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Duck Hunting in Texas

Texas has three duck zones: the High Plains Mallard Management Unit, the North Zone and the South Zone. This guide gathers the duck calendar, bag rules, zones, licenses and public areas.

Dates for ducksLimitsPublic areas
Oct 17Season opens
Feb 21Ends
254Counties
156Public tracts

Photo: Birding for Climate (Public domain)

The High Plains unit opens first on Oct. 24, the South Zone follows Nov. 7 and the North Zone Nov. 14; all three close Jan. 31, 2027. Each duck zone gets a youth weekend and a veterans and active duty weekend before its regular opener, and falconry runs Feb. 1 to 21, 2027 in the North and South zones. Dusky ducks, meaning mottled, Mexican and black ducks and their hybrids, are closed for the first five days in each zone.

LandPublic ground for ducks156 areas with ducksDrawnDuck drawn hunts3 categories

What TPWD highlights for ducks

  • HPMMU opens Oct. 24, 2026; South Nov. 7; North Nov. 14; all close Jan. 31, 2027.
  • 6/day aggregate.

Every duck segment for 2026-27

19 dated rows for ducks across 3 zones or areas, straight from the TPWD species and county pages.

WhereSegmentFromThroughDaysOpen?
North ZoneYouth-OnlyNov 7, 2026Nov 8, 20262
North ZoneVeterans and militaryNov 7, 2026Nov 8, 20262
North ZoneRegular SeasonNov 14, 2026Nov 29, 202616
North ZoneRegular SeasonDec 5, 2026Jan 31, 202758
North ZoneDusky duckNov 19, 2026Nov 29, 202611
North ZoneDusky duckDec 5, 2026Jan 31, 202758
North ZoneFalconryFeb 1, 2027Feb 21, 202721
High Plains MMUYouth-OnlyOct 17, 2026Oct 18, 20262
High Plains MMUVeterans and militaryOct 17, 2026Oct 18, 20262
High Plains MMURegular SeasonOct 24, 2026Oct 25, 20262
High Plains MMURegular SeasonOct 30, 2026Jan 31, 202794
High Plains MMUDusky duckOct 31, 2026Jan 31, 202793
South ZoneYouth-OnlyOct 31, 2026Nov 1, 20262
South ZoneVeterans and militaryOct 31, 2026Nov 1, 20262
South ZoneRegular SeasonNov 7, 2026Nov 29, 202623
South ZoneRegular SeasonDec 12, 2026Jan 31, 202751
South ZoneDusky duckNov 12, 2026Nov 29, 202618
South ZoneDusky duckDec 12, 2026Jan 31, 202751
South ZoneFalconryFeb 1, 2027Feb 21, 202721

Dates from the TPWD Outdoor Annual 2026-27 (species page), checked October 11, 2026.

What TPWD allows for ducks

TPWD sets the duck limits shown here for the whole 2026-27 license year.

6Ducks a day
5Mallards, of which 2 hens
1Scaup
15Coot a day

Bag for ducks

TPWD

6/day in aggregate incl. mergansers; no more than 5 mallards (2 hens), 3 wood ducks, 3 pintail, 2 redheads, 2 canvasback, 1 scaup, 1 dusky duck (closed first 5 days in each zone); possession 3x daily. Falconry 3/day, 9 possession.

Coot

TPWD

15/day; possession 3x daily.

Where each duck zone runs

The duck zone lists below come from TPWD’s county pages, 254 counties open in all.

AreaCountiesPartial
North Zone11323
High Plains Mallard Management Unit839
South Zone4014
136 counties in North Zone
High Plains Mallard Management Unit, all 92 counties
Show the 54 South Zone counties

What the law says about ducks

The duck rules here are summarized from TPWD’s general regulations, species pages and license pages.

Licenses

The paperwork list for ducks, with TPWD fees.

$25Resident license
$7Migratory endorsement
FreeHIP certification
$25 plus fulfillmentDuck stamp (16+)
$48Nonresident 5-day
$7Youth license
$48APH permit

Hours

Ducks follow migratory hours: 30 minutes before sunrise until sunset, not after.

