National Parks Wildlife Regulations

Contents

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, pursuant to subsection 7(1) of the National Parks Act, is pleased hereby to revoke the National Parks Game Regulations, C.R.C., c. 1122, and to make the annexed Regulations respecting wildlife in the National Parks of Canada other than Wood Buffalo National Park, in substitution therefor.

Short Title

1 #

These Regulations may be cited as the National Parks Wildlife Regulations.

Interpretation

2 #

In these Regulations,

Director [Repealed, SOR/91-421, s. 1]

exotic wildlife means all wildlife that is not indigenous to a park or that has been declared, pursuant to these Regulations, to be exotic wildlife; (faune exotique)

firearm means any weapon from which any shot, bullet or other missile can be discharged and that is capable of causing injury or death to wildlife and includes anything that can be adapted for use as a firearm and anything that is designed for or capable of being used for the purpose of causing injury or death to wildlife; (arme à feu)

guide means a person who holds a valid licence issued pursuant to the National Parks Businesses Regulations to carry on the business of a guide; (guide)

hunt means to trap, chase, pursue, worry, follow after or on the trail of, search for, shoot at, stalk, lie in wait for, or to attempt, in any manner, to capture, kill or injure any wildlife whether or not the wildlife is captured, killed or injured; (chasser)

hunting permit [Repealed, SOR/91-421, s. 1]

loaded with respect to a firearm, means that a live shell or cartridge is present in the breach, chamber or attached magazine of the firearm or that a projectile is present in the barrel of the firearm; (chargée)

park [Repealed, SOR/91-421, s. 1]

possession means possession within the meaning of subsection 4(3) of the Criminal Code; (possession)

superintendent [Repealed, SOR/91-421, s. 1]

through highway means

(a)the Trans-Canada Highway in Banff, Yoho, Glacier and Mount Revelstoke National Parks,

(b)the Yellowhead Highway in Jasper National Park,

(c)the Banff-Windermere Highway in Banff and Kootenay National Parks,

(d)Highways 10 and 19 in Riding Mountain National Park,

(e)the Trans-Canada Highway, the Charlottetown Highway, the East Port area Highway 310 and the Terra Nova area Highway 301 in Terra Nova National Park,

(f)Highway 114 and the unnumbered roads leading to Teahans Corner in Fundy National Park,

(g)the Cabot Trail (Highway 19) in Cape Breton Highlands National Park,

(h)Highway 132 between Cap-aux-Os and Cap-des-Rosiers in Forillon National Park,

(i)Highway 117 in Kouchibouguac National Park, or

(j)Highway 93 in Banff National Park and Jasper National Park; (route de transit)

traffic [Repealed, SOR/2009-322, s. 16]

trap means a structure, contrivance or device that is capable of capturing wildlife by affording entrance but not exit, and includes a snare; (piège)

vehicle means every device in, on or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn on land; (véhicule)

vessel includes any boat, canoe, raft, amphibious vehicle or any other structure, other than a sea plane, used or capable of being used for transportation on water; (bateau)

wildlife means all wild mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish, insects and other invertebrates and any part thereof, and includes their eggs and young; (faune ou animaux sauvages)

^note

Application

3 #

(1)Subject to sections 40 and 41 of the Canada National Parks Act, these Regulations apply to all parks other than Wood Buffalo National Park of Canada and to all park reserves as if they were parks.

(1.1)In the event of an inconsistency between these Regulations and the National Parks of Canada Fishing Regulations or the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve of Canada Snowshoe Hare Regulations, the National Parks of Canada Fishing Regulations and the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve of Canada Snowshoe Hare Regulations prevail, respectively, to the extent of the inconsistency.

(2)These Regulations do not apply to a superintendent, park warden, peace officer or any other person authorized by the superintendent to carry out functions related to the management of a park while any of those persons is engaged in carrying out such functions.

