North Carolina › Species › Mergansers
Migratory birds, waterfowl
North Carolina Mergansers hunting, 2026-27
North Carolina merganser seasons and rules for 2026-27.
Photo: Frank.Vassen (CC BY 2.0)
This guide covers mergansers under the 2026-27 NCWRC digest: the first day is Oct 15, 2026 and the last is Jan 30, 2027, with every row and source below.
Mergansers at a glance
- Bag: Daily 5 (2 hooded).
- Dates and gear: Same as ducks.
- Notes: HIP required; waterfowl also state privilege and Federal Duck Stamp; no Sunday hunting.
NCWRC source page (as of Jul 13, 2026), checked October 25, 2026.
GearHeading out for duck and goose season? Duck and goose gear checklist →
When mergansers are open in North Carolina
These are the 2026-27 merganser rows; game land and refuge rules can be stricter.
| Segment | Where | Legal methods | First day | Last day | Length | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Split 1 | Inland duck zone (west of I-95) | Shotgun, nontoxic shot | Oct 15, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 | 3 | |
| Split 1 | Coastal duck zone (east of I-95) | Shotgun, nontoxic shot | Oct 23, 2026 | Oct 24, 2026 | 2 | |
| Split 2 | Coastal duck zone (east of I-95) | Shotgun, nontoxic shot | Nov 7, 2026 | Nov 28, 2026 | 22 | |
| Split 2 | Inland duck zone (west of I-95) | Shotgun, nontoxic shot | Nov 7, 2026 | Nov 28, 2026 | 22 | |
| Split 3 | Coastal duck zone (east of I-95) | Shotgun, nontoxic shot | Dec 17, 2026 | Jan 30, 2027 | 45 | |
| Split 3 | Inland duck zone (west of I-95) | Shotgun, nontoxic shot | Dec 18, 2026 | Jan 30, 2027 | 44 |
Fine print for mergansers
- Season dates same as ducks.
From NCWRC digest page and the Season Dates at a Glance, checked October 25, 2026.
Mergansers on game lands, forests and refuges
Every public tract below lists merganser; filter by name or county.
| Public land | Kind | Hunting days | Acres | County | Tag |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Croatan National Forest | National Forest | 167,687 | Craven · Carteret +1 | waterfowl | |
| Croatan | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 166,267 | Craven · Carteret +1 | waterfowl |
| Holly Shelter | Six-days a week | 6 days | 65,139 | Pender | waterfowl |
| Dare | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 46,055 | Dare · Hyde | waterfowl |
| Jordan | Six-days a week | 6 days | 40,462 | Chatham · Durham +1 | waterfowl |
| B. Everett Jordan Lake | Corps of Engineers Lake | 40,115 | Chatham · Durham +1 | waterfowl | |
| Butner-Falls of Neuse | Six-days a week | 6 days | 37,480 | Wake · Durham +1 | waterfowl |
| Chowan Swamp | Six-days a week | 6 days | 33,769 | Gates · Hertford +1 | waterfowl |
| Bladen Lakes State Forest | Three-days a week | 3 days | 33,672 | Bladen | waterfowl |
| Falls Lake | Corps of Engineers Lake | 31,844 | Wake · Durham +1 | waterfowl | |
| Lower Roanoke River Wetlands | Permit only | Permit only | 31,620 | Bertie · Martin | waterfowl |
| Gull Rock | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 31,336 | Hyde | waterfowl |
| North River | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 26,654 | Camden · Currituck | waterfowl |
| Alligator River | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 24,439 | Tyrrell | waterfowl |
| Juniper Creek | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 20,481 | Brunswick · Columbus | waterfowl |
| Green Swamp | Six-days a week | 6 days | 18,577 | Brunswick | waterfowl |
| R. Wayne Bailey-Caswell | Three-days a week | 3 days | 18,014 | Caswell | waterfowl |
| Buckridge | Three-days a week | 3 days | 17,966 | Tyrrell | waterfowl |
| Yadkin River | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 11,636 | Rowan · Davidson +3 | waterfowl |
| Harris | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 11,527 | Wake · Chatham | waterfowl |
| Suggs Mill Pond | Permit only | Permit only | 11,117 | Bladen · Cumberland | waterfowl |
| Upper Roanoke River Wetlands | Permit only | Permit only | 11,065 | Northampton · Halifax +1 | waterfowl |
| Columbus County | Four-days a week | 4 days | 10,744 | Columbus · Brunswick | waterfowl |
| Goose Creek | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 10,376 | Beaufort · Pamlico | waterfowl |
| Pee Dee River | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 8,938 | Richmond · Anson +2 | waterfowl |
| Mackay Island NWR | National Wildlife Refuge | 8,700 | Currituck | merganser | |