Orange

No orange is required while hunting ducks; TPWD lists them among the exemptions.

Hunter ed

Proof of hunter education or the $10 deferral rides along with duck hunters born Sept. 2, 1971 or later, printed or on a phone.

Ducks within the six

No more than five mallards (two hens), three wood ducks, three pintail, two redheads, two canvasback, one scaup and one dusky duck.

Duck guns

Duck guns must be shotguns of 10 gauge or smaller, plugged to three shells, with nontoxic shot.

Duck youth days

HPMMU Oct. 17-18; South Oct. 31 – Nov. 1; North Nov. 7-8, 2026. Regular bags; dusky ducks legal; geese legal.

Ducks in transit

One fully feathered wing or the head stays on each dressed duck until it reaches home or a preservation facility.

From the TPWD Outdoor Annual general regulations, license and species pages (endorsements, hunting regulations), checked October 11, 2026. All Texas hunting laws · License guide.

Where duck hunters find public ground

Public ground for ducks: 156 areas in 8 regions, 63 with drawn hunts marked in orange.

Panhandle (37)

94 Trust (320 ac) · Betty (326 ac) · Bindweed (640 ac) · Bluestem (80 ac) · Brillhart (322 ac) · Circle Tree (381 ac) · Cobb Farms (250 ac) · Copper Breaks State Park · Correll (384 ac) · De Campo (626 ac) · Della Plains (160 ac) · FM 759 HQ (325 ac) · Francis-Dunlap (160 ac) · Gene Howe WMA (5,394 ac) · Goat Barn (321 ac) · La Lanza (640 ac) · La Playa (1,280 ac) · Lake Meredith National Recreation Area · Margolies (160 ac) · Margoso (1,568 ac) · Matador WMA (28,183 ac) · Miller Farm (320 ac) · Morris (1,280 ac) · Noble Playa (308 ac) · Pat's Place (350 ac) · Playa Lakes WMA – Dimmitt Unit (422 ac) · Playa Lakes WMA – Taylor Lakes Unit · Porter (965 ac) · Rio Farms (2,552 ac) · Slover (320 ac) · South Place (640 ac) · Stovall (630 ac) · Teacup Mountain WMA (11,091 ac) · Temprano (640 ac) · Texas Roberts (1,625 ac) · Vara (200 ac) · West of Town (481 ac)

Pineywoods (37)

Alabama Creek WMA (14,561 ac) · Alazan Bayou WMA (2,063 ac) · Alazan Bayou WMA – Blount Tract (2,255 ac) · Alazan Bayou WMA – Old River Tract (485 ac) · Angelina National Forest (153,179 ac) · Angelina-Neches/Dam B WMA (12,636 ac) · Bannister WMA (25,695 ac) · Big Lake Bottom WMA (4,253 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve · Big Thicket National Preserve – Beaumont Hunting Area (5,396 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Beech Creek Hunting Area (3,914 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Big Sandy Creek Corridor Hunting Area (5,232 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Big Sandy Creek Hunting Area (9,269 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Canyonlands-Upper Neches River Corridor Hunting Area (2,247 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Hickory Creek Savannah Hunting Area (105 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Jack Gore Baygall Hunting Area (7,354 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Lake Bayou Hunting Area (5,194 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Lance Rosier Hunting Area (19,340 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Little Pine Island-Pine Island Bayou Corridor Hunting Area (989 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Loblolly Hunting Area (470 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Menard Creek Corridor Hunting Area (3,013 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Neches Bottom-Lower Neches River Corridor Hunting Area (2,962 ac) · Big Thicket National Preserve – Village Creek Corridor Hunting Area (3,546 ac) · Caddo Lake WMA (8,124 ac) · Davy Crockett National Forest (161,100 ac) · Gus Engeling WMA (11,095 ac) · Lake Striker Public Hunting Lands (1,476 ac) · Moore Plantation WMA (26,772 ac) · Neches River NWR – Dead Water Unit · Neches River National Wildlife Refuge (10,537 ac) · North Toledo Bend WMA (3,650 ac) · Old Sabine Bottom WMA (5,727 ac) · Sabine National Forest (160,656 ac) · Sabine River Authority Unit 630 (7,484 ac) · Town Bluff Dam and B.A. Steinhagen Lake (875 ac) · White Oak Creek WMA (25,777 ac) · Wright Patman Lake (54,358 ac)

