The 17-2023 hunting season officially kicks off on 2024 September in the Lazio region, the duration of which will extend until 31 January of the following year. Thanks to the decree issued by the president of the Lazio region, Francesco Rocca, it was possible to approve the hunting calendar and establish the maximum number of animals that each hunter can shoot during the season. However, as far as wild boars are concerned, we will have to wait for a further specific decree.
The number of animals that can be hunted
For the 2023-2024 hunting season, a maximum limit of animals that can be slaughtered has been established for each species. Each hunter may shoot no more than five heads of European hare and gray partridge, no more than ten heads of pochard, no more than fifteen heads of pheasant and dove, no more than twenty heads of woodcock, no more than twenty-five heads of snipe, gadwall , pintail, whisk, garganey, shoveler and quail, and no more than fifty heads of lark. In order to be able to hunt, all hunters must have a hunting card, valid throughout the national territory. For the selection, it will be necessary to obtain a specific card.
Hunting in Lazio: all dates, species by species
During the hunting season, it will be permitted to hunt three days a week, at the choice of the license holder, between Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Below, we list the hunting dates for the different wild species:
– From 17 September 2023 to 30 September 2023: it will be possible to hunt turtle dove (picking allowed only to authorized hunters) and quail.
– From 17 September 2023 to 10 December 2023: the hunt for the European hare will be open.
– From 17 September 2023 to 31 December 2023: wild rabbit, pheasant and blackbird will be huntable.
– From 17 September 2023 to 15 January 2024: it will be possible to hunt hooded crow and magpie.
– From 17 September 2023 to 31 January 2024: the teal, the snipe, the gadwall, the pintail, the wigeon, the coot, the whisker, the moorhen, the mallard, the garganey, the shoveler, will be huntable, the pochard (only for authorized hunters), the water rail and the fox.
– From 1 October 2023 to 31 December 2023: lark hunting will be permitted.
– From 1 October 2023 to 20 January 2024: woodcock hunting will be open.
– From 1 October 2023 to 31 January 2024: the following species will be huntable: fieldfare, wood pigeon, jay, song thrush and redwing.
– From 1 October 2023 to 30 November 2023: it will be possible to hunt partridge.
– From 1 November 2023 to 31 January 2024: wild boar can be hunted, with the methods and number of animals subsequently communicated by the Lazio region.
Pochards and doves
As regards the pochard species (Aythya ferina), an overall limit of 834 animals that can be slaughtered throughout the region has been established during the 2023-2024 hunting season. Pochard hunting will be allowed only to hunters who have submitted a specific request to the competent ATC and obtained the assignment of the maximum number of animals that can be killed. For the dove species, on the other hand, the overall regional game limit for the entire 2023-2024 hunting season will be 5.534 animals, including any pre-opening which will be established with a subsequent decree.
With a further provision, it was established that from 1 to 10 February 2024, it will be possible to hunt the wood pigeon and jay species. Furthermore, the methods of hunting will be regulated for the Lazio side of the Abruzzo Lazio Molise National Park and for the Island of Ponza.
Regional commentary
The councilor for agriculture, Giancarlo Righini, and the regional councilor of Brothers of Italy, Enrico Tiero, underlined that the hunting calendar was drawn up after a fruitful work of concertation with the regional hunting faunal committee and the opinion of Ispra. They are satisfied with the result achieved, as most of the requests from the interested associations have been met. The goal is to safeguard the peculiarities of hunters and their rural communities, particularly affected by the proliferation of wild boars which cause extensive damage to agriculture and dangerous accidents on the roads. The approved decree represents an important change of gear in the methods and decisions taken. The Rocca administration proves to be close to the demands of the hunting world and the needs of the territories involved.