With an area of 385,155 km2, Norway´s wide variety of natural habitats supports an abundant fauna and offers opportunities for many different kinds of hunting. Important species of game There are good stocks of moose, red deer, wild reindeer and roe deer. The most sought after gallinaceous birds are willow grouse, ptarmigan, black grouse, capercaillie and hazel hen. Waders, ducks, geese and sea birds are plentiful in some areas. The hare is the most popular species of small game, but beavers can also be hunted in some parts of the country. Land in Norway is either state-owned or private. Landowners have the sole hunting and trapping rights on their land. State-owned land is a feature of southern Norway, from Nord-Trøndelag to the south; state-owned land is primarily in northern Norway. When taking your own firearms in to Norway, you must show the customs officer on entry your licence valid at home. You must also give a written declaration following a set pattern, which will be certified by customs, and which then is valid as a licence. On private land, it is the landowner who holds the hunting rights, but these rights are often hired out to foreign visitors. SHAG (Toppskarv) Area: The counties of Finnmark, Troms, Nordland and Nord Trøndelag and the municipalities of Osen, Roan, Åfjord, Bjugn, Ørland and Rissa in the county of Sør Trøndelag. Hunting time: 01.10 - 30.11 GREAT CORMORANT (Storskarv) Only young birds with white breasts Area: The counties of Møre & Romsdal and Sør Trøndelag exept the municipalities Osen, Roan, Åfjord, Bjugn, Ørland and Rissa municipalities in the county of Sør Trøndelag Hunting time: 01.10 - 30.11 Great cormorant (All storskarv) Area: The rest of the country. Hunting time: 01.10 - 30.11 PINK-FOOTED GOOSE (Kortnebbgås) Area: Finnmark, Troms and Nordland counties south to Rana and Rødøy municipalities. Hunting time: 21.08 - 23.12 The rest of the country. Hunting time: 10.08 - 23.12 Exception: In the Oslofjord and Skagerrak, hunting at sea and in fjord cf. Paragraf 32 of the Wildlife Act, from the Swedish border and including Vest Agder county, is open. Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 GREY LAG GOOSE Area: Finnmark, Troms and Nordland counties south to Rana and Rødøy municipalities. The rest of the country. Hunting time: 21.08 - 23.12 In all counties, exept Finnmark, Troms, from the start of the season until 15.08 grey lag goose may only be hunted between 00.00 a.m. and 11.00 a.m. Hunting time: 10.08 - 23.12 In the counties south of Troms county the County Governor can open the hunting season for grey lag goose ten days ahead of the ordinary opening of the hunting season, in areas covered by an approved management plan. Exception as above. Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 CANADA GOOSE (Kanadagås) Area: Finnmark, Troms and Nordland counties south to Rana and Rødøy municipalities. Hunting time: 21.8 - 23.12 The rest of the country Hunting time: 10.08 - 23.12 Exception as above. Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 BAR-HEADED GOOSE (Stripegås) Area: The whole country Hunting time: 10.08 - 23.12 Exception as above Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 The Municipality can give a permission to hunt canada goose and bar-headed goose in a period of ten days before the ordinary hunting time and in two mounts after the ordinary hunting time. WIGEON TEAL and MALLARD (Brunnakke, Krikkand and Stokkand) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 21.8 - 23.12 Exception as above Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 UFTED DUCK (Toppand), LONG-TAILED DUCK (Havelle), GOLDEN EYE (Kvinand), RED-BREASTED MERGANSER (Siland) and GOOSANDER (Laksand) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 COMMON SCOTER (Svartand) Area: The counties of Østfold, Akershus, Oslo, Vestfold, Buskerud, Telemark, Aust Agder, and Vest Agder.Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 EIDER DUCK (Ærfugl) Area: The counties of Østfold, Vestfold, Telemark, Aust Agder, and Vest Agder.Hunting time: 01.10 - 30.11 HAZEL GROUSE (Jerpe), BLACK GROUSE (Orrfugl) and CAPERCAILLIE (Storfugl) Area: The whole country.Hunting time: 10.09 - 23.12 WILLOW GROUSE (Lirype) and ROCK GROUSE (Fjellrype) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.09 - 28.2 / 29.02 Exception: The counties of Finnmark, and Troms and the municipalities of Narvik, Ballangen og Evenes and also that part of Tysfjord municipality which is situated north of the Tysfjord / Hellemofjord in the county of Nordland. Hunting time: 10.09 - 15.03 PHEASANT (Fasan) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 01.10 - 15.10 GOLDEN PLOVER (Heilo) Area: The whole country except the county of Rogaland where the species is protected. Hunting time: 21.08 - 31.10 SNIPE (Enkeltbekkasin) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 21.8 - 31.10 WOODCOCK (Rugde) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.9 - 23.12 BLACK-HEADED (Hettemåke), GULL (Fiskemåke), COMMON GULL (Gråmåke), HERRING GULL (Måke), GREAT BLACKBACKED GULL (Krykkje) and KITTIWAKE (Svartbak) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 21.8 - 28.2 / 29.2 Exception: In the Oslofjord and Skagerrak, hunting at sea and in fjord cf. paragraf 32 of the Wildlife Act, from the Swedish border and including