconry), and preserve licence records, GPS/maps, photos or video, and any officer notes because the Crown must prove no open season applied to your specific circumstances.   Compare what’s alleged to the correct open season table for the offence date, and do not assume a Small Game Licence automatically makes the hunt legal during a closed season.   If you believe the hunt was for protection of property under Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997, or another exception may apply, collect evidence showing why you reasonably believed wildlife was damaging and what you did.   For Ontario paralegal help reviewing your ticket details and possible next steps, contact DefendCharges.ca™ at (647) 559-3377.

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Hunting Grouse During Closed Season in Ontario

Received a hunting ticket or summons for Hunting Grouse During Closed Season in Ontario?  You have been charged with a provincial offence under Ontario hunting law.  The charge concerns whether you hunted ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, or sharp-tailed grouse at a time or in an area where no open season applied to that species and hunting method.

Note: Please contact DefendCharges.ca™ by phone at: (647) 559-3377 to discuss any specific questions that you may have.

Do not panic.  Many people also call this hunting grouse out of season.  Being charged does not automatically mean you will be convicted.  Grouse seasons differ by species, Wildlife Management Unit, and whether the hunt involved ordinary hunting methods or a falconry bird, so the exact date, location, species, and method can be central to the case.

This page explains what Hunting Grouse During Closed Season means, how Ontario's grouse seasons work, what must be proven, the current fine, evidence that may matter, possible exceptions and defences, seizure issues, and what may happen next.  This offence is part of Small Game & Furbearer Charges.

I Received a Hunting Grouse During Closed Season Ticket or Summons.  What Should I Do?

Read every document carefully and do not miss the response deadline or required court date.  A summons is a court document requiring you to attend court or respond as directed.  Your ticket may use the wording Hunt during the closed season — game bird other than wild turkey rather than the plain English page title used here.

Start with the exact offence wording and section number.  Record the date, time, exact location, Wildlife Management Unit, species of grouse, hunting method, who was with you, and what the Conservation Officer says you were doing.  A Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) is a numbered geographic area Ontario uses to apply local hunting seasons and other hunting rules.

Keep your ticket, summons, Outdoors Card, Licence Summary, Small Game Licence records, maps, GPS information, photographs, videos, messages, hunting equipment information, witness information, and every document provided by the Conservation Officer.  If falconry or protection of property is relevant, preserve the records and evidence supporting those circumstances.

Should I Pay the Ticket?

Paying the ticket will generally be treated as pleading guilty and will result in a conviction.  A conviction means a finding of guilt.  Before paying, compare the alleged species, date, location, and hunting method with the open season that actually applied and review whether the evidence establishes that you were legally hunting grouse.

A valid Small Game Licence does not create an open grouse season where none applies.  A closed season charge is also different from a charge about hunting without a Small Game Licence, exceeding a daily or possession limit, using prohibited equipment, or another offence arising from the same incident.

What Is Hunting Grouse During Closed Season?

Hunting Grouse During Closed Season means hunting a grouse species when no open season applied to that species, location, date, and hunting method.  Ontario legally classifies ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, and sharp-tailed grouse as game birds, meaning birds placed by Ontario in a regulated game category.

An open season is the period during which Ontario permits hunting the species in the applicable area and circumstances.  A closed season is the period when no applicable open season permits that hunting.  Ontario Regulation 665/98 requires game wildlife listed in the open season tables to be hunted only in a listed area and during the open season that applies to the hunter and area.

The word grouse is not enough by itself to identify the correct season.  Ruffed grouse and spruce grouse share seasons in some northern and central WMUs, but some southern WMUs have a ruffed grouse season and no spruce grouse season.  Sharp-tailed grouse has its own geographic season coverage.

The hunting method can also change the season.  Ontario has one table for ordinary game bird hunting and a separate table for hunting with a falconry bird or non-indigenous falconry bird.  A falconry bird is a trained bird of prey used to hunt wildlife under Ontario's falconry rules.

The correct season must therefore be matched to the bird, WMU, date, and method described in the charge.  Other small game and furbearer offences are organized within Small Game & Furbearer Charges.

What Grouse Species Does Ontario Regulate?

Ontario's game bird schedules identify three grouse species relevant to this page: ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, and sharp-tailed grouse.  Species identification can matter because an open season for one grouse species in a WMU does not automatically create an open season for another.

Ruffed grouse has the broadest southern season coverage.  Spruce grouse is not included in the southern ruffed grouse-only season rows.  Sharp-tailed grouse is limited to the WMUs listed for that species.  Photographs, the bird itself, witness evidence, officer observations, and biological identification can therefore matter where the species is disputed.

