In accordance with the Hunting Rules, from September 1, hunting for beaver and otter opens in the republic, which will last until March 31, 2023.
In accordance with the Hunting Rules, from September 1, hunting for beaver and otter opens in the republic, which will last until March 31, 2023.
We remind you that hunting for beaver and otter is permitted by both firearm (from ambush, stalking, approaching by small vessels, at burrows) and non-firearm (at burrows, using traps or snares (excluding nooses)) methods.
Hunting is carried out with permits for the taking of beaver or otter and hunting permits for them. At the same time, hunting ground users sell both single-use (valid for no more than 24 hours) and seasonal hunting permits for the permits.
Hunting for beaver and otter is permitted both during daylight and at night. However, we draw the special attention of hunters that firearm hunting for beaver and otter at night is permitted by ambush and stalking methods and only with single-use hunting permits for the permit (valid for no more than 24 hours), as well as with the mandatory appointment and in the presence of the hunting supervisor.
When hunting without firearms with traps or snares, their installation (removal), inspection, setting, and extraction of hunted animals are permitted only during daylight hours.
Firearm or non-firearm hunting at burrows, as well as firearm hunting by approaching with small vessels, is permitted only during daylight hours.
The following hunting weapons are permitted: rifled hunting weapons with a muzzle energy of over 1500 joules, smooth-bore weapons using cartridges loaded with bullets or buckshot, hunting bows and crossbows. When hunting from a vehicle, small vessels without an engine or with a non-operational engine are permitted. Hunting dogs (excluding hounds and sighthounds), traps (excluding snares) are also allowed.
During unarmed hunting for beaver and/or otter, it is permissible to take American mink and muskrat that are accidentally caught in traps or other devices set for beaver and/or otter. In such cases, the hunter must indicate the species of animal (American mink or muskrat) and the date of capture for each accidentally caught animal on the reverse side of the hunting permit before removing it from the trap or device.
If a hunter discovers another regulated species of game animal or a wild animal belonging to
in view of its inclusion in the Red Book of the Republic of Belarus, the hunter, without removing the animal from the trap or other device, must inform an official of the hunting grounds user about it.
In case an otter is caught in a trap or other device during the hunting of a beaver by a hunter (or vice versa), the permit shall be closed for the animal actually taken.
During the hunting of beavers and otters, hunters are allowed to open beaver burrows and dams.
Illegal hunting of beavers or otters entails administrative (Part 1 of Article 16.27 of the Code of the Republic of Belarus on Administrative Offences) or criminal (Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus) liability, as well as the obligation of the offender to compensate for the damage caused to the environment as a result of the illegal taking of the animal. In accordance with the legislation, the amount of the aforementioned damage in case of illegal taking of a beaver is 70 basic units (2240 rubles). Since the river otter is a CITES specimen (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, signed in Washington on March 3, 1973), the amount of damage in case of its illegal taking is 200 basic units or 6400 rubles.