Vest-Agder county, is open. Hunting time: 10.09 - 28.02 / 29.02 WOOD PIGEON (Ringdue) Area: The whole country except Troms and Finnmark where the species is protected. Hunting time: 21.8 - 23.12 COMMON (Gråtrost) and REDWING THRUSH (Rødvingetrost) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.08 - 23.12 JAY (Nøtteskrike) Area: The whole country except Troms and Finnmark where the species is protected. Hunting time: 10.08 - 28.2 / 29.02 MAGPIE (Skjære) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.08 - 28.2 / 29.02 CROW (Kråke) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 15.07 - 31.03 RAVEN (Ravn) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.08 - 28.2 / 29.02 Except Troms and Finnmark where the species is protected. Hunting time: 10.08 - 15.03 BROWN HARE (Sørhare) and WILD LIVING RABBIT (Viltlevende kanin) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.09 - 28.2 / 29.02 BLUE HARE (Hare) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 10.09 - 28.2 / 29.02 Exception: Troms and Finnmark counties and Narvik, Ballangen og Evenes municipalities and that part of Tysfjord municipality which is situated north of the Tysfjord / Hellemofjord in the county of Nordland. Hunting time: 10.09 - 15.03 RED SQUIRREL (Ekorn) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 01.11 - 15.03 BEAVER (Bever) Area: In municipalities which permit beaver hunting. In areas where it is a lot of ice and snow the municipality can permit beaver hunting until 15.05 Hunting time: 01.10 - 30.04 MUSKRAT (Bisamrotte) Hunting time: 21.08 - 15.05 COYPU (Beverrotte) Hunting time: 21.08 - 15.05 RED FOX (Rødrev) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 15.07 - 15.04 STOAT (Røyskatt) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 21.08 - 15.03 PINE MARTEN (Mår) Area:The whole country. Hunting time: 01.11 - 15.03 BADGER (Grevling) Area:The whole country. Hunting time: 21.08 - 31.01 LYNX (Gaupe) Area: In counties which permit lynx hunting. The lynx is a totally protected species in the rest of the country. Hunting time: 01.02 - 30.04 RACCOON DOG (Mårhund) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 01.04 - 31.03 WILD MINK (Villmink) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 01.04 - 31.03 WILD BOAR (Villsvin) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 01.04 - 31.03 MOOSE (Elg) Area: In municipalities which permit moosehunting. The counties of Finnmark, Troms, Nordland, Nord Trøndelag and Sør Trøndelag. Hunting time: 25.09 - 31.10 - 01.09 - 30.09 Exception: Kautokeino and Karasjok municipalities. The counties of Møre & Romsdal, Sogn & Fjordane, Hordaland and Rogaland. Hunting time: 10.09 - 15.11 - 25.09 - 31.10 - 05.10 - 31.10 Oppland County Exception: Lunner municipality. Hunting time: 25.09 - 31.10 Telemark County Exception: Sauherad, Siljan, Porsgrunn, Skien, Nome, Bamble, Kragerø, Drangedal exept Tørdal according to the old parish boundary and Bø municipalities. Hunting time: 05.10 - 31.10 - 25.09 - 31.10 Buskerud County Exception: Hurum, Røyken, Lier, Hole, Drammen, Øvre Eiker and Nedre Eiker municipalities. Hunting time: 05.10 - 31.10 The counties of Østfold, Akershus, Oslo and Vestfold. Hunting time: 25.09 - 31.10 Hedmark County Exception: Eidskog, Kongsvinger, Sør-Odal, Nord-Odal, Grue, Åsnes, Våler, Stange, Løten, Hamar, Elverum (west of the River Glomma) and Ringsaker municipalities. Hunting time: 05.10 - 31.10 - 25.09 - 31.10 Vest Agder County Exception: Kristiansand, Søgne, Songdalen, Vennesla, Marnardal, Audnedal, Mandal, Lindesnes, Lyngdal, Farsund and Flekkefjord. Hunting time: 05.10 - 31.10 Aust Agder County Exeptions: Risør, Gjerstad, Vegårshei, Tvedestrand, Arendal, Froland, Grimstad, Birkenes, Lillesand, Evje and Hornnes municipalities. Hunting time: 05.10 - 31.10 RED SQUIRREL (Ekorn) Area: The whole country. Hunting time: 01.11 - 15.03 RED DEER (Hjort) Area: In municipalities which permit red deer hunting. Hunting time: 10.09 - 15.11 ROE DEER (Rådyr) Area: In municipalities which permit roe deer hunting. Hunting time: 25.09 - 23.12 MATURE ROEBUCK (Voksen rådyrbukk) Area: In municipalities witch permit mature roebuck. Hunting time: 10.08 - 23.12 REINDEER (Villrein) Area:The whole country (all reindeer territories). Hunting time: 20.08 - 30.09 FALLOW DEER (Dåhjort) Area:The whole country. Hunting time: 25.09 - 23.12 MOUFLON, Wild SHEEP (Muflon) Area:The whole country. Hunting time: 25.09 - 23.12 BIG-GAME HUNTING Moose Red deer Roe deer Follow deer Wild reindeer Wild sheep Wild boar Musk ox Wolf Bear SMALL-GAME HUNTING Hares Geese Woodcock Waders Ducks Norway is a large country with a small population and lots of uncultivated terrain. There are large populations of game, and hunting is cheap compared to other countries. Hunting in Norway is very different to hunting in the rest of Europe with respect to ownership of the game. When the first Norwegian laws where written early in the last millennium, the main principle was that the game had no owners and that every man could hunt on his own ground. In other countries, it is common that the crown and nobility owns all game. One of the reasons that Norway is different is probably that we practically had no nobility. For the big game, the district authorities set annual quotas. They are based on a general rule of number