Duck Season 2026-27: Dates by State and Flyway

Q: When is duck season 2026-27?

There is no single answer, which is the point of this hub: seasons run from September in the northern prairie states to late January in the South, set state by state inside the four federal flyway frameworks. 49 state agencies had published their 2026-27 dates as of September 2, 2026; each state page shows the agency's own zone table with the source and read date.

Q: Why do states split duck season into segments?

Because the framework grants a fixed number of hunting days and the birds move. A state can spend its days in one continuous run or split the season so hunting is open when migrating flights actually pass through, which is why the state tables on this site show split segments per zone exactly as each agency publishes them, never merged into one fake window.

Q: Which state has no waterfowl season?

Hawaii. Hawaii holds no open waterfowl hunting season. The state's legal game bird list covers pheasants, francolins, chukar partridge, quail, sandgrouse, doves, wild turkey and Indian peafowl only; no duck or goose appears on it, and Hawaii's native waterfowl (koloa, nene) are protected.

Q: Where do bag limits, duck stamps and HIP registration live?

At the state agencies and USFWS, both linked from every state page. Every waterfowl hunter needs a federal duck stamp and HIP registration on top of the state license; those rules change annually and are legally binding, so the agency pages are the source. These pages carry the season window, sourced and dated.

Q: How were these dates collected?

Every date was read from the state wildlife agency's own published page or PDF for the 2026-27 season year, captured with the exact source URL and read date. State agency pages are public records; the USFWS framework material quoted on this page is federal and public domain. Where the agency's own page is the only place the dates appear, the state's entry links it.

This page covers the 2026-27 season year. Dates were read from the agency sources linked below, last checked September 2, 2026. Seasons change annually and agencies correct their own pages; confirm against the linked agency page before you hunt.

49

States with a season

Hawaii excluded, see below

49

2026-27 dates published

read from agency pages

4

Flyways

Atlantic, Mississippi, Central, Pacific

September 2, 2026

Data as of

stated on every page

The structure

Four flyways, fifty calendars

Ducks and geese cross every state line on the continent, so their hunting seasons are the most federal of all: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sets annual frameworks for each administrative flyway, and the states pick their dates and draw their zones inside them. Find your state in its flyway below; every state page carries the agency’s zone table, split segments included.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service or we) announces the availability of the 2026 Migratory Game Bird Hunting (MGBH) Memorandum setting forth the authorization conditions (conditions or limits) within which States and Tribes may establish their hunting regulations for certain migratory game birds.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, accessed 2026-09-01. Read it at the source

Atlantic Flyway

The eastern seaboard corridor, Maine to Florida, inland to West Virginia.

Mississippi Flyway

The continent's busiest duck corridor, following the Mississippi River system.

Central Flyway

The Great Plains corridor from the Dakotas and Montana down through Texas.

* Colorado, Montana, New Mexico and Wyoming are split with the Pacific Flyway along the mountains; their pages carry both portions.

Pacific Flyway

The western corridor from Alaska down the coast states and Great Basin.

Large mixed flock of ducks and geese over water at sunset — A mixed flock of ducks and geese at sunset. Photo: Steve Hillebrand/USFWS. “A mixed flock of ducks and geese fly from a wetland area” — Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — Public domain

The season spans

Duck season at a glance, 2026-27

The span below is each state’s earliest opener to latest closer across its regular duck zones; the zone by zone segments live on the state pages with the agency source beside them. September teal seasons and goose calendars are on the state pages too.

Atlantic Flyway

State	Regular duck season span
Maine	September 28 to January 5, 2027 (3 zones)
New Hampshire	October 2 to January 17, 2027 (3 zones)
Vermont	October 10 to December 27, 2026 (3 zones)
Massachusetts	October 10 to January 27, 2027 (3 zones)
Connecticut	October 10 to January 19, 2027 (2 zones)
Rhode Island	October 9 to January 24, 2027
New York	October 10 to January 31, 2027 (5 zones)
New Jersey	October 10 to January 29, 2027 (3 zones)
Pennsylvania	October 10 to January 18, 2027 (4 zones)
Delaware	October 31 to January 31, 2027
Maryland	October 3 to January 30, 2027 (2 zones)
Virginia	October 9 to January 31, 2027
West Virginia	October 3 to January 31, 2027
North Carolina	October 15 to January 30, 2027 (2 zones)
South Carolina	November 21 to January 31, 2027
Georgia	November 21 to January 31, 2027
Florida	November 21 to January 31, 2027

Mississippi Flyway

State	Regular duck season span
Alabama	November 27 to January 31, 2027
Tennessee	November 28 to January 31, 2027
Kentucky	November 26 to January 31, 2027
Ohio	October 17 to January 31, 2027 (3 zones)
Indiana	October 24 to January 24, 2027 (3 zones)
Illinois	October 24 to January 24, 2027 (3 zones)
Michigan	September 26 to December 27, 2026 (3 zones)
Wisconsin	September 26 to December 15, 2026 (3 zones)
Minnesota	September 26 to December 6, 2026 (3 zones)
Mississippi	November 27 to January 31, 2027
Louisiana	November 14 to January 31, 2027 (2 zones)
Arkansas	November 21 to January 31, 2027
Missouri	October 31 to January 31, 2027 (3 zones)
Iowa	October 3 to December 22, 2026 (3 zones)

