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Read from the DNR, 2026-27
Michigan Hunting
328 public hunting places from the Keweenaw to Lake Erie, all 83 counties and 324 towns, the 109 deer management units, bear and elk drawings, DNR eLicense fees and the law, each read from DNR sources on October 22, 2026.
Photo: YoungSue (Public Domain Mark 1.0)
Michigan seasons open today and opening next
Built on Oct 25, 2026 from the 160 season rows in the 2026-27 DNR summaries. The Today column checks your own device date, so it stays right after the build.
Open on Oct 25, 2026: 43 hunting rows
| Game | Season | Where | Opens | Closes | Today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada and Other Geese | Dark goose (segment 1 of 1) | North Zone | Sep 1, 2026 | Dec 16, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Light goose (segment 1 of 1) | North Zone | Sep 1, 2026 | Dec 16, 2026 | |
| Rails, Snipe and Common Gallinule | Regular | Statewide | Sep 1, 2026 | Nov 9, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 2 | Amasa BMU | Sep 14, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 2 | Baraga BMU | Sep 14, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 2 | Bergland BMU | Sep 14, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 2 | Carney BMU | Sep 14, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 2 | Gwinn BMU | Sep 14, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 2 | Newberry BMU | Sep 14, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| American Woodcock | Fall | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Oct 29, 2026 | |
| Cottontail Rabbit | Regular | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Fox and Gray Squirrel | Regular | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Ruffed Grouse | Fall (first segment) | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Snowshoe Hare | Regular | Statewide | Sep 15, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| Wild Turkey | Fall | TMU I | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Wild Turkey | Fall | TMU M | Sep 15, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 3 | Amasa BMU | Sep 25, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 3 | Baraga BMU | Sep 25, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 3 | Bergland BMU | Sep 25, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 3 | Carney BMU | Sep 25, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 3 | Gwinn BMU | Sep 25, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Black Bear | Hunt period 3 | Newberry BMU | Sep 25, 2026 | Oct 26, 2026 | |
| Ducks and Mergansers | Regular (split 1) | North Zone | Sep 26, 2026 | Nov 22, 2026 | |
| Raccoon | Hunting | Statewide | Oct 1, 2026 | Mar 31, 2027 | |
| White-tailed Deer | Archery (early segment) | Statewide | Oct 1, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| White-tailed Deer | South Fox Island archery | DMU 245 | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 28, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Dark goose (segment 2 of 2) | Middle Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Dec 18, 2026 | |
| Ducks and Mergansers | Regular (split 1) | Middle Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Light goose (segment 2 of 2) | Middle Zone | Oct 3, 2026 | Dec 18, 2026 | |
| Ring-necked Pheasant | Fall | Zone 1 pheasant management unit | Oct 10, 2026 | Oct 31, 2026 | |
| Sharp-tailed Grouse | Fall | Zone 1 sharp-tailed grouse management unit | Oct 10, 2026 | Oct 31, 2026 | |
| Coyote | Regular hunting | Statewide | Oct 15, 2026 | Mar 1, 2027 | |
| Red and Gray Fox | Hunting | Statewide | Oct 15, 2026 | Mar 1, 2027 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Dark goose (segment 2 of 4) | South Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Dark goose (segment 2 of 3) | Allegan County GMU | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 4, 2026 | |
| Ducks and Mergansers | Regular (split 1) | South Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Light goose (segment 2 of 4) | South Zone | Oct 17, 2026 | Dec 13, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Light goose (segment 2 of 3) | Allegan County GMU | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 4, 2026 | |
