MassWildlife calendar

2026 fishing & hunting seasons

Read MassWildlife's July newsletter

July 8: Fisheries and Wildlife Board Meeting, Westborough and Online – The July monthly business meeting of the Fisheries and Wildlife Board will be held at 1:30 p.m. at the MassWildlife Field Headquarters. Interested persons can attend the meeting either in person or via a Zoom video webinar. Register in advance to join the meeting from PC, Mac, iPad, or Android. After registering, you will automatically receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

July 9: Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Advisory Committee Meeting, Westborough and Online – The July quarterly meeting of the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Advisory Committee will be held at 1:30 p.m., at the MassWildlife Field Headquarters. Interested persons can attend the meeting either in person or via a Zoom video webinar. Join the meeting from PC, Mac, iPad, or Android. 

July 16: Family Fishing Clinic, Wakefield – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Lake Quannapowitt from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; limited equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Wakefield. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the Friends of Lake Quannapowitt.

July 23: Family Fishing Clinic, Bolton – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Bowers Spring Conservation Area from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; limited equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Bolton. Contact the Bolton Conservation Commission at (978) 779-3304 for more information. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the Bolton Conservation Commission.

July 25: Family Fishing Clinic, Avon/Brockton – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Waldo Lake in DW Field Park from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; limited equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Avon/Brockton. For more information, email Jim Lagacy at Jim.Lagacy@mass.gov.

July 26: "Let's Camp Massachusetts" Fishing Clinics, Baldwinville – These family friendly, learn to fish clinic will be part of "Let's Camp Massachusetts" family camping weekend at Otter River State Forest from 9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required for Let's Camp Massachusetts Fishing Clinics. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the Department of Conservation and Recreation.

July 27: Fly Fishing 101, Foxborough– Join us to learn about fly fishing gear, how to rig, and cast a fly rod, as well as tips on how to fly fish at Bass Pro Shops from 5 – 8 p.m. Bring your fly fishing equipment or borrow ours. This class is designed for beginner fly anglers (ages 15+). Pre-registration is required for Fly Fishing 101 in Foxborough.

July 27: Snakes of Massachusetts Presentation, Westborough – Join State Herpetologist Mike Jones for a free presentation to learn about the 14 species of snakes native to Massachusetts! This presentation begins at 6 p.m. at MassWildlife's Field Headquarters and will include a 30 minute informational presentation, Q+A, and a secure display of native timber rattlesnakes.. Pre-registration is required for the Snakes of Massachusetts presentation.

July 30: Family Fishing Clinic, Stoughton – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Ames Long Pond from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; limited equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Stoughton. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the Stoughton Recreation Department.

August 4: Family Fishing Clinic, Sudbury– Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at the US Fish and Wildlife Service Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge from 5–7 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Sudbury. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

August 5: Fisheries and Wildlife Board Meeting, Westborough and Online – The August monthly business meeting of the Fisheries and Wildlife Board will be held at 1:30 p.m. at the MassWildlife Field Headquarters. Interested persons can attend the meeting either in person or via a Zoom video webinar. Register in advance to join the meeting from PC, Mac, iPad, or Android. After registering, you will automatically receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

August 7–9: MassWildlife at Huntstock, Westminster – Swing by MassWildlife's booth at Huntstock, a 3-day hunting expo and festival! Enjoy hunting seminars, demonstrations, food trucks, music, and live podcasts, as well as the chance to win equipment and other prizes. Click here for tickets and more information. Use the discount code masswildlife to get 20% off tickets.

August 8: Family Fishing Festival, Goshen– Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Upper Highland Lake in DAR State Forest from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; limited equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration required for the Family Fishing Festival in Goshen. For more information, email Jim.Lagacy@mass.gov. 

August 8: Family Fishing Clinic, Milton – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Houghton's Pond from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; limited equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, no pre-registration required. For more information, email Jim.Lagacy@mass.gov. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the Friends of the Blue Hills, Elevate Youth, and the Department of Conservation and Recreation.

August 11: Family Fishing Clinic, Wilmington – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at the Silver Lake Fishing Pier from 6 – 8 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Wilmington. For more information, call the Wilmington Memorial Library at (978) 658-2967. This event is being held in cooperation with MassWildlife's Angler Education Program and the Wilmington Memorial Library.