Central Flyway

State	Regular duck season span
Texas	October 24 to January 31, 2027 (3 zones)
Oklahoma	October 10 to January 31, 2027 (2 zones)
Kansas	October 10 to January 31, 2027 (4 zones)
Nebraska	October 3 to January 27, 2027 (3 zones)
South Dakota	September 26 to January 14, 2027 (4 zones)
North Dakota	September 26 to January 3, 2027 (2 zones)
Montana	October 3 to January 19, 2027 (3 zones)
Wyoming	September 26 to January 31, 2027 (4 zones)
Colorado	October 3 to January 31, 2027 (5 zones)
New Mexico	October 10 to January 31, 2027 (3 zones)

Pacific Flyway

State	Regular duck season span
Washington	October 17 to January 31, 2027
Oregon	October 10 to January 31, 2027 (2 zones)
California	October 3 to January 31, 2027 (5 zones)
Idaho	October 3 to January 31, 2027 (3 zones)
Utah	October 3 to January 23, 2027 (2 zones)
Nevada	September 26 to January 31, 2027 (4 zones)
Arizona	October 23 to January 31, 2027
Alaska	September 1 to January 22, 2027 (5 zones)

Canada geese dropping into a refuge wetland with wings set — Canada geese dropping into a refuge marsh. Photo: Jennifer Jewett/USFWS. “Canada Geese” by Jennifer Jewett / USFWS Mountain-Prairie, CC BY 2.0

How the dates are sourced

Every date from the agency, inside its federal framework

Waterfowl enforcement is federal as well as state. Every date here is the agency’s own, with the source and the read date beside it. Seasons not yet posted are labelled not yet published, and zone splits are drawn exactly as the agency draws them.

The scale of the subject is federal public record too: About 1.3 million waterfowl hunters harvested 14,688,900 (± 3%) ducks and 3,391,200 (± 6%) geese in the 2023 season, and about 1.3 million waterfowl hunters were estimated to have harvested 14,341,000 (± 4%) ducks and 3,485,300 (± 8%) geese in the 2024 season. (USFWS, Migratory Bird Hunting Activity and Harvest During the 2023-24 and 2024-25 Hunting Seasons (USFWS, published September 2025)). Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), green-winged teal (A. crecca), wood duck (Aix sponsa), gadwall (Mareca strepera), and blue-winged/cinnamon teal (Spatula discors and S. cyanoptera) were the most-harvested duck species in the U.S., and Canada goose (Branta canadensis) was the predominant goose species in the goose harvest. (USFWS, Migratory Bird Hunting Activity and Harvest During the 2023-24 and 2024-25 Hunting Seasons (USFWS, published September 2025)).

Father and daughter in waders with a retriever in a duckweed marsh — Father and daughter on Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Photo: Tim Miller/USFWS. “Waterfowl Hunting (Upper Mississippi River NWFR)” — Tim Miller / USFWS Midwest Region — Public domain

Coverage

The state without a waterfowl season

Hawaii. Hawaii holds no open waterfowl hunting season. The state's legal game bird list covers pheasants, francolins, chukar partridge, quail, sandgrouse, doves, wild turkey and Indian peafowl only; no duck or goose appears on it, and Hawaii's native waterfowl (koloa, nene) are protected. Source: Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife (DLNR DOFAW).

The rest of the season calendar

Turkey season datesSpring 2027 and fall 2026 turkey seasons by state, under the same rules.First freeze datesThe freeze line is what pushes the flight south. When it normally lands.The deer rut, nationallyWhen deer actually breed in each state, from agency conception studies.

Waterfowl hunter setting goose decoys on a tidal flat with a retriever watching — Setting decoys with help. Photo: Rebecca Fabbri/USFWS. “Waterfowl hunter and dog” — Rebecca Fabbri / USFWS Alaska Region — Public domain

Waterfowl season questions

When is duck season 2026-27?

What are the four flyways?

Atlantic, Mississippi, Central and Pacific: the four administrative corridors the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service uses to manage migratory bird hunting. USFWS publishes annual frameworks per flyway setting the outside limits, and each state selects its season dates and zones inside its flyway's framework. Four states (Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Wyoming) are split between the Central and Pacific flyways along the mountains.

Why do states split duck season into segments?

Which state has no waterfowl season?

Where do bag limits, duck stamps and HIP registration live?

How were these dates collected?

Wetland at sunset with a fallen snag and mountains on the horizon — Wood River Wetland, Oregon. The habitat the flyways run on. Photo: Greg Shine/BLM. “Wood River Wetland” — Greg Shine / Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington — Public domain

This hub covers the 2026-27 season year with data as of September 2, 2026. Dates are republished from each named state wildlife agency’s own page, read on the date shown on each state page; seasons not yet posted are labelled not yet published. USFWS framework material is federal public domain and quoted with its source. Bag limits, shooting hours, stamp and license rules are set by the agencies and USFWS, whose pages are final on the day you hunt.