(3)[Repealed, SOR/2004-301, s. 21] (repealed)

General Prohibitions

4 #

(1)Except as otherwise provided in these Regulations, no person shall

(a)hunt, disturb, hold in captivity or destroy any wildlife within, or remove any wildlife from, a park;

(b)in La Mauricie National Park, Georgian Bay Islands National Park, St. Lawrence Islands National Park or the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve, have in the person’s possession any wildlife;

(c)in any park other than a park referred to in paragraph (b), or outside a park, be in possession of any wildlife killed or procured within a park, unless the wildlife is in that person’s possession in accordance with subsection (4);

(d)[Repealed, SOR/2009-322, s. 17] (repealed)

(e)disturb or destroy a nest, lair, den or beaver house or dam in a park;

(f)touch or feed wildlife in a park or entice wildlife that is in a park to approach by holding out or setting out decoys or any such devices, foodstuffs or bait of any kind; or

(g)release any exotic wildlife within a park.

(2)No person shall shine a movable light having a voltage greater than 4.5 volts in any area frequented by wildlife between sunset and sunrise.

(3)A person may, in the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve, have in the person’s possession wild ducks, if

(a)the ducks have been hunted in accordance with these Regulations; and

(b)at the request of a park warden or other park officer, the person in possession of the ducks produces a hunting permit issued pursuant to section 13.1.

(4)A person may, in any park other than a park referred to in paragraph (1)(b), have in the person’s possession any wildlife if

(a)subject to subsection (5), the person in possession of the wildlife produces, on the request of a park warden or other park officer,

(i)an export permit as issued pursuant to the Game Export Act,

(ii)a hunting licence or permit or a trapping licence or permit issued by the province in which the wildlife was procured,

(iii)a hunting tag issued by the province in which the wildlife was procured and the tag is properly placed on the wildlife as required by the laws of that province, or

(iv)where the wildlife has been obtained as a gift, a valid licence or permit issued by the province in which the wildlife was procured permitting a person to give such wildlife to another person or a statement signed by the donor of the gift that includes the date of the gift, the type and number of wildlife, the name of the person receiving the gift and the licence or permit number under which the wildlife was procured; and

(b)subject to subsection (5), the person is in possession of the wildlife in the park for the purpose of

(i)storing it at a permanent residence in the park,

(ii)transporting it directly on a through highway to a permanent residence within the park,

(iii)transporting it directly through the park to private property outside the park on a road that is the sole means of access to that property, or

(iv)in the case of the Prince Edward Island National Park and where entrance onto the Gulf Shore Parkway was made solely for the purpose of travelling the most direct route to a private or public road outside the Park, transporting it on the Gulf Shore Parkway.

(5)Subsection (4) does not apply to a person who is in possession of wildlife that the person is authorized under paragraph 15(1)(a) to remove, relocate or destroy.

(6)Notwithstanding subsection (1), reasonable protection from biting or stinging insects is permitted.

Point Pelee National Park

5. to 13 #

[Repealed, SOR/91-421, s. 3] (repealed)

Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve

13.1 #

(1)Subject to subsections (2) to (5), the superintendent of the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve may, upon receiving an application, issue a hunting permit, to the person named in the application permitting that person to hunt Eider and Long-tailed duck within the boundaries of that Reserve during the open season set out for those species in that area in the Migratory Birds Regulations, 2022.

(2)No person is eligible for a hunting permit unless that person

(a)is a permanent resident of the communities of Longue Pointe de Mingan, Mingan, Havre St-Pierre or Baie John Beetz in the Province of Quebec; and

(b)holds a valid migratory game bird hunting permit issued under the Migratory Birds Regulations, 2022.

(3)No person shall hunt for duck unless the person is the holder and is in possession of a hunting permit issued under subsection (1).

(4)The superintendent may specify, in the hunting permit

(a)the period of time for which the permit is valid;

(b)the locations in the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve where the hunting of duck may take place; and

(c)such other conditions as are necessary to ensure public safety and the protection of resources in the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve.

(4.1)[Repealed, SOR/2009-322, s. 18] (repealed)

(5)The holder of a hunting permit may hunt Eider and Long-tailed duck

(a)between one-half hour before sunrise and one-half hour after sunset during the period referred to in subsection (1); and

(b)in an amount not exceeding the daily bag limit prescribed by the Migratory Birds Regulations, 2022 for the Province of Quebec.