What Are the Current Ordinary Grouse Seasons?

For ordinary hunting, the current seasons depend on both grouse species and WMU.  Ontario's 2026 Hunting Regulations Summary lists the following principal seasons:

Ruffed Grouse and Spruce Grouse

• WMUs 1–4, 16–18 and 24–27: September 15 to March 31 in the following year; and
• WMUs 5–15, 19–23, 28–50, 53–67 and 69B: September 15 to December 31.

Ruffed Grouse Only

• WMUs 68, 73–76 and 82–84: September 25 to December 31; and
• WMUs 69A, 70–72, 77–81 and 85–95: September 25 to December 31.

Those southern rows are ruffed grouse seasons only.  They do not create an ordinary spruce grouse season in those WMUs.

Sharp-tailed Grouse

• WMUs 1–4, 16–18 and 24–27: September 15 to March 31 in the following year;
• WMUs 5–15, 19–23, 28–35 and 38–41: September 15 to December 31; and
• WMUs 36, 37, 42–50, 53–67 and 69B: September 15 to December 31.

If the applicable species and WMU do not appear in the ordinary grouse season table, the ordinary table does not provide an open season for that hunt.  Season dates can change by regulation, so a charge must be checked against the law in force on the offence date rather than a different year's season summary.

Does Falconry Have a Different Grouse Season?

Yes.  Ontario has separate grouse seasons for hunting with a falconry bird or non-indigenous falconry bird.  Under the current falconry table, the open season is September 1 to March 31 in the following year for the grouse species and WMUs listed in that table.

The falconry table covers ruffed grouse more broadly than spruce or sharp-tailed grouse.  Ruffed grouse is listed across the specified northern, central, and southern WMUs, while spruce grouse and sharp-tailed grouse are limited to the WMUs specifically listed for those species.  A falconry season does not authorize ordinary gun or bow hunting during a period when the ordinary season is closed.

If your charge arose between September 1 and the ordinary opening date, or after an ordinary season closed, the actual hunting method and any applicable falconry authority may be important.

What If the Grouse Was Damaging My Property?

Ontario has a separate protection of property rule that can matter in a closed season case.  Section 31 of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997 allows a person who reasonably believes wildlife is damaging or is about to damage their property to harass, capture, or kill the wildlife on the person's land, subject to the limits of that section.

Ontario Regulation 665/98 provides that most of the ordinary Hunting Regulation, including the general closed season rule in section 25, does not apply to a person lawfully acting under section 31.  This is not a general permission to hunt grouse out of season.  The property threat, whether the property and land were yours, the reason for acting, the amount of wildlife affected, and the other statutory requirements must fit the protection of property provision.

What Law Applies?

The principal closed season rule is subsection 25(2) of Ontario Regulation 665/98, commonly called the Hunting Regulation.  It provides that, except where the regulation says otherwise, a person must hunt a species of game wildlife only in an area specified for the species and during the open season applicable to the person and area.

Ontario Regulation 670/98, Open Seasons — Wildlife, contains the ordinary grouse seasons in Table 7 and the falconry seasons in Table 7.1.  Ontario Regulation 669/98 classifies ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, and sharp-tailed grouse as game birds.

The protection of property provision is section 31 of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997 together with Part XVII of the Hunting Regulation.  Other rules involving Small Game Licences, bag or possession limits, hunter orange, firearms, dogs, property access, or other hunting methods can create separate charges, but they are not part of the proof of this closed season offence unless separately charged.

What Must Be Proven?

The prosecutor, meaning the lawyer or representative presenting the government's case, must prove every required part of the charge beyond a reasonable doubt.  Beyond a reasonable doubt is the high legal standard that must be met before the court can find you guilty.

For a Hunting Grouse During Closed Season charge under subsection 25(2), the prosecutor will generally need evidence establishing that:

• You were the person involved;
• Your conduct legally amounted to hunting;
• The wildlife involved was a grouse species regulated as a game bird;
• The hunting occurred on the date and at the location relied upon in the charge; and
• No open season applicable to that grouse species, hunting method, and area permitted the hunting at that time.

If you rely on a prescribed authorization, exception, exemption, or qualification, subsection 47(3) of the Provincial Offences Act generally places the burden of proving that it operates in your favour on you.  This can matter where protection of property or another specific exception is relied upon.