of animals by size of property. The quotas also gives age and sex limitations. The ministry determines the hunting season. There are four main species of big herbivores in Norway, each with more or less different habitats. Beside these, there are small populations of escaped fallow deer, and there is also a small population of musk ox, established early last century. The roe deer, is the smallest of the deer species in Norway. Their main habitat is mixed agricultural / forest areas in the south of the country. The roe deer is not very well adapted to cold winters and/ or winters with deep snow. Compared to the other big herbivores, they are not efficient in digging forage out of the snow. They are also easily hindered by deep snow, witch makes them easy targets for especially lynx. Roe deer hunting can be done with or without the help of dogs. When dogs are used, they are led until they get the scent of an animal, they are then unleashed, and will chase the roe deer. When chased, the roe deer usually takes big circles, so when the dog is let loose, the hunters will wait where they think the deer will come back. This is to avoid a high speed of the chase and exhaustion of the deer. They are also selectively bred to be loud, so that the hunter easily can locate the dog and the prey. Hunting methods without dogs include stalking, posting and also imitations of rut calls. Roe deer is the only big herbivore that is allowed to hunt with a shotgun. The hunting season for roe deer in Norway is between 25 of August and 15 of November. Annually approximately 28.000 are shot in Norway. The red deer is found mainly on the western coast, but it has been spreading massively over the last 10-15 years. Its main habitat is the steep hills and valleys around the fjords. The Norwegian red deer, is similar to the deer found on the British Isles. Red deer is usually hunted without the aid of dogs, and the most common hunting method is stalking or posting at trekking routes. Imitations of rut calls can be very efficient (and exiting). Late in the hunting season, when food is scarce high in the hills, the deer move to lower land, and are often found on cultivated areas. This makes them easy to find and shoot. They usually only come out after dark, so moonshine is often a big help. The animals are calm when grazing, and this gives the hunter good time to judge sex and age of the animal, so that the shooting is in accord with the quota. The table below gives numbers of red deer shot between 1952 and 2002. The reindeer is the most robust of the big game, living at the high mountain plateaus in the south. In the north of Norway, the original habitat of the wild reindeer has been taken over by herds of tame reindeer. The reindeers hooves are big and spoon shaped. This makes digging in the snow easier, and it also distributes their weight over a larger surface, so they don´t sink into deep snow so easily. The first habitants of Norway where hunters following the reindeer after the ice withdrew approximately 10.000 years ago. The reindeer is sensitive to stress, and their habitat is threatened by human construction. Roads, power lines and cabins will drive reindeer away from traditional mating, feeding or calving areas. The reindeers main feed is lichen. Reindeer is hunted without dogs. The hunt is based on locating flocks of reindeer, and then sneak up on them or wait for them to move. This is demanding because of the lack of vegetation and often flat terrain witch makes it difficult to hide. As motorised vehicles are not allowed when hunting in Norway, locating and stalking animals must be done on foot, and the dead reindeer must be carried out of the hunting grounds. 6600 reindeer was shot in 2002. The Elk (US: moose) is the largest big game in Norway. With bulls weighing up to xxx kg, it lives up to it´s name king of the forest. Large bulls can be up to xxx cm over the withers. Elk is usually hunted with dogs. The dogs are either kept on leash and just used to locate animals or let loose, similar to roe deer hunting. The difference between the two is that the elk will stay put and try to fight of the dog rather than to run away. Whilst the elk is distracted by the dog, the hunter sneaks up. The dogs are to small to attack the elk, and will only bark at them and annoy them. Last year, 38.000 elk was shot in Norway, 54% males and 46% females. There are for big carnivores in Norway, wolverine, lynx, wolf and brown bear. They were all as good as extinct at the beginning of last century, but are now re-establishing. This has caused conflicts with farmers. In summer, there are 1 million sheep on high mountain pastures without shepherds, and there has been quite significant losses of animals. When a large carnivore learns how easy it is to kill sheep, it won´t stop, and you get the fox in poultry-yard-effect, where a whole herd of sheep are torn to pieces and just left more or less dead. As a strategy of appeasement, the government has grants licences for taking out vermints, but still tries to maintain viable populations. This hunting has been the cause of much controversy, both at home and abroad. Particularly wolf hunting has been criticized. In addition to the licence hunting, lynx and wolverine are hunted with (small) set quotas each year. By Eivind Reed