(6)This section does not apply to any aboriginal peoples who have existing aboriginal or treaty rights to hunt in the lands constituting the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve.

^note

14 #

[Repealed, SOR/97-102, s. 5] (repealed)

Powers of Superintendent

15 #

(1)A superintendent may authorize

(a)the removal, relocation or destruction of wildlife for scientific purposes or park management purposes;

(b)the sale or public disposal of wildlife or wildlife products from a park; and

(c)the introduction into a park of wildlife that is or was exotic wildlife.

(2)[Repealed, SOR/97-102, s. 7] (repealed)

16 #

(1)A superintendent may, where it is necessary for the protection, conservation or management of the wildlife in a park, by notice in writing, prohibit the possession of firearms or other devices for capturing or destroying wildlife during specified periods and in specified areas of a park.

(2)A notice of prohibition issued pursuant to subsection (1) shall be posted at

(a)park warden offices;

(b)the information bureaus in the park; and

(c)all entrances to the park.

(3)A notice posted in accordance with subsection (2) shall contain

(a)a description of the areas in the park to which the prohibition applies; and

(b)the period of time during which the prohibition applies.

17 #

[Repealed, SOR/88-40, s. 5] (repealed)

18 #

Where a notice is posted pursuant to section 16, no person shall be in possession of a firearm in the area described in the notice during the time the notice is in effect.

Dogs

19 #

No person shall use a dog for the purpose of hunting wildlife.^note

Firearms

20 #

(1)No person shall be in possession of a firearm in a park unless the firearm is not loaded and is transported in a case or is wrapped and tied securely in such a manner that no part of the firearm is exposed.

(2)Subsection (1) does not apply to

(a)a person in Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve who is hunting pursuant to a hunting permit issued under subsection 13.1(1); or

(b)a bonded armoured car service guard who is carrying out assigned duties in the park.

(3)No person shall

(a)have a loaded firearm in or on a vehicle, vessel or aircraft; or

(b)discharge a firearm from a vehicle, vessel or aircraft.

(4)The superintendent may issue a permit authorizing a person to carry a firearm or trap where the firearm or trap is to be carried through the park for use outside the park.

(5)No person shall carry a firearm or trap outside a vehicle, vessel or aircraft unless

(a)that person

(i)has a permit from the superintendent authorizing the carrying of a firearm or trap, whichever is applicable, and

(ii)complies with these Regulations; or

(b)the firearm or trap is being carried directly

(i)from a vehicle, vessel or aircraft to that person’s premises, or

(ii)to a vehicle, vessel or aircraft from that person’s premises.

(6)No person, other than a bonded armoured car service guard in the performance of that person’s duties in a park, shall discharge a firearm, except on a rifle range or when shooting wild ducks in the Mingan Archipelago National Park Reserve in accordance with these Regulations.

(7)No person shall possess a firearm or other device for capturing or destroying wildlife in Kejimkujik, La Mauricie or Point Pelee National Parks, or in Forillon National Park except when traversing the park along Highway 132, unless the person has been authorized under paragraph 15(1)(a) to remove, relocate or destroy wildlife.

21 #

Every person who is in possession of a firearm or trap shall, on the request of a park warden or other peace officer, allow the park warden or peace officer to inspect

(a)the firearm or trap; and

(b)the permit required for carrying the firearm or trap.

^note

22 #

Every person acting as a guide for any individual or group carrying firearms or traps shall ensure that they are carried in accordance with these Regulations.

Poison

23 #

No person shall possess any poison, poisonous substance, gas, narcotic or drug that can be used for the purpose of capturing, injuring or killing wildlife.^note

General

24 #

No person shall by radio, telephone, walkie-talkie or any other means communicate the location of wildlife within a park to any other person within or outside a park if either of the persons is hunting.

25 #

No person shall sell or offer for sale in a park any firearm or trap.

Federal laws of Canada reproduced under the Reproduction of Federal Law Order (SI/97-5); not the official version. Source: Justice Laws Website.