Ontario also has a statutory hunting proof rule.  In the absence of evidence to the contrary, possession of a firearm, decoy, or other hunting device in an area usually inhabited by wildlife can be proof that a person was hunting.  That rule does not automatically prove the species, date, location, closed season, or the remaining requirements of the charge.

Does a Grouse Have to Be Shot or Killed?

No.  A successful kill is not required for a closed season hunting charge.  Ontario defines hunting broadly and the definition includes conduct beyond shooting or killing wildlife.

Hunting can include lying in wait for, searching for, being on the trail of, pursuing, chasing, or shooting at wildlife for the purpose of killing, injuring, capturing, or harassing it.  It also includes capturing or harassing wildlife.

A missed shot, pursuit, or other conduct that legally amounts to hunting can therefore support the charge even if no grouse was killed.  Merely seeing grouse, travelling through an area, photographing wildlife, retrieving property, or being present with another hunter does not automatically establish hunting.

What Common Situations Lead to This Charge?

Hunting Before the Grouse Season Opened

The Conservation Officer may say the hunting occurred before September 15 or September 25 under the ordinary season that applied to the species and WMU.  If falconry was involved, the separate September 1 opening may need to be checked.

Hunting After the Grouse Season Closed

The charge may concern hunting after December 31 or March 31, depending on the species, WMU, and hunting method.  Timestamps, GPS information, photographs, and witness evidence may help establish when the activity occurred.

Hunting a Grouse Species With No Open Season in the WMU

A ruffed grouse season may exist where no spruce grouse season applies, or the alleged sharp-tailed grouse hunt may have occurred outside the WMUs listed for that species.  Species identification and location evidence can therefore be central.

Ordinary Hunting During a Falconry Only Period

A falconry season may be open before or after the ordinary grouse season.  The fact that Table 7.1 was open does not authorize a hunter using an ordinary firearm or another non-falconry method.

What Is the Fine?

The current Ontario set fine for "Hunt during the closed season — game bird other than wild turkey" under subsection 25(2) is $250.  Ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, and sharp-tailed grouse fall within that game bird category.  A set fine is the preset fine used when an offence is dealt with by ticket.

The $250 set fine is not necessarily the total amount payable.  A victim fine surcharge and applicable court costs may also be added.

The set fine is different from the maximum penalty available after conviction.  Under section 102(1) of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997, the general maximum penalty for an individual is a fine of up to $25,000, imprisonment for up to one year, or both.  Those are statutory maximums and are not the automatic or usual result of an ordinary $250 closed season ticket.

Can This Charge Affect My Hunting Licence or Hunting Privileges?

A hunting licence cancellation or prohibition is not automatic simply because you have been charged.  A charge is not a conviction.  After conviction, section 104 of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997 permits the court to make a discretionary order affecting a licence or authorization related to the offence and the activity requiring it.  If the order applies to a kind of licence or authorization you already hold, the court must order it cancelled.

What Evidence May Be Used?

Grouse closed season cases often depend on species identification, date, location, hunting method, and evidence showing whether you were actually hunting.  Relevant evidence may include:

• The ticket, summons, offence wording, and section number;
• Conservation Officer notes, observations, photographs, video, audio, and location evidence;
• Maps, GPS tracks, property boundaries, WMU boundaries, road locations, and timestamps;
• The grouse, feathers, photographs, video, or other evidence relevant to species identification;
• Firearms, bows, falconry birds or equipment, dogs, calls, clothing, or other hunting equipment;
• Your Outdoors Card, Licence Summary, Small Game Licence, Falconry Licence where relevant, and other hunting records; and
• Property records, photographs, damage evidence, communications, or witness evidence if protection of property is relied upon.

Disclosure is the relevant information and evidence in the prosecutor's possession or control that you are entitled to receive, subject to the law.  Disclosure should be obtained and reviewed before important decisions are made about a disputed charge.

What Possible Defences or Legal Issues May Apply?

The defence depends on the grouse species, date, WMU, hunting method, what you were doing, and the reliability of the evidence.  Not every defence or legal issue applies to every case.

An Open Grouse Season Applied

The date, species, and WMU may show that the ordinary grouse season was open.  The version of Table 7 in force on the alleged offence date should be compared with the exact location and grouse species identified by the Conservation Officer.

The Falconry Season Applied

If you were lawfully hunting with a falconry bird or non-indigenous falconry bird, Table 7.1 may provide an open season when the ordinary Table 7 season was closed.  The hunting method, falconry records, date, species, and WMU should be checked together.

The Grouse Species Was Misidentified

The bird may have been a different game bird or a different grouse species from the one assumed in the investigation.  This matters where one species had an open season in the area and another did not.

