Eastern Massachusetts National Wildlife Refuge Complex 73 Weir Hill RoadSudbury, MA 01776978/443 4661978/443 2898 Faxhttp://www.fws.gov/northeast/easternmanwrcomplex/
Federal Relay Servicefor the deaf and hard-of-hearing800/877 8339
US Fish & Wildlife Service1 800/344 WILDhttp://www.fws.gov
June 2011
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Eastern MassachusettsNational Wildlife Refuge ComplexHunt Regulations and Information Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge
Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge
Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge
Welcome WelcometotheAssabetRiver,GreatMeadowsandOxbownationalwildliferefuges.Thesethreerefuges,alongwithfiveothers,arepartoftheEasternMassachusettsNationalWildlifeRefugeComplex.Therearemorethan550nationalwildliferefugesinthecountry.TheU.S.FishandWildlifeServiceadministerstheserefugesandisresponsibleforconserving,protectingandenhancingthenation’sfishandwildlifepopulationsandtheirhabitatsforthecontinuingbenefitofthepeople.
Inresponsetohunterfeedbackandtostreamlinethehuntprogram,somerefugeregulationsandprocedureshavechanged.Huntersareencouragedtoreadthisinformationcarefully.
Itisimperativethatyouconductyourselfwiththehighestlevelofconsiderationforthesafetyandenjoymentofothers.Pleaserespectandobserverefugeregulations,boundariesandsafetyzones.Alack
ofresponsibilityonyourpartcouldresultinareductionor
closureofrefugehuntingopportunitiesinthefuture.
AssabetRiverNationalWildlifeRefugeisopenforthehuntingofwhite-taileddeer(archery,muzzleloader,shotgun),springturkey,Americanwoodcock,ruffedgrouse,Easterncottontailrabbit,andgraysquirrel.GreatMeadowsNWRisopenforwhite-taileddeer(archeryonly)andwaterfowl(ducksandgeese).OxbowNWRisopenforwhite-taileddeer(archery,muzzleloader,shotgun),springandfallturkey,waterfowl(ducksandgeese),snipe,Americanwoodcock,ruffedgrouse,Easterncottontailrabbit,andgraysquirrel.NOTALLPARTSOFEACHREFUGEAREOPENFOREACHHUNTSEASON.Befamiliarwiththehuntmapsandregulationstoensureyouarehuntinginanopenarea.
Archerypermitsarevalidduringshotgunandmuzzleloaderseasons.
Applicablerefugehuntingdatesandtimescorrespondtostateregulations.Seestateabstractsfordetails.
Allhuntersarerequiredtohavearefuge-issuedpermitalongwithstatelicensesintheirpossessiontoscoutorhuntoneachrefuge.ApplicationsaretypicallyavailableJuly1stthroughJuly31stathttp://www.easternmapermits.com.
Theinformationprovidedbelowoutlinesrefuge-specifichuntregulations.Personspossessing,transporting,orcarryingfirearmsonnationalwildliferefugesmustcomplywithallprovisionsofstateandlocallaw.Personsmayonlyuse(discharge)firearmsinaccordancewithrefugeregulations(50CFR27.42andspecificrefugeregulationsin50CFRPart32).Pleasecontactusifyouare
Hunt Seasons
Refuge Permits
Refuge Regulations and Information
Thisgoose,designedbyJ.N.“Ding”Darling,hasbecomethesymboloftheNationalWildlifeRefugeSystem.
Gray squirrel
confusedaboutanyofourspecialregulations.
Closed Areas Notallareasofthethreerefuges
areopenforhunting.Pleaserefertothemapsinthisbrochuretoensurethatyouarehuntingonlandoralongriverswherehuntingisallowed.Huntersmustalsocomplywiththe500-footsafetyzonearoundoccupied
buildingsand150-footsafetyzonefrompublicroads.
WaterfowlhuntingatGreatMeadowsNWRisauthorizedbetweenthebuoysontheConcordandSudburyRivers.Waterfowlhuntingontheriversisallowedonlybetweenbuoys1and2,3and4,5and6,and7and8.TherearenobuoysontheNashuaRiveraswaterfowlhuntingthereisonlyallowedsouthofRoute2totheStillRiverDepotRoadboatlaunch.