| Northern Bobwhite Quail | Fall | 27 southern counties | Oct 20, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Dark goose (segment 1 of 1) | Muskegon County Wastewater System GMU | Oct 20, 2026 | Dec 19, 2026 | |
| Canada and Other Geese | Light goose (segment 1 of 1) | Muskegon County Wastewater System GMU | Oct 20, 2026 | Dec 19, 2026 | |
| Ring-necked Pheasant | Fall | Zone 2 | Oct 20, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| Ring-necked Pheasant | Fall | Zone 3 | Oct 20, 2026 | Nov 14, 2026 |
The next ten Michigan openers
| Game | Season | Where | Opens | Closes | Today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White-tailed Deer | South Fox Island firearm | DMU 245 | Oct 29, 2026 | Nov 26, 2026 | |
| White-tailed Deer | Regular firearm | Statewide | Nov 15, 2026 | Nov 30, 2026 | |
| Ducks and Mergansers | Regular (split 2) | North Zone | Nov 28, 2026 | Nov 29, 2026 | |
| Elk | Hunt period 2 | Elk management units H and X | Dec 1, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 | |
| Elk | Hunt period 2 | Elk management units I and X | Dec 1, 2026 | Dec 15, 2026 | |
| Ring-necked Pheasant | December | December pheasant management unit | Dec 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| Ruffed Grouse | Fall (second segment) | Statewide | Dec 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| White-tailed Deer | Archery (late segment) | Statewide | Dec 1, 2026 | Jan 1, 2027 | |
| White-tailed Deer | Muzzleloader | Upper Peninsula DMUs | Dec 4, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 | |
| White-tailed Deer | December firearm | Lower Peninsula DMUs | Dec 4, 2026 | Dec 6, 2026 |
Trapping-only rows, falconry days and the spring 2026 turkey hunts (spring 2027 dates are not out) stay on the season and species pages. Sources: deer summary; bear; small game; waterfowl; fur harvester, looked over October 22, 2026.
Michigan hunting in numbers
Over 4.5 million acres of DNR-managed public land open to hunting. On top of that, private Commercial Forest land adds over 2.2 million acres where hunters may walk in, and the Hunting Access Program leases farm ground in the south.
Deer is the mandatory harvest report total for license year 2025; national forest acres are the figures on each forest record. Sources: deer summary, public land; national forest acres; DNR harvest report summary; bear summary; elk summary, looked over October 22, 2026.
Every part of the Michigan guide
Rules first, then places: licenses, law, drawings and shooting hours sit beside the county, town and property guides, and the species pages carry the season rows for each animal.
The 109 deer units · Bear management units · Turkey units · Elk units · Antlerless deer · CWD and bovine TB · Baiting and feeding · Map of public land · Hunting events · Places to shoot · Matches and shoots · Shooting gear
109 deer management units in three zones
The Upper Peninsula is Zone 1, and a line from Muskegon to Saginaw Bay divides Zones 2 and 3. Universal antlerless licenses are sold over the counter, up to 10 a year, but each county or UP unit caps how many a hunter may use there, and 17 UP units take none.
| Deer zone | Whole counties | Counties split by the Zone 2/3 line |
|---|---|---|
| Zone 1 (Upper Peninsula) | 15 | 0 |
| Zone 2 (northern Lower Peninsula) | 27 | 8 |
| Zone 3 (southern Lower Peninsula) | 33 | 8 |
| Kind of deer unit | Units |
|---|---|
| County | 68 |
| Upper Peninsula unit | 20 |
| Multi-county or sub-county overlay unit | 15 |
| Island/special area | 6 |
Split counties (Arenac, Bay, Huron, Isabella, Mecosta, Midland, Muskegon and Newaygo) are counted in both Zone 2 and Zone 3 rows. Sources: deer summary; WCO chapter XII; CWD testing data, looked over October 22, 2026.
43 Michigan species guides
Whitetails first, then bear by preference-point drawing, Pigeon River country elk, spring and fall turkey, ruffed grouse and woodcock in the aspen, ducks and geese by zone, and furbearers from bobcat to marten. Moose, Gray Wolf, Hungarian Partridge, Mourning Dove and Sandhill Crane have no 2026-27 season; their pages explain why.