The Location or WMU Is Wrong

The Conservation Officer may have identified the wrong WMU or relied on an incorrect location.  GPS information, maps, road locations, property boundaries, photographs, and witness evidence may help establish where the activity actually occurred.

You Were Not Hunting Grouse

You may have been travelling, scouting, photographing wildlife, retrieving equipment, checking property, or accompanying another person rather than hunting grouse.  The prosecutor must establish conduct that falls within Ontario's legal definition of hunting.

The Protection of Property Rule Applied

The evidence may show that you reasonably believed the grouse was damaging or about to damage your property and that you acted on your land within section 31.  The actual property threat, location, purpose of the conduct, and limits of the statutory authority should be reviewed carefully.

Due Diligence or an Honest and Reasonable Mistake of Fact

Due diligence means taking all reasonable care in the circumstances to prevent the offence.  An honest and reasonable mistake of fact means honestly and reasonably believing facts that, if true, would make the conduct innocent.  Section 101 of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1997 recognizes these defences where their requirements are established.

A factual mistake might concern the grouse species, WMU boundary, actual date, or another fact affecting whether an open season applied.  Simply not knowing the season dates or misunderstanding the law is different from a reasonable mistake about a fact.

Could a Grouse, Firearm, or Other Property Be Seized or Forfeited?

Yes, where the statutory requirements are met.  Depending on the investigation, Conservation Officers may seize a grouse or other wildlife, firearm or bow, hunting equipment, phone, GPS device, vehicle, or other property believed to have been used in or provide evidence of an offence.

Seizure means property has been taken into official custody and does not itself establish guilt.  Forfeiture means permanent loss of ownership and is a separate legal consequence that depends on the applicable law and circumstances.

What Happens Next?

Your ticket or summons should identify the next procedural step and any response deadline or court date.  Do not miss that deadline while obtaining legal advice, requesting disclosure, or deciding how to respond.

After disclosure is obtained, compare the charge with the season table in force on the alleged date, the grouse species, WMU, maps and GPS information, hunting method, officer observations, witness accounts, and any records supporting falconry or protection of property.  If the same incident produced a licence, limit, firearm, dog, property, or other charge, each offence should be reviewed separately.

The prosecutor may withdraw the charge, meaning the charge is no longer being pursued, or the matter may be resolved by a guilty plea or another agreement, or proceed to trial.  The appropriate response depends on the evidence, legal issues, possible consequences, and circumstances of your case.

How Can DefendCharges.ca™ Help?

DefendCharges.ca™ can review the wording on your ticket, summons, seizure notice, or other documents and compare it with the wildlife, records, and activity involved.  This can help identify the exact charge, the legal requirements that apply, and the factual issues that may be important to your case.

If the matter proceeds through court, DefendCharges.ca™ can explain the court process, review the available evidence and legal issues, discuss possible penalties or other consequences, and help you understand your options for responding to the charge.

Have Questions About Hunting Charges?

Whether you have been charged with one hunting offence or several, understanding your legal options is important.  DefendCharges.ca™ can review your case, explain the charges you are facing, and help you understand your legal options and the best course of action.  Contact us today to discuss your situation.

Key Takeaways

• Ontario regulates ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, and sharp-tailed grouse as game birds, and the applicable open season depends on the species and WMU;
• Ruffed grouse has open seasons in some WMUs where spruce grouse does not, while sharp-tailed grouse has its own geographic season coverage;
• Ordinary hunting and falconry use separate season tables, so the hunting method can determine whether the season was open;
• A valid Small Game Licence does not create an open grouse season where none applies;
• A grouse does not have to be shot or killed because Ontario's definition of hunting includes conduct beyond a successful harvest;
• The current set fine for Hunt during the closed season — game bird other than wild turkey under subsection 25(2) is $250; and
• Species identification, WMU boundaries, dates, hunting method, officer observations, and electronic records may be central to the case.

Conclusion

Your Hunting Grouse During Closed Season charge should be reviewed using the exact offence wording and section number, the grouse species, date, location, Wildlife Management Unit, hunting method, and evidence showing what you were doing.  Ruffed grouse, spruce grouse, and sharp-tailed grouse do not have identical geographic season coverage, and falconry uses a separate season table.

Before paying the ticket or entering a plea, review the disclosure and compare the evidence with the grouse season table that was in force on the alleged date.  Legal representation can help determine what the prosecutor must prove and whether an open season, species issue, location issue, falconry rule, protection of property rule, statutory defence, or other legal issue applies.