- Why is there a closed season?
- When is the closed season?
- Penalties for hunting martens during the closed season
- Hunt martens at hunting time
Martens may not be hunted during the closed season. But why is it like that? What does closed time mean? And from when until when does the hunting ban apply? In the following you will find out everything about the closed season for martens, especially stone martens.
Young martens only leave the nest from the age of 3 months
Why is there a closed season?
Marten babies are completely dependent on their mother for several months. They are even completely blind for the first five weeks of their lives. The youngsters only begin to look for their own food after three months - the mother also teaches them that. If the mother is hunted down and killed at this time, the young will starve.
When is the closed season?
Female martens go looking for a partner in the summer. After fertilization, the fertilized germ cell remains dormant until February. Only in March/April does the marten female give birth to three to four young. Therefore, the closed season for stone martens and often also for pine martens begins on March 1st in all federal states. However, the duration of the closed season varies from state to state. While in Rhineland-Palatinate it is already possible to hunt stone martens again from August 1st and in Brandenburg from September 1st, in most other federal states it is only allowed again from October 16th.
tips
There is a year-round closed season for pine martens in Berlin, Brandenburg, Hamburg, Thuringia and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
Penalties for hunting martens during the closed season
If a marten is hunted or even killed during the closed season, severe penalties await the perpetrator upon discovery: If a parent animal is hunted during the closed season, a prison sentence of up to five years or a fine of up to €5000 can be imposed.
Hunt martens at hunting time
Even during the hunting season, martens may only be hunted in most federal states if the hunter has a hunting license. If this is not the case, penalties of up to €5,000 can also be imposed.
tips
But that doesn't mean you have to live with the presence of a marten in your home. Martens can be easily driven away with scents or household remedies. You can also catch martens outside of the closed season using live traps.