Austin/Waco (28)

Aquilla Lake (4,000 ac) · Beevill Branch (113 ac) · Belton Lake (2,692 ac) · Ben Arnold (227 ac) · Blue Ridge Cemetery (182 ac) · Bruceville-Eddy (262 ac) · CR 229 (154 ac) · FM 1771 (307 ac) · FM 413 (310 ac) · FM 485 (68 ac) · Granger Public Hunting Lands (10,888 ac) · Keechi Creek WMA (1,500 ac) · Lake Georgetown (3,000 ac) · Lake Somerville State Park – Trailway Flag Pond · Luminant Texas Public Hunting Unit (1,071 ac) · Marlin Lake Park (903 ac) · Mertens (378 ac) · Navarro Mills Lake (5,500 ac) · Richland Creek WMA · Richland Creek WMA – Carl Frentress Unit (5,628 ac) · Richland Creek WMA – South Unit (8,974 ac) · Rocky Creek (282 ac) · Somerville Lake (Corps hunting areas) (3,000 ac) · Somerville Public Hunting Lands · Stillhouse Hollow Lake (4,451 ac) · Waco Lake (3,000 ac) · Whitney Lake (14,000 ac) · Wild Wood Ranch (745 ac)

Houston/Beaumont (20)

Big Boggy National Wildlife Refuge (4,526 ac) · Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge (46,057 ac) · J.D. Murphree WMA – Big Hill Unit (9,861 ac) · J.D. Murphree WMA – Salt Bayou Unit (15,397 ac) · Jocelyn Nungaray National Wildlife Refuge (formerly Anahuac NWR) (39,411 ac) · Justin Hurst WMA · Lower Neches WMA (7,998 ac) · Lower Neches WMA – Nelda Stark Unit (868 ac) · Lower Neches WMA – Old River Unit (4,386 ac) · Mad Island WMA (7,714 ac) · McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge (67,473 ac) · Nannie M. Stringfellow WMA (3,666 ac) · Sam Houston National Forest (163,037 ac) · Sam Houston National Forest WMA (161,508 ac) · San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge (75,019 ac) · Sea Rim State Park (300 ac) · South China Road (1,036 ac) · Texas Point National Wildlife Refuge (8,963 ac) · Tony Houseman/Blue Elbow Swamp WMA · Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge (29,607 ac)

Dallas/Ft. Worth (19)

Bardwell Lake (2,528 ac) · Benbrook Lake (1,400 ac) · Bois d'Arc Lake Public Hunting Lands (5,305 ac) · Caddo National Grassland (17,727 ac) · Caddo National Grasslands WMA (16,140 ac) · Caddo National Grasslands WMA – Bois d'Arc Unit (13,360 ac) · Caddo National Grasslands WMA – Ladonia Unit · Cooper WMA (14,480 ac) · Grapevine Lake (2,300 ac) · Home Place (365 ac) · Lavon Lake (6,500 ac) · Lewisville Lake (9,138 ac) · Pat Mayse WMA (8,925 ac) · Rater/Crump (101 ac) · Ray Roberts Public Hunting Lands (41,303 ac) · Roger R. Fawcett WMA (5,459 ac) · Tawakoni WMA (2,335 ac) · Thompson (315 ac) · Three B's (111 ac)

San Antonio/Corpus Christi (8)

Guadalupe Delta WMA · Guadalupe Delta WMA – Guadalupe River Unit (1,138 ac) · Guadalupe Delta WMA – Hynes Bay Unit (1,008 ac) · Guadalupe Delta WMA – Mission Lake Unit (4,448 ac) · James E. Daughtrey WMA · Matagorda Island WMA (56,688 ac) · Padre Island National Seashore (Laguna Madre waterfowl hunting) · Welder Flats WMA (1,480 ac)

Central Texas (4)

Abilene State Park (525 ac) · Proctor Lake (2,500 ac) · San Angelo State Park · Twin Buttes Public Hunting Lands (12,858 ac)

Trans-Pecos (3)

Amistad National Recreation Area · Black Gap WMA (103,000 ac) · Red Bluff Reservoir

On TPWD lands an adult after ducks needs the $48 APH permit; a youth under 17 hunts free alongside a permitted adult. How the APH permit works.