Moose · Gray Wolf · Sharp-tailed Grouse · Ring-necked Pheasant · Northern Bobwhite Quail · Cottontail Rabbit · Snowshoe Hare · Fox and Gray Squirrel · Red Squirrel · Ground Squirrel and Chipmunk · Woodchuck · American Crow · Hungarian Partridge · American Woodcock · Canada and Other Geese · Rails, Snipe and Common Gallinule · American Coot · Mourning Dove · Sandhill Crane · Raccoon · Red and Gray Fox · Bobcat · River Otter · Beaver · Mink · Muskrat · Fisher · American Marten · Badger · Virginia Opossum · Striped Skunk · Weasels · Coyote · Russian Boar · Pigeon, House Sparrow, Starling · Armadillo, Porcupine, Non-native Cervids · Cougar, Lynx, Wolverine, Spruce Grouse and Raptors
Four DNR wildlife regions, 83 counties
The DNR Wildlife Division runs the state in four regions: the Upper Peninsula, the northern Lower Peninsula, and the southwest and southeast. Pick a region, then a county for its deer units, bear and turkey units and nearby ground.
Upper Peninsula Region (15)
Alger, Baraga, Chippewa, Delta, Dickinson, Gogebic, Houghton, Iron, Keweenaw, Luce, Mackinac, Marquette, Menominee, Ontonagon, Schoolcraft
Northern Lower Peninsula Region (29)
Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Arenac, Benzie, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Clare, Crawford, Emmet, Gladwin, Grand Traverse, Iosco, Isabella, Kalkaska, Lake, Leelanau, Manistee, Mason, Midland, Missaukee, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Osceola, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle, Roscommon, Wexford
Regions follow county lines; land pages without a region (statewide programs and the national forest parents) are not counted. Sources: DNR wildlife region layer, looked over October 22, 2026.
Michigan public ground by kind
95 state game areas carry most of the southern hunting, while the state forest, three national forests and the Commercial Forest blocks hold the north. Every record links to its own page with zones, access and the managing office.
| Kind of land | Pages | Acres (top-level records) |
|---|---|---|
| State game and wildlife areas | 116 | 527,199 |
| State wildlife management areas (floodings) | 72 | 151,974 |
| Grouse Enhanced Management Sites | 19 | 76,490 |
| Managed waterfowl areas | 3 | 11,182 |
| State parks, recreation areas and their wildlife units | 66 | 275,607 |
| State forest and its management units | 16 | 3,954,811 |
| National forests, refuges and lakeshores | 34 | 3,072,022 |
| Hunting Access Program | 1 | 20,076 |
| Commercial Forest program lands | 1 | 2,200,000 |
Acres count only records with no parent, so forest management units, ranger districts and managed waterfowl units are not counted twice. Sources: DNR boundaries; state forest record; Commercial Forest, looked over October 22, 2026.
Michigan hunting land with a map point
276 places with a map point, across both peninsulas, from Lake Superior shoreline to the marshes of western Lake Erie. Larger dots mark 20,000 acres or more.
Michigan rules in eight cards
Licenses
A base license comes first: $11 for residents 17 to 64, $151 for nonresidents. A deer combo adds two kill tags for $40.
Harvest reporting
Deer and turkey are reported online or in the Hunt Fish app within 72 hours of recovery; bear and elk go to a DNR station for sealing.
Hunter orange
From Aug. 15 to April 30, anyone taking game wears a hunter orange cap, hat, vest, jacket or rain gear (MCL 324.40116); archery deer and turkey hunters are among the exceptions.
Baiting and feeding
Banned for deer and elk across all 68 Lower Peninsula counties; Upper Peninsula hunters may bait Sept. 15 to Jan. 1, 2 gallons scattered.
CWD and TB
Chronic wasting disease has turned up in free-ranging deer in 18 counties since 2015; bovine TB keeps DMU 452 in the northeast under its own rules.
Drawings
Bear and elk applications run May 1-June 1, 2026, reserved waterfowl hunts Aug. 1-28, 2026; each costs $5.
Youth and mentors
The Liberty Hunt, Sep 12-13, 2026, is for youth 16 and under and qualifying hunters with disabilities; the mentored youth license covers kids 9 and under.
Shooting hours
One DNR Zone A table per species, plus 6, 12 or 18 minutes for Zones B, C and D; four western UP counties use Central Time.
Sources: DNR eLicense; harvest reporting; MCL 324.40116; baiting; CWD; drawings; hunting hours, looked over October 22, 2026.
