Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge for hunters

Choctaw NWR refuge hunting conditions

Federal refuge rules allow migratory game bird hunting, upland game hunting and big game hunting on Choctaw NWR, but only in designated areas and under extra conditions.

Choctaw NWR: upland game hunting

We allow hunting of squirrel and rabbit, and incidental take of coyote, beaver, raccoon, opossum, and nutria, on designated areas of the refuge subject to the following conditions:

• We prohibit leaving unattended personal property, including, but not limited to, boats or vehicles of any type, geocaches, lumber, and cameras, overnight on the refuge (see § 27.93 of this chapter).
• All persons age 15 or younger, while hunting on the refuge, must be in the presence and under direct supervision of a licensed or exempt hunter age 21 or older. A licensed hunter supervising a youth must hold a valid State license for the species being hunted. One adult may supervise no more than two youth hunters.
• We allow the use of dogs when hunting squirrel and rabbit.
• Hunters may only hunt during designated days and times.
• The condition set forth at paragraph (c)(1)(v) of this section applies.

Choctaw NWR: big game hunting

We allow hunting of white-tailed deer and incidental take of feral hog subject to the following conditions:

• The conditions set forth at paragraphs (c)(1)(v), and (c)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section apply.
• Deer hunters may place one portable stand or blind on the refuge for use while deer hunting, but only during the open deer season. The stand must be clearly labeled with the hunter's State hunting license number. You may leave the stand or blind on the refuge overnight during the deer season.
• While climbing a tree, installing a tree stand that uses climbing aids, or hunting from a tree stand on the refuge, hunters must use a fall-arrest system (full body harness) that is manufactured to the Tree Stand Manufacturers Association's standards.
• Deer hunts are archery only except during the State Special Opportunity Areas (SOA) hunt.
• The State SOA hunt will occur 4 days per year on the refuge as specified by State SOA regulations.
• Hunters must be selected for and possess a State limited quota permit in order to participate in the State SOA hunt on the refuge.
• We allow the u

Refuge hunting page: A variety of wetland and flooded timber habitats makes Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge a haven for waterfowl. About 200 broods of wood ducks are born in nest boxes each spring, and as many as 10,000 ducks land here during the fall migration. All hunting is conducted so as to minimize disturbance to migrating waterfowl.

Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge is 4,218 acres acquired by the Corp of Engineers in conjunction with the Coffeeville Lock and Dam project.

The refuge encompasses approximately 1,802 acres of lakes, sloughs, and creeks, 2,265 acres of bottomland hardwoods, and 151 acres of croplands and moist soil units.

Choctaw NWR: the USFWS hunt units

Public land such as Choctaw NWR is excluded from the bait privilege; corn piles and feeders are not legal aids here.

Sources: USFWS refuge hunting page, 50 CFR 32.20. Checked November 1, 2026.

What the county rules mean for Choctaw NWR

Choctaw County has Zone A or Zone B ground. That line is drawn on highways and rivers, not county lines, so check the ADCNR deer zone map before you hunt near it. Running deer dogs in Choctaw County takes an ADCNR permit, and the rule may cover only a block of the county. Of the three antlered deer allowed each season, one must have 4 or more points on one antler. ADCNR binned the 2025 Game Check turkey harvest in Choctaw County at 209-296 birds; county deer harvest is not published in Alabama.

ADCNR deer zones, turkey zones, dove zones, dog deer rules, CWD rules and the 2025 Alabama Wild Turkey Report; checked November 1, 2026.

Choctaw NWR: waterfowl rules

The dates are statewide for ducks, coots, mergansers, geese and teal.

2026-27 Waterfowl Hunting Guide; checked November 1, 2026.

Choctaw NWR shooting light

Legal light for deer around Choctaw NWR runs 30 minutes either side of sunrise and sunset; for ducks it starts 30 minutes before sunrise and ends at sunset.

Mobile-Tensaw Delta duck hunting ends at 1 p.m. on open days.

Hours rules from the 2026-2027 Alabama Hunting and Fishing Digest; sunrise and sunset worked out for this location (NOAA solar formula, Central Time), checked against the Digest’s Birmingham table; checked November 1, 2026. Legal hours for every county.

Pictures for Choctaw NWR

Choctaw NWR answers from the sources