| Shocco Creek | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 8,113 | Warren · Franklin +2 | waterfowl |
| Cape Fear River Wetlands | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 7,548 | Pender · New Hanover | waterfowl |
| Carteret County | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 7,144 | Carteret | waterfowl |
| Whitehall Plantation | Permit only | Permit only | 6,734 | Bladen · Pender | waterfowl |
| Johns River | Permit only | Permit only | 6,483 | Burke | waterfowl |
| Neuse River | Six-days a week | 6 days | 5,965 | Craven | waterfowl |
| Tillery | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 5,253 | Halifax | waterfowl |
| Needmore | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 5,237 | Swain · Macon | waterfowl |
| Mayo | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 5,101 | Person | waterfowl |
| Bertie County | Six-days a week | 6 days | 4,238 | Bertie | waterfowl |
| Stones Creek | Six-days a week | 6 days | 4,136 | Onslow | waterfowl |
| Brinkleyville | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 3,341 | Halifax | waterfowl |
| Dover Bay | Six-days a week | 6 days | 2,898 | Craven | waterfowl |
| Northwest River Marsh | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 2,895 | Currituck | waterfowl |
| Sandy Mush | Three-days a week | 3 days | 2,862 | Buncombe · Madison | waterfowl |
| Bachelor Bay | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 2,786 | Bertie · Washington | waterfowl |
| Chatham | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 2,671 | Chatham | waterfowl |
| White Oak River | Three-days a week | 3 days | 2,597 | Onslow | waterfowl |
| Hyco | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 2,382 | Person | waterfowl |
| Roanoke Island Marshes | Permit only | Permit only | 1,873 | Dare | waterfowl |
| Lantern Acres | Six-days a week | 6 days | 1,831 | Tyrrell · Washington | waterfowl |
| Dan River | Three-days a week | 3 days | 1,705 | Rockingham | waterfowl |
| Texas Plantation | Permit only | Permit only | 1,503 | Tyrrell | waterfowl |
| Lee | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 1,441 | Lee · Chatham | waterfowl |
| New Lake | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 1,417 | Tyrrell · Hyde | waterfowl |
| Sutton Lake | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 1,357 | New Hanover | waterfowl |
| Lower Fishing Creek | Seven-days a week | 7 days | 1,291 | Edgecombe · Halifax | waterfowl |
| Second Creek | Permit only | Permit only | 1,106 | Rowan | waterfowl |
| Buxton Woods | Six-days a week | 6 days | 975 | Dare | waterfowl |
| Kerr Lake | Corps of Engineers Lake | 853 | Vance | waterfowl | |
| Vance | Six-days a week | 6 days | 853 | Vance | waterfowl |
| J. Morgan Futch | Permit only | Permit only | 598 | Tyrrell | waterfowl |
| Kerr Scott | Six-days a week | 6 days | 521 | Wilkes | waterfowl |
| W. Kerr Scott Reservoir | Corps of Engineers Lake | 521 | Wilkes | waterfowl |
Game lists from NCWRC, USFS, USFWS and other managers’ pages in our land data, retrieved 2026-10-25; days from the regional game land tables. All game lands · Game land hunting days.
Zones that set merganser rules
Not every merganser rule is statewide; here are the areas.
| Duck zone | Line | Split counties |
|---|---|---|
| Inland | West of I-95 | Cumberland · Halifax · Harnett · Johnston · Nash · Northampton · Robeson · Wilson |
| Coastal | East of I-95 | 31 whole counties plus the east side of the split ones |
migratory game bird seasons, checked October 25, 2026.
Mergansers bag and license table
The merganser limits, followed by license prices for residents and nonresidents.
| Bag row | What it allows |
|---|---|
| Mergansers | Daily 5, no more than 2 hooded mergansers; possession 3x daily. |
Mergansers license costs
| License | Who | Term | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Hunting | resident | Annual | $32 |
| Comprehensive Hunting | resident | Annual | $49 |
| State Hunting | nonresident | Annual | $124 |
| State Hunting 10-Day | nonresident | 10-day | $99 |
| Migratory Waterfowl Hunting License | resident | Annual | $18 |
| Federal Duck Stamp | anyone | Federal | $29 |
| HIP Certification | anyone | Annual | Free |
NCWRC digest bag limits and the license and fee table, checked October 25, 2026. North Carolina hunting license guide.
