Seasons & Limits

Texas hunting seasons 2026–27

Copied from Texas Parks & Wildlife's Outdoor Annual (valid Sep 1, 2026 – Aug 31, 2027). Every table links to the official page. If anything here disagrees with TPWD, TPWD is right.

Checked against TPWD Oct 17, 2026Regulation year 2026–27

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Hunting season dates 2026–27

By species: Texas deer season · turkey season · duck season · dove season

White-tailed Deer8 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
General	North	Nov. 7, 2026 - Jan. 3, 2027
General	South	Nov. 7, 2026 - Jan. 17, 2027
Special Late	North	Jan. 4-17, 2027
Special Late	South	Jan. 18-31, 2027
Special Late	Youth-Only Early Season	Oct. 30, 2026 - Nov. 1, 2026
Special Late	Youth-Only Late Season	Jan. 4-17, 2027
Archery	252 of 254 counties	Oct. 3, 2026 - Nov. 6, 2026
Muzzleloader-Only	90 of 254 counties	Jan. 4-17, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Turkey12 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Fall	North	Nov. 7, 2026 - Jan. 3, 2027
Fall	South	Nov. 7, 2026 - Jan. 17, 2027
Fall	Brooks, Kenedy, Kleberg & Willacy counties	Nov. 7, 2026 - Feb. 28, 2027
Fall	Archery-only	Oct. 3, 2026 - Nov. 6, 2026
Fall Youth-only	North	Oct. 30, 2026 - Nov. 1, 2026 & Jan. 4-17, 2027
Fall Youth-only	South	Oct. 30, 2026 - Nov. 1, 2026 & Jan. 18-31, 2027
Spring	North	Apr. 3, 2027 - May 16, 2027
Spring	South	Mar. 20, 2027 - May 2, 2027
Spring	One-turkey counties	Apr. 1-30, 2027
Spring	East	Apr. 22, 2027 - May 14, 2027
Spring Youth-Only	North	Mar. 27-28, 2027 & May 22-23, 2027
Spring Youth-Only	South	Mar. 13-14, 2027 & May 8-9, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Dove3 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	North	Sep. 1, 2026 - Nov. 8, 2026 & Dec. 18, 2026 - Jan. 7, 2027
Regular	Central	Sep. 1, 2026 - Oct. 25, 2026 & Dec. 11, 2026 - Jan. 14, 2027
Regular	South	Sep. 1, 2026 - Oct. 25, 2026 & Dec. 18, 2026 - Jan. 21, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Javelina2 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
General	North	Oct. 1, 2026 - Feb. 28, 2027
General	South	Sep. 1, 2026 - Aug. 31, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Mule Deer4 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
General	Panhandle	Nov. 21, 2026 - Dec. 6, 2026
General	Trans-Pecos	Nov. 27, 2026 - Dec. 13, 2026
Archery	Panhandle	Oct. 3, 2026 - Nov. 20, 2026
Archery	Trans-Pecos	Oct. 3, 2026 - Nov. 26, 2026

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Pronghorn1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
General	41 of 254 counties	Oct. 3-18, 2026

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Squirrel3 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
General	East Texas	Oct. 1, 2026 - Feb. 28, 2027 & May 1-31, 2027
General	Other open counties	Sep. 1, 2026 - Aug. 31, 2027
Youth-only	East Texas	Sep. 25-27, 2026

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Chachalaca1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr & Willacy Counties	Nov. 1, 2026 - Feb. 28, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Pheasant1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	Panhandle/South Plains	Dec. 5, 2026 - Jan. 3, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Quail1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	Statewide	Nov. 1, 2026 - Feb. 28, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Duck6 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	High Plains Mallard Management Unit	Oct. 24-25, 2026 & Oct. 30, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027
Regular	North	Nov. 14-29, 2026 & Dec. 5, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027
Regular	South	Nov. 7-29, 2026 & Dec. 12, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027
Youth/Veterans	High Plains Mallard Management Unit	Oct. 17-18, 2026
Youth/Veterans	North	Nov. 7-8, 2026
Youth/Veterans	South	Oct. 31, 2026 - Nov. 1, 2026

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Goose5 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Early Canada Goose	East	Sep. 12-27, 2026
Dark Geese	West	Nov. 7, 2026 - Feb. 7, 2027
Dark Geese	East	Nov. 7, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027
Light Geese	West	Nov. 7, 2026 - Feb. 7, 2027
Light Geese	East	Nov. 7, 2026 - Feb. 19, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Rails, Gallinules & Moorhens1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	Statewide	Sep. 19-27, 2026 & Nov. 7, 2026 - Jan. 6, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Sandhill Cranes3 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	A	Oct. 31, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027
Regular	B	Nov. 27, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027
Regular	C	Dec. 12, 2026 - Jan. 17, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Snipe1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	Statewide	Nov. 7, 2026 - Feb. 21, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Teal1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
September Teal Only	Statewide	Sep. 19-27, 2026

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Woodcock1 season

Season	Zone / area	Dates
Regular	Statewide	Dec. 18, 2026 - Jan. 31, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

Alligator2 seasons

Season	Zone / area	Dates
General	22 Counties & Special Properties	Sep. 10-30, 2026
General	All Other Counties	Apr. 1, 2027 -June 30, 2027

County bag limits and restrictions differ — check your county on TPWD.

TPWD 2026–2027 Hunting Season Dates 2026–27 · official source ↗ · checked Oct 17, 2026

Fishing? See Texas fishing limits.