Bow hunting could be a serious leisure and recreational activity. Many people are getting into it. You should understand that different countries could apply different approaches to the task. You know how laws try to protect endangered species and how animal rights advocates fight to stop killing of animals senselessly. Thus, before going to bow hunt, you should first consider legal differences in every country. Be reminded that the activity could take different seasons as well as restrictions compared to firearm or rifle hunting.

In North America, particularly in the United States and in Canada, bow hunting is basically regulated by states and provinces. Such regulations are of course addressing important issues like location of hunting, season, and even the type of the target game (whether male or female). In certain areas, there is a special archery season designated in an effort to minimize possible interference coming from rifle hunters. There are regulations covering shot lethality, game recovery, and technicalities like minimum draw weight when hunting for bigger game species. The Bow Season usually occurs several months before or after the designated Gun Season for rifle hunting.

In Australia, there is an active bow hunting scene. Existing regulations covering the activity often prohibit harvesting or killing of native species. The country-continent is naturally a home for a huge volume of introduced species that could be considered a real threat to many native species. The federal government and various landowners usually look at hunters as their partners in controlling and saving introduced species. New South Wales and Victoria are states with bow hunting regulations. There are licensing requirements for would-be-hunters. The sport is overall regulated by the Australian Bow hunters Association as well as the numerous local hunting clubs. The Bow hunter Proficiency Certificate is ensuring that animals are actually harvested in observance of humane principles.

In Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Germany, bow hunting is a prohibited activity. In the United Kingdom, the activity has been banned since 1960s after many years of target archery popularity. In France, Italy, Spain, Denmark, Finland, and Hungary, hunting using bow and arrow is considered an important factor in modern game management. It is important that you first determine the regulations and prohibitions in the European country you are in before you finally go out to fields to hunt for game. As always, ignorance could not be an effective excuse to the law.