Virginia Regulation Changes 2025

Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources expanded the black bear hunting season to include a new Northern Piedmont Zone for 2025, following bear population growth documented by trail camera surveys and nuisance complaint trends in Culpeper, Madison, Orange, and Rappahannock counties. The new zone offers a three-week bear season with a one-bear bag limit. DWR established the zone to provide regulated harvest that reduces bear-human conflict while maintaining a sustainable population. Hunters in the new zone must purchase a bear hunting license and tag.

Virginia Marine Resources Commission adopted an 18-to-28-inch slot limit for striped bass (rockfish) in ocean waters for the 2025 season, aligning with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Amendment 7 implementation requirements. The slot limit replaces the previous 28-inch minimum in ocean waters and is designed to increase the proportion of fish reaching peak spawning maturity before harvest. Chesapeake Bay regulations have a separate framework coordinated through the Virginia Recreational Bay season. The one-fish-per-day bag limit in ocean waters is unchanged.