Don’t Forget Ontario’s Sunday Gun Hunting Rules

Planning on hunting in Southern Ontario? If you are, don’t forget that Sunday gun hunting is not allowed in certain counties and municipalities.  To make it more complicated, the hunting regulations do not clearly set out where Sunday gun hunting is allowed, and Ontario’s counties and municipalities don’t neatly fit into the boundaries of the province’s wildlife management units (or “WMUs”).

Fortunately, there is a Sunday gun hunting map that can quickly show you whether or not your weekend plans need adjustment.  Below is the map current at the time of posting.

The only downside of this map, as you might notice, is that it depicts Southern Ontario in a fairly large scale.  This means you’ll need to use google maps or some other tool (such as calling the property owner where you plan to hunt) to confirm that you’re in a municipality that allows Sunday gun hunting.  Also note that, while the map is updated periodically to keep up with changing bylaws, the only way to be 100% sure is to contact the municipality. You can also check out the Sunday gun hunting webpage provided by the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters for recent bylaw updates.

Here’s how this works using a real life example.   Let’s say Liam and I are planning a Sunday rabbit hunt.  The farm we have permission to hunt is in WMU 90A, so we need to refer to the rules applicable to that WMU for the usual regulations like season, bag limits and so on.  Below is a closer look at 90A from the current OFAH map.

As you can see, WMU 90A straddles three counties; Norfolk, Brant and Haldimand.  Only Norfolk and Brant allow Sunday Gun Hunting, and Brant only allows it in part of the county.  Lucky for us, Liam and I already know that the farm we plan to hunt is in Norfolk county.   We can confirm that in any event by referring to Google Maps.  The Norfolk county website also happens to confirm that Sunday gun hunting is allowed.  Note also that some counties require specific township licenses to hunt.  This is true of Norfolk county.  Check the county website of whatever county you happen to be hunting in.

The Sunday gun hunting map is an excellent tool of practical benefit to hunters.  Definitely don’t hit the field on a Sunday until you have a look at it.