Nature Trails Naturetrailsarelocatedonall
refugesinareaswherehuntingisallowed.Otheroutdoorenthusiasts
maybeusingtheNashuaRiver,SudburyRiverorConcordRiverduringthehuntingseason.Pleaseexercisecautionwhenhuntingonorneartheriversornearnaturetrails.Itisyourresponsibilityto
knowwheretrailsarelocated.Alsorealizethatsomepeoplemaywanderofftrails(eventhoughtheyarenotsupposedto!).Pleasebeawarethatnon-huntersmaynotknowthathuntingisallowedonsomepartsoftherefuges.
Refuge Management Activities Refugestaff,volunteersand
contractorsmaybeworkingatanytimeonanyoftherefugesduringhuntingseason.Ourmanagementactivitiesforwildlifeandhabitatmanagementareimportantandwillcontinuetobeconductedduringthehuntseason.Weapologizeifouractivitiesdisturbyourhunt,butsomedisturbancewillbeunavoidable.
Parking Youwillreceiveaparkingpasswith
yourrefugepermit.Thenumberonthispasswillcorrespondwithyourpermitnumber.Thepassmustbevisibleonyourdashboardatalltimeswhenparkedinadesignatedparkinglot.
Weaskhunterstoparkindesignatedrefugehuntparkingareasshownonthehuntmaps.Youmaybefinedor
Woodcock
Duck taking
flight
towedifyourvehicleblocksgates,roadsorbuildings.Somehuntareashavelimitedornoparkingaccess—weencouragecarpoolingor
beingdroppedoffandpickedup.
Someparkingareasareonnon-refugelands(Rt.225boatlaunchinBedfordandLakeGeorgeStreetinDevens)orarecommonly
usedbythegeneralpublictoaccessthe
SudburyRiver.Pleasebecourteousof
othersifparkingintheseareas.Also,ensure
youareonrefugepropertybeforeyoubeginhunting.
AtGreatMeadowsNWR,huntersMUSTNOTaccesstherefugefromTownofCarlisleconservationlands.Parkingisavailableoffthedrivewayat342MapleStreet,Carlisle.Pleasebecourteousasthisisaprivateresidence.
Scouting Scoutingmayonlybedoneonthe
fourSundayspriortoopeningdayofthepermittedseason.Huntersengagedinscoutingmustcarrystateandrefugelicensesandpermits.
Hours Huntersmayentertherefugeno
earlierthanoneandone-halfhoursbeforelegalhuntinghoursandleave
nolaterthanoneandone-halfhoursafterlegalsunset.
Tree stands Refugehunterswillbeallowedto
keeponetreestandoneachrefugeduringthewhite-taileddeerarchery,shotgunandmuzzleloaderseasons.Treestandsmustbemarkedwiththehunter’spermitnumberinsuchafashionthatitcanbevisiblefromtheground.TreestandsmaybeputupasearlyasthefirsteligiblescoutingdayofthepermittedseasonandmustberemovedbyJanuary15ofthepermittedseason.AnytreestandremainingontherefugeafterJanuary15maybeconfiscated.Climbersorladdertypetreestandsarerecommended.Nails,spikes,screwsorotherobjectsmaynotbedrivenintoanytreetoaccessorsecurethestand.
Havingatreestandinplacedoesnotclaimyourrighttoaspecificareaoftherefuge.Huntersmustrelyongoodjudgmentandhunterethicstoavoidconflict.Treestandsleftuparedonesoatthesoleriskofthehunter.Standsleftontherefugemaybesecuredwithalock.The
Turkey
Eastern cottontail
rabbit
U.S.FishandWildlifeServiceisnotresponsibleforlost,stolenordamagedproperty.
Youth hunting Anychild
betweentheagesof12and17canreceivearefugehuntingpermit
(notsubjecttolotteryprocess)andmustbe
accompaniedbyalicensedhunter18yearsofageor
olderwhenhunting.