Banquets, field trials and ranges across Michigan
94 hunting events sit on the calendar from Oct 28, 2026, most of them conservation banquets. The shooting side lists 367 ranges, 16 of them DNR ranges, plus club trap fields and archery courses.
| Date | Event | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 30, 2026 | Almont-Capac Chapter Sportsmans Night Out | Almont, Lapeer County | Banquet |
| Oct 30, 2026 | Great Northern Raccoon Club UKC Double Header Nite Hunt | Chesaning, Saginaw County | Coon hunt |
| Oct 31, 2026 | Mitchell State Park – Learn to Hunt Whitetail Deer | Cadillac, Wexford County | Class |
| Oct 31, 2026 | Region 13 (AFTCA) Amateur All-Age Championship 2026 | Ionia, Ionia County | Field trial |
| Oct 31, 2026 | Southern Michigan Coonhunters Association UKC Double Header Nite Hunt | Onsted, Lenawee County | Coon hunt |
| Nov 1, 2026 | Grand National Grouse Futurity 2026 | Gladwin, Gladwin County | Field trial |
Michigan processors, taxidermists, guides and gun shops
Deer processors
68 listed, 16 of them Hunters Feeding Michigan donation processors.
Taxidermists
229 shops. The DNR permits taxidermists but posts no list of permit holders.
Guides and preserves
65 listings, 46 of them from the DNR game bird hunting preserve directory.
Gun and bow shops
942 stores; the 785 gas stations, grocery and hardware counters that only sell licenses are left out.
DNR and federal offices
54 offices: DNR customer service centers and wildlife field offices, Forest Service ranger stations and refuge visitor centers.
Sources: Hunters Feeding Michigan; preserve directory; license agent map; customer service centers, looked over October 22, 2026.
Michigan hunting questions, answered
Who can hunt Michigan elk?
Michigan residents only, by drawing. The DNR set 200 licenses for 2026, 70 any-elk and 130 antlerless-only, and expected over 47,000 applicants.
How do I enter the Michigan bear drawing?
Apply May 1-June 1, 2026 for $5 through DNR eLicense, an agent or the Hunt Fish app. The 2026 quota was 6,278 licenses, and 72,872 hunters applied in 2025.
Is there a wolf season in Michigan?
No. There is no wolf season or license in 2026; the gray wolf page explains the status the DNR data give.
What do Pure Michigan Hunt winners get?
Three winners each year receive elk (residents), bear, antlerless deer, spring and fall turkey and base licenses plus a reserved waterfowl hunt and a prize package; $5 applications.
When does Michigan’s firearm deer season open?
Nov. 15. The regular firearm season runs Nov 15-30, 2026, statewide; the Upper Peninsula muzzleloader hunt and the Lower Peninsula December firearm hunt follow on Dec 4-6, 2026.
How many acres can the public hunt in Michigan?
Over 4.5 million acres of DNR-managed public land open to hunting, the DNR says, plus the Commercial Forest program’s private land open on foot. About 92% of state park and recreation area land is open to hunting.
Where can deer be baited in Michigan?
Not in the Lower Peninsula: baiting and feeding are banned in all 68 LP counties. In the 15 Upper Peninsula counties bait is allowed Sept. 15 to Jan. 1, up to 2 gallons scattered over at least 10 by 10 feet.
Does Michigan close any hunting on Sundays?
No Sunday hunting restriction appears in the 2026 regulation summaries or the Wildlife Conservation Order; seasons run on all days. Some townships post local limits on hunting or discharge.
How many deer were reported in Michigan last season?
295,847 were reported for license year 2025 through mandatory harvest reporting, 153,697 of them antlered. License year 2024 ended at 299,492.
How fast must a Michigan deer be reported?
Report the deer within 72 hours of recovery or before transferring possession (whichever first) online (Michigan.gov/DNRHarvestReport / eLicense) or in the Hunt Fish app; keep the confirmation number.
Plan a Michigan season
Start from a county for its deer units, antlerless limits and nearby state land, or from a town for the closest ground and a processor down the road.
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