Canada goose hunt season announced

Canada goose hunting season opens Tuesday for central and eastern Long Island while it opens for most of the rest of the state Saturday.

The season for central and eastern sections runs through Sept. 30, officials at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced in a news release. Hunting season for western Long Island is from Oct. 13 to Oct. 28, the department said.

During those dates, registered goose hunters are allowed to hunt resident geese, which are birds that do not migrate during winter months. DEC officials said the ideal resident Canada goose population statewide should be less than 85,000, but the current population estimate is more than 200,000.

“Goose hunters are key partners in DEC’s efforts to manage our resident Canada goose populations,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said in a statement.

A hunter must have a 2018-19 hunting license and be registered for the 2018-19 New York Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program to participate. Hunters older than 16 must also have a signed Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, which can be purchased at a post office.