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Game mammal
Hunting Woodchuck in Illinois, 2026-27 Dates and Limits
From the Jun 1, 2026 opener to the Mar 31, 2027 close, the rules for woodchuck in one place.
Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Louisville District (CC BY 2.0)
Quick read on woodchuck in Illinois
Hunters chasing woodchuck get 2 season lines to work with, from the Jun 1, 2026 opener to the Mar 31, 2027 close. Bag rule in the Digest: no limit.
Woodchucks, also called groundhogs, may be hunted June 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027 and trapped June 1 to September 30, with no limit on either, and hunting closes during the two firearm deer seasons in open counties. On the public land side, 136 sites name woodchuck in their IDNR records; 136 have a full page here.
From 2026-27 Illinois Hunting and Trapping Digest (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Illinois woodchuck dates, row by row
Dates as printed by IDNR for woodchuck, with the status checked against today.
| Season | Where | Permit | Dates | Limit | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunting (guns and bows) | Statewide | License |
| No limit | |
| Trapping | Statewide | Trapping |
| No limit |
From 2026-27 Illinois Hunting and Trapping Digest (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Limits and legal gear for woodchuck
| Digest line | Daily and possession |
|---|---|
| woodchuck | No limit |
In the species record, IDNR summarizes the legal means for woodchuck as gun, bow or trapping.
From Digest season tables and Digest equipment pages (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Buying list for woodchuck in Illinois
| Permit | Residency | Digest | Fee table |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resident Hunting | Resident | $12.00 | $12.50 |
| Nonresident Hunting | Nonresident | $57.00 | $57.75 |
| State Habitat Stamp | Either | $5.00 | $5.50 |
Expect to pay the fee-table price at a vendor; licenses and state stamps sold from March 1 stay valid through March 31 of the next year.
From Digest license pages (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Illinois field rules for woodchuck
| Topic | Summary |
|---|---|
| Wanton waste | Must make a reasonable effort to retrieve and include killed or crippled limited species in the bag; may not wantonly waste the usable meat (breast of a bird; hind ham and front shoulders of a mammal) or dump carcasses on a right-of-way or property without permission. |
| Possession limits and bags | May not possess game or furbearers over the daily or possession limit; each hunter must keep a separate bag; wildlife of another person must be tagged with name, address, species count and date unless in a home. |
| Hunting hours | Hunting only during the hours specified for each species relative to official sunrise-sunset times; some IDNR sites are more restrictive. |
This is a short list; IDNR sites can be more restrictive than the statewide rules, so check each site before you hunt woodchuck.
From Digest general rules and Digest hunter orange page (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Public sites that list woodchuck
The land hub covers 136 sites that name woodchuck, for instance 44 state fish and wildlife areas, 29 state parks and 15 state natural areas; the eight largest with pages follow.
| Place | Type | County | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Edgar Panther Creek | Fish and wildlife area | Cass | 16,400 |
| Cache River | Natural area | Johnson and Pulaski | 15,425 |
| Kaskaskia River | Fish and wildlife area | St. Clair and Randolph | 14,000 |
| Horseshoe Lake | Fish and wildlife area | Alexander | 11,690 |
| Mississippi River Pool 24 | Fish and wildlife area | Pike and Calhoun | 10,211 |
| Carlyle Lake | Fish and wildlife area | Fayette and Clinton | 9,868 |
| Mississippi River Pool 21 | Fish and wildlife area | Adams | 8,536 |
| Great River | Wildlife refuge | Adams and Pike | 8,305 |
Rules for woodchuck can differ site by site, so use the page for the area you choose; acreage is as IDNR lists it.
From IDNR site records (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Woodchuck gear picks
Four items that suit an Illinois year, from October bow hunts to January rabbits.
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Sunset over the Mississippi River with the St. Louis skyline, the Gateway Arch and the Eads BridgePhoto: Bryan Werner (CC BY 2.0)
Sunset over the Mississippi River at Buffalo, Iowa, across from Rock Island CountyPhoto: David Brossard (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Morning light reflecting on the Ohio River at Paducah, across from Massac CountyPhoto: jjmusgrove (CC BY 2.0)
Woodchuck FAQ for Illinois hunters
Which days is woodchuck open in Illinois?
Dates for woodchuck are hunting (guns and bows) statewide: June 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027; trapping statewide: June 1 to September 30.
Is there a possession limit for woodchuck?
Under the Digest, No limit.
What paperwork covers woodchuck hunting?
Illinois asks for a hunting license ($12.00 resident, $57.00 nonresident, Digest base prices before vendor fees) and the State Habitat Stamp ($5.00).
What gear is legal for woodchuck hunting?
IDNR summarizes legal methods as gun, bow or trapping.
Do deer seasons affect woodchuck?
Woodchuck hunting pauses during both firearm deer seasons where deer are hunted with guns.
Can I hunt woodchuck on a Sunday?
We found no statement on Sundays in the Digest or the IDNR pages, so this page says nothing either way.
Is a hunter safety certificate required for woodchuck?
Yes if you were born on or after January 1, 1980: you must hold a hunter safety certificate, or show an Illinois or out-of-state hunting license from a prior year, before a license can be sold. Apprentice license holders skip the course and hunt with a licensed hunter 21 or older.
Are there public hunting areas for woodchuck?
136 sites name woodchuck among the allowed game, and the public land pages cover 136 of them with local rules.
Other photos on this page: Bryan Werner (CC BY 2.0); David Brossard (CC BY-SA 2.0); jjmusgrove (CC BY 2.0).