Non-hunting companion Wenolongerissuecompanionhunt
permits.However,wewillalloweachpermittedhuntertobeaccompanied
byonenon-huntingcompanion.Non-huntingcompanionscannotengageintheactofhuntingbuttheycanhelpretrieveandcarrydownedgame.Allcompanionsmustcarrypersonalidentificationwiththemandbewillingtoshowittoanylawenforcementofficial.Non-huntingcompanionsmustbecloseenoughtothehuntertospeaktothemwithoutraisingtheirvoice.
Hunter orange Duringanyseasoninwhichitis
legaltohuntdeerwithashotgunormuzzleloader,werequireallhuntersandcompanionstowearaminimumof500squareinchesofsolid-orangeclothingormaterialontheirchest,backandhead(exceptifhuntingwaterfowlfromablindorboat).Duringallothertimes,huntersengagedinwoodcock,ruffedgrouse,squirrel,orcottontailrabbithuntingatAssabet
RiverorOxbowNWRs,aswellassnipehuntingatOxbowNWR,arerequiredtowearattheminimumasolid-orangehat.CamouflageorangealoneisNOTpermitted.Thisisasafetyconsiderationforyourselfaswellasforrefugevisitors,stafforcontractorswhomaybeinthearea.Duringturkeyseason,huntersmustwearanorangecapwhenmovingtoandbetweentheirhuntlocation.
Refuge boundaries Wehavetriedtoclearlymarkrefuge
boundaries.However,notallrefugeareasarecompletelysigned.Pleaserefertotherefugemapsandcalltherefugeofficeifyouneedclarificationonarefugeboundary.
Approved shot Huntersmaypossessonlyapproved
non-toxicshotwhenhuntingruffedgrouse,rabbit,squirrelandmigratorybirds.
Dogs Dogsarenotallowedonanyofthe
refugesduringscouting.Forseasons
whereStateregulationsallowtheuseofdogs,weallownomorethantwodogsperhuntingparty.
Decoys Decoyscanonlybeusedwhile
huntingwaterfowlorturkey.
White-tailed deer
Canvasback decoys
Trail markers Wedonotpermitthemarkingofany
tree,trail,orotherrefugefeaturewithflaggingorpaint.Huntersmayusereflectivetacksandothersmallreflectivemarkers,whichneedtoberemovedattheendoftheseason.WeencouragetheuseofaGPStoavoidputtingupmarkers.
Law enforcement Individualsutilizingtherefugeare
subjecttoinspectionsofpermits,licenses,huntingequipment,baglimits,boats,vehicles,andtheircontentsbyfederalorstatelawenforcementofficers.Anymemberoftherefugestaffmayasktoseeyourrefugepermit.
•Drivingofdeerbyanymeans•Littering•Useofaspotlightorotherartificial
lighttolocatewildlife•Baitingorhuntingoverbaitorsalt•Useofelectroniccalls•Drivingorscrewinganail,spike
orothermetalobjectintoatreeorhuntingfromanytreeinwhichsuchanobjecthasbeendriven
•Trimmingorcuttingvegetationgreaterthanthediameterofaquarter
•Useorpossessionofalcoholicbeverageswhilehunting
•UseofATVs,dirtbikesand/orothermotorizedvehicles
•Targetpractice•Campingandcampfires•Overnightparking•Searchingfor,orremoving,any
objectofantiquityincludingarrowheads,potteryorotherartifacts
•Blockinggatesorroadwayswithvehicles
•Dogtraining
Ourwildlifeisavaluableresource.Lawsandregulationsareintendedtoprotectthem,whileallowingforsomeconsumptiveuse.Huntersare
Prohibited Activities
An Important Message
encouragedtoreportanyviolationstheymayencountertoaStateorfederalemployee.
Thefutureofhuntingontherefugesrequiresresponsiblehunterbehaviorandcompliancewithregulations.Youcanhelpusbycomplyingwiththeseregulations,reportingunethicalhunterbehaviorandprovidinguswithfeedback.
Thankyou.Haveasafeandenjoyablehuntingexperience.
