Rowan County, NC Animal Ordinances: Bird Protection (2026)
Key Facts
- Prohibited acts
- hunt, trap, shoot, injure, kill, molest
- Possession ban
- no wild bird or animal in possession
- Covered area
- within the confines of any county park
- Related rule
- firearms barred in parks, Section 16-42(a)
- Default penalty
- up to $50 fine or 30 days jail
Summary
Rowan County bans hunting, trapping, shooting, injuring, killing or molesting any bird or animal inside any county park, and no one may possess a wild bird or animal there either. Section 16-40 protects park wildlife outright, with no exception written into the section itself.
No person within the confines of any park, shall hunt, pursue, trap, shoot, injure, kill or molest in any way any bird or animal, nor shall any person have any wild bird or animal in his possession within any park.
Full Breakdown
Section 16-40 states that no person within the confines of any park shall hunt, pursue, trap, shoot, injure, kill or molest in any way any bird or animal, nor may any person have any wild bird or animal in his possession within any park. The rule sits among the Article II park-conduct provisions adopted in 1976, alongside Section 16-30's ban on removing or damaging trees, flowers, ferns, shrubs, rock or other plant or mineral life in a park, and Section 16-35's separate leash and animals-at-large rule limiting animals in parks to a dog restrained by a leash no longer than six feet, with dogs barred from bathing areas entirely.
Section 16-42(a) separately bars carrying firearms or airguns in a park except by county park employees or officers, reinforcing the wildlife-protection purpose by removing the means to hunt there. S. on conservation of marine, estuarine and wildlife resources, underscoring that the county rule layers onto, rather than replaces, state wildlife law inside its own parks.
Violations & Fines
Section 16-40 carries no penalty of its own, so a violation is punished under the county's general penalty, Section 1-7: a fine of not more than fifty dollars ($50.00) or imprisonment for not more than thirty (30) days, or both, for each separate act of hunting, trapping, shooting, injuring, killing, molesting or possessing a wild bird or animal in a park, with each day of a continuing violation a separate offense. The county may also pursue any additional enforcement remedy authorized by G.S. 153A-123.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I hunt wildlife in a Rowan County park?
Does Rowan County's park firearms rule support the wildlife ban?
What is the penalty for hunting in a Rowan County park?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Rowan County
Compare Rowan County to another location·View the North Carolina animal ordinances overview
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