Hunting and Trapping Definitions

Adult: a person who is at least 18 years of age.

Antlered deer: a male or female deer with a visible antler protruding above the hairline.

Antlerless deer: a male or female deer with no visible antler protruding above the hairline.

Antlered elk: an elk having visible polished antler protruding above the hairline.

Antlerless elk: an elk without visible polished antler protruding above the hairline.

Archery equipment: a long bow, recurve bow, or compound bow incapable of holding an arrow at full or partial draw without aid from the archer.

Arrow: the projectile fired from a bow or crossbow.

Bait: A substance composed of grains, minerals, salt, fruits, vegetables, hay, or any other food materials, whether natural or manufactured, that may lure, entice, or attract wildlife, but does not include the establishment and maintenance of plantings for wildlife, foods found scattered solely as the result of normal agricultural planning or harvesting practices, foods available to wildlife through normal agricultural practices of livestock feeding if the areas are occupied by livestock actively consuming the feed on a daily basis, or standing farm crops under normal agricultural practices.

Baiting: to place, deposit, tend, distribute, or scatter bait.

Barbed broadhead: a point or portion of a blade projecting backward from a broadhead designed to hold an arrow within an animal.

Bear: an American black bear (Ursus americanus).

Centerfire: a type of firearm that detonates a cartridge by the firing pin striking a primer in the middle of the end of the cartridge casing.

Crossbow: means a bow capable of holding an arrow at full or partial draw without human aid.

Curtilage: the area encompassing the grounds immediately surrounding any home or group of homes used in the daily activities of domestic life, which may or may not be enclosed by a fence or other barrier.

Daylight Hours: the period from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.

Deer: a white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus).

Dry land set: a trap that is not set to submerge an animal in water upon capture.

Electronic Decoy: a motorized decoy powered by electricity, regardless of source.

Elk: a Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus elaphus nelsoni).

Elk Management Unit (EMU): a designated area in the elk zone with specific management restrictions for a post-season antlerless elk quota hunt.

Exotic wildlife: living terrestrial wildlife species that have never naturally existed in the wild in Kentucky, including starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), English sparrows (Passer domesticus), and Eurasian collared doves (Streptopelia decaocto).

Field Trial: an event where unleashed dogs are worked and judged.

Firearm: a breech or muzzle-loading rifle, shotgun, or handgun.

Foothold trap: a commercially manufactured spring-loaded trap with smooth, metallic or rubber soft-catch jaws that close upon an animal's foot.

Fully-automatic firearm: a firearm that fires more than one (1) time with a single pull of the trigger.

Furbearer: mink, muskrat, beaver, raccoon, opossum, gray fox, red fox, least weasel, long-tailed weasel, river otter, bobcat, coyote, or striped skunk.

Hunting: to take or attempt to take in any manner, whether the hunter has game in possession or not.

In-line muzzleloading gun: a firearm capable of being loaded only from the discharging end of the barrel or cylinder, that is also equipped with an enclosed ignition system located directly behind the powder charge.

Limited Entry Area (LEA): a designated area in the elk zone with specific management restrictions.

Mechanized vehicle: a motor vehicle, bicycle or other human conveyance except a wheelchair.

Motor vehicle: a motor-driven conveyance, whether or not licensed for use on a public highway.

Modern gun (breech-loading firearm): a rifle, handgun, or shotgun that is loaded from the rear of the barrel.

Muzzleloading gun: a rifle, shotgun, or handgun that is loaded from the discharging end of the barrel or discharging end of the cylinder.

Non-resident: a person who has not established a permanent domicile in this state and has not resided in this state for 30 days immediately prior to applying for a license.

Quota hunt: a hunt where a participant is selected by a random drawing.

Resident: any person who has established a permanent domicile and legal residence and has resided in this state for 30 days immediately prior to applying for a license. All other persons shall be classified as non-residents, except students enrolled for at least six months in an educational institution as full-time students and military personnel of the United States who are under permanent assignment, shall be classified as residents while so enrolled or assigned in this state.

Shotshell: ammunition containing more than one (1) projectile).

Small game: squirrels, rabbits, northern bobwhite (quail) or ruffed grouse.

Snare: a wire, cable, or string with a knot, loop, or a single piece closing device, the deployment of which is or is not spring-assisted, but any spring-assisted device is not for the purpose of applying tension to the closing device.

Spike: an elk having one (1) or two (2) antler points on each side.

Squaller: a hand-operated, mouth-operated, or electronic call capable of mimicking the vocalizations of furbearers.

Squirrel: a gray or fox squirrel.

Take: includes pursue, shoot, hunt, wound, catch, kill, trap, snare, or capture wildlife in any way and any lesser act designed to lure, attract, or entice for these purposes; and to place, set, aim, or use any device, animal, substance, or agency which may reasonably be expected to accomplish these acts; or to attempt to do these acts or to assist any other person in the doing of or the attempt of such acts;

Tenant: any resident sharecropper, lessee, or any other person actually engaged in work upon a farm or lands and residing in a dwelling on the farms or lands, including noncontiguous lands. Does not include any other employee or tenant unless actually residing on the property and engaged or employed as described.

Transport: to carry, move, or ship wildlife from one place to another.

Trap:  a body-gripping trap, box trap, deadfall, foothold trap, snare, or wire cage trap used to catch furbearers.

Upland bird: a grouse or northern bobwhite (quail).

Water set: a trap set to submerge an animal in water upon capture.

Wildlife:  any normally undomesticated animal, alive or dead, including without limitations any wild mammal, bird, fish, reptile, amphibian, or other terrestrial or aquatic life, whether or not possessed in controlled environment, bred, hatched, or born in captivity and including any part, product, egg, or offspring thereof, protected or unprotected by this chapter.

Wildlife Management Area: a tract of land: (a) controlled by the department through ownership, lease, license, or cooperative agreement, and (b) containing the words “Wildlife Management Area” as part of its official name.

Youth: A person younger than 16 years old by the day of the hunt.

Zone: an area consisting of counties designated by the department within which deer hunting season dates and limits are set for the management and conservation of deer in Kentucky.