Forinformationonhowtoapply,pleasecontactusat:
EasternMassachusettsNational WildlifeRefugeComplex 73WeirHillRoad Sudbury,MA01776 978/4434661 http://www.fws.gov/northeast/ easternmanwrcomplex/ Toapplyonline,visit http//www.easternmapermits.com
Ruffed grouse
Sudb
ury Riv
er
Sudbu
ry R
d
Heard Pond
126
12627
S O U T H
S U D B U R Y
126
W A Y L A N DW A Y L A N D
W A Y L A N DW A Y L A N D
White Pond
117
N O R T H
S U D B U R Y
FairhavenBay
Farrar Pond
27
Con
cord
Rd
Sherman Bridge RdWeir Hill Rd
Sudbury Division
S U D B U R Y
L I N C O L N
Lincoln Rd
Sudbury River
Sudbury River
Sudbury
Riv
er
Sudbury
Riv
er
LEGEND
Rivers/Stream
Lake or Pond
Marsh, Wetland, Swamp or Bog
Primary Route
Road or Street
Refuge Boundary
Trails
Parking Lots
Boat Ramp
Archery deer hunting
Waterfowl hunting
Great Meadows National Wildlife RefugeSudbury Unit
N
.75 Miles 1.50
20
27
Water Row
Stonebridge R
d
Landham Rd
Pelham Island Rd
Concord Division
62
4
2A
4
B E D F O R D
C A R L I S L E
B I L L E R I C A
Concord Impoundments
3
225
LEGEND
Lake or Pond
Marsh, Wetland, Swamp or Bog
Rivers/Stream
Road or Street
Refuge Boundary
Trails
Parking Lots
Comfort Station
Boat Ramp
Archery deer hunting
Waterfowl hunting
River R
d
62
Map
le St
Map
le St
West St
Great Meadows National Wildlife RefugeConcord Unit
N
.75 Miles 1.50
Con
cord
R
iver
Conc
ord
R
iver
110111
111
W. Main
St
Shirley Rd
HospitalRd
B&M
Rai
lroad
Exit 37BExit 37B Exit 38
RobbinsPond
MirrorLake
Grove Pond
LittleMirrorLake
Sherm
anA
ve
Walker
Rd
FORT
DEVENS
MILITA
RY
RESERVATION
Harvard
PlowShopPond
2A
2
111110
Flannagan Pond
H A R V A R D
L A N C A S T E R
S H I R L E Y
A Y E R
Patton Rd
Still RiverDepot Rd
Jack
son
Rd
BishopRd
Geo
rge
St
Lak
e
Wal
ker
Rd
LEGENDRivers/Stream
Lake or Pond
Marsh, Wetland, Swamp or Bog
Refuge Boundary
Trails
Parking Lots
Boat Ramp
Shotgun, archery and primitive firearms hunting for deer, turkey, ruffed grouse, gray squirrel, rabbit, woodcock, and snipe
Archery deer hunting, shotgun hunting for turkey, ruffed grouse, gray squirrel, rabbit, and woodcock
Archery hunting only for deer and turkey
Waterfowl hunting areas
Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge
.75
N
Miles 1.50
2A
Nas
hu
a River
Nas
hua
Riv
er
Concord
Rd
Bruen
Rd
27
62
117M A Y N A R D
H U D S O N
S U D B U R Y
Assabet River
Willis Pond
CuttingsPond
LakeBoon
SUDBURY-MARLBOROUGHSTATE FOREST
SUDBURY-MARLBOROUGHSTATE FOREST
SUDBURY-MARLBOROUGHSTATE FOREST
Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge
Whi
te P
ond
Pratt's M
ill
Pond
VossPond
Main St
SUDBURY STATE FOREST
SUDBURY STATE FORESTHudson Rd
Fairban
ks
Rd
LEGEND
Rivers/Stream
Lake or Pond
Marsh, Wetland, Swamp or Bog
Refuge Boundary
Trails
Parking Lots
Archery, Shotgun and primitivefirearms hunting for turkey, deer, ruffed grouse gray squirrel, rabbit, and woodcock
Archery hunting only for deer and turkey
PufferPond
Taylor B
rook
Taylor B
rook
Sudbury Road
Sudbury Road
0 1 Miles 2
N
20
S T O W