Mergansers regulations to know
When to shoot mergansers
Duck hunters start a half hour before sunrise and stop at sunset; no merganser hunting on Sundays. Posted game land impoundments close to hunting at 1 p.m., with decoys out no earlier than 4 a.m.
Mergansers and Sundays
Sunday is closed for mergansers: G.S. 103-2 bars migratory bird hunting on Sundays by any method, falconry included.
Hunter orange for mergansers
No orange is needed while hunting mergansers, which are migratory game birds rather than upland game.
Merganser baiting rules
Mergansers cannot be hunted over bait; wild birds are covered by the state bait ban.
Harvest reporting for mergansers
Paperwork for mergansers is HIP certification plus any band report.
shooting hours, G.S. 113-291.8 hunter orange, G.S. 103-2 Sunday hunting, digest baiting rules, harvest reporting, checked October 25, 2026. Sunday hunting guide · Legal shooting hours.
Mergansers: legal gear and penalties
| Rule | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Migratory game birds | Shotguns 10 gauge or smaller plugged to 3 shells; archery; falconry. | Rifles, pistols, traps, nets, sinkboxes, live decoys, recorded calls (except light goose/Sept. goose exceptions), lead shot for waterfowl and coots. |
Taking mergansers: the method rules
- Vehicles and boats: No taking from a motor vehicle while the passenger area is occupied or the engine runs (disabled persons excepted), from vessels under sail/power or still moving from propulsion (crippled waterfowl in the Sea Duck Area excepted), or from airplanes or drones.
If a merganser rule is broken
- Migratory game birds: Rifle, live decoys or bait, closed season, shooting hours, bag/possession, permit/tagging violations: Class 2 misdemeanor, $250 minimum (G.S. 113-294(m)); federal penalties also apply.
From laws compiled from the NCWRC digest, 15A NCAC 10B and N.C.G.S. Chapter 113, checked October 25, 2026. North Carolina hunting laws.
Mergansers: common questions
Is it legal to bait mergansers?
Mergansers cannot be hunted over bait; wild birds are covered by the state bait ban.
Do you have to report mergansers in North Carolina?
Paperwork for mergansers is HIP certification plus any band report.
What public land has mergansers?
Croatan National Forest, Croatan Game Land, Holly Shelter Game Land and Dare Game Land lead the 68 public tracts that list merganser.
What guns and bows work for mergansers?
Migratory game birds: Shotguns 10 gauge or smaller plugged to 3 shells; archery; falconry. Not legal: Rifles, pistols, traps, nets, sinkboxes, live decoys, recorded calls (except light goose/Sept. goose exceptions), lead shot for waterfowl and coots.
Does the duck season differ east and west?
Interstate 95: the Inland zone is everything west of it and the Coastal zone everything east. 8 counties are split by the highway.
When is merganser season in North Carolina this year?
Mergansers open Oct 15, 2026 with the split 1 row and the final day is Jan 30, 2027.
What is the bag limit for mergansers in North Carolina?
Daily 5, no more than 2 hooded mergansers; possession 3x daily.
Which license covers merganser hunting in North Carolina?
State Hunting (resident) $32; Comprehensive Hunting (resident) $49; State Hunting (nonresident) $124; State Hunting 10-Day (nonresident) $99. Go Outdoors North Carolina sells them online, by phone and at agents.
Can you hunt mergansers after sunset?
Duck hunters start a half hour before sunrise and stop at sunset; no merganser hunting on Sundays. Posted game land impoundments close to hunting at 1 p.m., with decoys out no earlier than 4 a.m.
Is Sunday merganser hunting legal?
Sunday is closed for mergansers: G.S. 103-2 bars migratory bird hunting on Sundays by any method, falconry included.
Is orange needed for merganser hunting?
No orange is needed while hunting mergansers, which are migratory game birds rather than upland game.
Other photos on this page: USFWS/Southeast (Public domain); Yellowstone National Park (Public domain); Dominic Sherony (CC BY-SA 2.0); born1945 (CC BY 2.0).