August 12: Family Fishing Clinic, Chesterfield– Join the fun at this barrier free learn to fish clinic at Scout Pond from 4:15–6:15 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Barrier Free Family Fishing Clinic in Chesterfield.

August 13: Fly Fishing 101, Turners Falls – Join us to learn about fly fishing gear, how to rig, and cast a fly rod, as well as tips on how to fly fish at Great Falls Discovery Center from 5 – 8 p.m. Bring your fly fishing equipment or borrow ours. This class is designed for beginner fly anglers (ages 15+). Pre-registration is required for Fly Fishing 101 in Turners Falls.

August 19: Family Fishing Clinic, Chesterfield– Join the fun at this barrier free learn to fish clinic at Scout Pond from 4:15–6:15 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Barrier Free Family Fishing Clinic in Chesterfield.

August 19: Coexisting with Black Bears, Northborough – Join MassWildlife and the Worcester Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club for an engaging presentation about black bear biology, behavior, and research. Learn practical, proactive steps your community can take to coexist with black bears. The program begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Northborough Historical Society and will be led by Meghan Crawford, MassWildlife's Community Engagement Biologist. Pre-registration is optional for the Coexisting with black bears presentation in Northborough.

August 19: Black Bear Hunting 101, Zoom – Join MassWildlife staff for a two hour virtual class all about bear hunting from 6–8 p.m. This class will cover a variety of topics including black bear biology, laws and regulations, identifying food sources and property to hunt, bear hunting gear and implements, and bear meat care in the field. There will also be time available for questions and answers. Click here to register.

August 25: Family Fishing Clinic, Westborough – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Lake Chauncy from 5 – 7 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Westborough. For more information, email Jim.Lagacy@mass.gov. 

August 27: Family Fishing Clinic, Cheshire – Join the fun at this family friendly, learn to fish clinic at Cheshire Reservoir from 5 – 7 p.m. Bring your fishing equipment or borrow ours; equipment and bait will be provided. Open to the public, pre-registration is required for the Family Fishing Clinic in Cheshire. For more information, email Jim.Lagacy@mass.gov. 

September 1: Squirrel Hunting, Zoom – Join MassWildlife staff and folks from the New England Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (BHA) for a one hour virtual class about September squirrel hunting from 6-7 p.m. This class will highlight tried and true tactics for September squirrel season, which starts the following week. There will also be time available for questions and answers. Click here to register.

Email Mass.Wildlife@mass.gov

We will do our best to accommodate any needs to allow community members to participate as fully as possible.

• Reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities are available upon request. To submit a request for an accommodation, please email eeadiversity@mass.gov or call 617-626-1282; an ADA Coordinator will receive your request. Please include a description of the request in as much detail as possible and a way we can contact you if we need more information. Please allow at least 2 weeks’ (14 days) advance notice. Last-minute requests will be accepted but we may be unable to fulfill the request.
• Please let us know of any language interpretation requests by email to susan.sacco@mass.gov at least 72 hours before the event.
• Se pueden solicitar servicios adicionales de traducción o interpretación enviando su solicitud por correo electrónico a susan.sacco@mass.gov al menos 72 horas antes de la reunión.
• Serviços adicionais de tradução ou interpretação podem ser solicitados ao enviar um e-mail para: susan.sacco@mass.gov com pelo menos 72 horas de antecedência da reunião.
• 如需额外的笔译或口译服务，请至少在会议开始前 72 小时发电子邮件至 susan.sacco@mass.gov 提出要求.
• Ou ka mande plis sèvis tradiksyon oswa entèpretasyon lè w adrese demann ou pou imèl susan.sacco@mass.gov omwen 72 èdtan anvan reyinyon an.
• Các dịch vụ biên dịch hoặc phiên dịch bổ sung có thể được yêu cầu bằng cách gửi yêu cầu của quý vị qua email đến susan.sacco@mass.gov ít nhất 72 giờ trước cuộc họp.
• Предоставление дополнительных услуг письменного или устного перевода можно запросить, отправив просьбу по электронной почте на адрес susan.sacco@mass.gov как минимум за 72 часа до начала встречи
• Des services de traduction ou d'interprétation supplémentaires peuvent être demandés en envoyant votre demande par e-mail à susan.sacco@mass.gov au moins 72 heures avant la réunion.