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Deer Hunting Opportunities
To ensure your safety and enjoyment while hunting on the refuge, please read all of the information on this page and abide by all rules and regulations. Links to Detailed Zone Information Zone 56
Hunting is permitted in accordance with all applicable State and Federal regulations and is subject to special regulations. Hunters should also consult the New Jersey Fish and Wildlife Digest.
To hunt Edwin B. Forsythe NWR, hunters MUST apply for the appropriate Zone 56, 57, 58, and/or 70 permit through the State lottery. There will be NO sale of leftover permits. Permits are issued ONLY through the lottery; NO exceptions. Only designated sections of the Edwin B. Forsythe NWR are open for deer hunting; all other areas are closed. Purchasing a Zone 22, 42 or 51 permit does not allow hunters to hunt anywhere on the refuge.
This information will be mailed to all hunters who were awarded permits to hunt in zones on the refuge.
Zone 57
Zone 58 Forked River
Zone 58 Middle Branch Forked River
Zone 58 Barnegat
Zone 70 Cedar Run, Staffordville
Zone 70 Bass River, Oak Island
Regulations
Scouting
Hunters with validated DMZ permit may scout the refuge. Scouting is permitted on the two Sundays prior to the opening day from sunrise to sunset, as well as all Sundays during the respective season. Hunters must carry their hunting license and valid zone permit. The permittee is the only person authorized to scout the refuge.
Safety Zones
Safety Zones include all areas 450 feet from a building or school playground, even if not occupied. No hunter may carry a loaded firearm or knocked bow and arrow within these Safety Zones. Exception: a hunter may be within a Safety Zone with a loaded firearm or knocked arrow if they have written permission in their possession from the owner or qualified lessee of the property. Shooting into a Safety Zone is prohibited.
Hunter Orange
Deer hunters, hunting on the refuge during the Firearm season, must wear, at all times, in a conspicuous manner on HEAD, CHEST, and BACK a minimum of 400 square inches of SOLID-COLORED HUNTER ORANGE clothing or material. Requirements to hunt on a national wildlife refuges are double the amount required by New Jersey regulations.
Tree stands
Only portable tree stands may be used and must be removed from the refuge by the last day of the season.
Check Station
Harvested deer must be taken to an official State operated check station. A check station is not available at the refuge. Please remember to indicate which DMZ you are hunting in.
Wounded Deer
If you wound a deer and it goes off the refuge, follow state and local laws. If you shoot a deer and it runs outside your hunting zone or into a closed area of the refuge, mark the location and contact the refuge office at (609) 652-1665. Refuge staff may either give you permission to enter the closed area or other hunting zone with your weapon, or accompany you to retrieve the deer. Failure to do so may result in prosecution.
Refuge hunting areas may change each year. Hunters are encouraged to read the hunt maps provided. Please respect adjacent landowners, DO NOT TRESPASS!
Prohibited Activities- No person shall use a spotlight or other artificial light, including automotive headlights, for the purpose of spotting, locating, or taking any animal.
- Regardless of State Regulation, the distribution of bait and/or hunting over bait is prohibited.
- The use of nails, wire, screws, or bolts to attach a stand to a tree, and/or hunting from a tree into which a metal object has been driven to support a hunter is prohibited.
- All marking tape, reflective pins, or other materials used to mark trails must be removed at the end of the hunt day. The use of paint is prohibited.
- Trimming or cutting vegetation.
- Use or possession of alcoholic beverages.
- Use of ATVs and/or dirt bikes.
- Target practice
- Camping and campfires
- Littering
- Overnight parking
- Searching for or removing an object of antiquity including arrowheads, pottery or other artifacts.
- Blocking gates or roadways with vehicles.
- Pets are not permitted at anytime.
Link to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Hunting page
Page updated on September 26, 2008