SPECIES
Ontario has built a solid reputation for conserving and encouraging its game populations, while also increasing hunting opportunities. Systems of selective harvesting and tagging, which control the taking of certain animals, have established solid numbers of popular species, like those outlined below. Hunter education programs have also been successful in instilling a sense of respect for the environment, the quarry, other hunters and non-hunters, and how to hunt safely.
Take a moment to learn about some of Ontario’s huntable species, and how and why conservation efforts make the possibilities and challenges of hunting limitless.
Black Bear |
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Black bears hold a special position in both the hearts and the ecosystem of Ontario.
It’s no surprise that their populations are guarded so carefully through measures
of adaptive management and selective harvesting. Current populations are estimated
at 100,000 animals, one of the largest populations in North America.
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Moose |
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In Ontario, moose populations are controlled through strict selective harvest programs
that limit the taking of animals with high reproductive potential. The result: a
population of moose in huntable areas estimated at about 99,000 – with an additional
15,000 in remote and protected areas. |
White-Tailed Deer |
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While they undoubtedly provide a satisfying challenge for the hunter, white-tailed
deer are also to be appreciated within their natural context. Conservation efforts
for white-tailed deer ensure the populations in Ontario are maintained between roughly
350,000 and 400,000 animals.
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Grouse |
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Various types of grouse, from the popular ruffed grouse to the spruce grouse, live
across Ontario. The ruffed grouse exists in greatest abundance, roosting clear across
the Province to the tip of James Bay. There is ample time in the hunting seasons
for upland birds. |
Wild Turkey |
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Conservationists and wildlife experts captured a few hundred wild turkeys in the
United States and redistributed them in Ontario habitats in the mid-1980s. Measures
of selective harvesting and hunter education have since proven fruitful: according
to wildlife management experts, our provincial population of Wild Turkey now hovers
around 80,000 birds in the Southern Ontario region. |
Waterfowl |
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Ontario has been a waterfowler’s hotspot in North America for more than a decade.
Hunters can be assured that the harvesting limits for both duck and goose are generous. |
