Turtling Regulations

There is no closed season for the harvest of freshwater turtles, however taking of species protected by federal or state law is prohibited.
No more than 10 freshwater turtles (any combination of species) may be possessed without a commercial turtle permit (for a permit application, contact the Special Permit Unit, 770-761-3044).
Turtle traps can only legally be deployed in Georgia public or private waters by a permitted nuisance wildlife control operator or through the issuance of a commercial fishing permit in conjunction with a commercial turtle-farming permit issued by the DNR.
There are no firearms restrictions for the taking of freshwater turtles, however weapons used to take freshwater turtles should correspond to those designated in Code Section 27-3-4 for the taking small and large game during the respective seasons; shooting from a boat under power is prohibited.
Harvesting of freshwater turtles in private waters or from points accessed from private property (including power line, gas line, railroad and other rights-of-way) without landowners’ permission is prohibited. Written permission must be obtained if land is so posted.
Harvesting turtles from State Parks and Historic Sites or Wildlife Management Areas is prohibited without obtaining written permission or a special trapping permit.

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