A special, youth-only pheasant hunting weekend will be held in Western New York on Oct. 9 to 10, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced today. The youth-only hunt is scheduled one week prior to the regular pheasant hunting season and enables junior hunters ages 12-15 years old to hunt pheasants with a licensed adult companion. The 2021-2022 regular pheasant hunting season opens Oct. 16.  

“The youth-only pheasant hunting weekend helps acclimate junior hunters to upland game bird hunting while fewer hunters are afield. This special hunt also provides a great opportunity for experienced hunters to share safe hunting practices and values with the next generation of hunters,” said DEC Region 9 Acting Director Chad Staniszewski.  

Junior hunters must be accompanied by a licensed adult hunter during the youth pheasant hunt. Accompanying adults are not allowed to possess a firearm or take a pheasant during this special season. During the two-day youth hunt, junior hunters are allowed to take two birds per day. Pheasant hunting boundary descriptions are available on DEC’s website and page 40 of the 2021-2022 Hunting and Trapping Regulation Guide. All other pheasant hunting regulations remain in effect.  

A special permit will be required to hunt at Joseph Davis, Golden Hill, and Wilson-Tuscarora State Parks in Niagara County. An individual permit is also required to hunt on Saturday, Oct. 9 and Sunday, Oct. 10. This year’s youth hunt will allow for a second youth hunter to be named on the permit. There will be two separate hunts each day that a permit is required: The first hunt will be from sunrise until 12:30 p.m. The second hunt will be from 12:30 p.m. until sunset.   

Junior hunters interested in entering the Permit Lottery at Golden Hill, Wilson-Tuscarora, and Joseph Davis State Parks should mail a separate, standard-size file card for each date and park chosen. Only one permit will be issued to each hunter per day. Cards may be put into an envelope for each respective park and mailed together to the appropriate address for each State Park:      

Information on the file card should include the junior hunter’s name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, hunting license back tag number, hunt date, and desired park location. Entries will be computerized to avoid duplications.  All lottery entries must be received by noon on Friday, Sept 24. Contact the respective Park Managers with additional questions. There is no fee for the permit and junior hunters awarded permits will have the option of naming one additional junior hunter on their permit. 

DEC is stocking approximately 882 adult roosters and hens in DEC Region 9 immediately prior to the youth hunt weekend. The birds are provided by the DEC Reynolds Game Farm. Please refer to the attached table for a summary of release sites in each county. Youth hunters wishing to hunt pheasants in Allegany State Park are reminded that they must pick up a free hunting permit at the Park’s administration building near Redhouse Lake before hunting in the park. For questions about pheasant hunting in Allegany State Park, call (716) 354-9121. 

Contact DEC’s Bureau of Wildlife at (716) 851-7010 in Buffalo or (716) 372-0645 in Allegany with any additional questions. See the table below for Youth Pheasant Hunt Stocking Locations. To apply for a permit, contact NYS Park managers identified above.  Additional information about pheasant hunting is available on DEC’s website at http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/8363.html.  

PDF attached: 2021 Region 9 Youth Hunt Pheasant Stocking Locations