TPWD APH data, WMA and drawn hunt lists and federal land managers, 2026-27, checked October 11, 2026. Species lists are what each manager names; area rules still apply.

Applying for a drawn duck hunt

3 2026-27 drawing categories include ducks; the deadline column shows when each one closed or closes.

ProgramHunt categoryDeadline
E-Postcard (APH)WaterfowlOct 1, 2026
E-Postcard (APH)Waterfowl/PheasantOct 1, 2026
E-Postcard (APH)Youth/Adult WaterfowlNov 1, 2026

Big Time draws

Ducks show up in Big Time Bird Hunt (dove, waterfowl, Rio Grande turkey).

Duck hunters who are drawn claim permits online within 10 days; adults pay $80 standard or $130 extended, youth free. Big Time duck entries run $9 online, $10 retail, through Oct. 15, 2026.

TPWD Public Hunt Drawing catalog, fees and deadlines (drawing) and Big Time Texas Hunts (BTTH), checked October 11, 2026. Texas drawn hunts.

Duck country hunting kit

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Duck decoys

Mixed puddle duck spreads for marsh and stock tanks.

Check prices

Chest waders

Breathable or neoprene, depending on the zone and month.

Check prices

Duck call

Single reed for mallards and mottled ducks.

Check prices

Layout blind

Low profile cover in open fields and flats.

Check prices

Side by side gearGear by hunt

After ducks, try these

Migratory birdsGooseSep 12 to Feb 19 · 156 areasMigratory birdsTealSep 19 to Sep 27 · 156 areasMigratory birdsSnipeNov 7 to Feb 21 · 53 areasOther gameAlligatorSep 10 to Jun 30 · 7 areas

Duck questions, answered from TPWD

When do dusky ducks open?

Five days after each zone opens. In the North Zone that is Nov. 19, in the South Zone Nov. 12 and in the High Plains unit Oct. 31.

Can adults hunt ducks on the youth weekend?

No. Adults may not hunt ducks, mergansers or coots during the youth-only days.

Who can hunt the veterans duck days?

HPMMU Oct. 17-18; South Oct. 31 – Nov. 1; North Nov. 7-8, 2026. Veterans and active-duty US Armed Forces members (incl. National Guard and Reserve on active duty other than training).

What public ground holds ducks?

156 areas name ducks; the largest are Sam Houston National Forest, Sam Houston National Forest WMA and Davy Crockett National Forest. Adult duck hunters need the $48 APH permit on TPWD land.

Which permits apply to ducks?

Duck hunters need: Resident license ($25); Migratory endorsement ($7); HIP certification (Free); Duck stamp (16+) ($25 plus fulfillment); Nonresident 5-day ($48).

Do duck hunters have to wear orange?

No orange is required while hunting ducks; TPWD lists them among the exemptions.

What time does legal light end for ducks?

Ducks follow migratory hours: 30 minutes before sunrise until sunset, not after.

How many counties allow ducks?

254 counties have at least one duck segment.

How do I get a drawn duck permit?

TPWD drawing categories for ducks: Waterfowl, Waterfowl/Pheasant and Youth/Adult Waterfowl. Big Time Texas Hunts offers Big Time Bird Hunt (dove, waterfowl, Rio Grande turkey).

How many ducks can one hunter take in Texas?

Ducks: 6/day in aggregate incl. mergansers; no more than 5 mallards (2 hens), 3 wood ducks, 3 pintail, 2 redheads, 2 canvasback, 1 scaup, 1 dusky duck (closed first 5 days in each zone); possession 3x daily. Falconry 3/day, 9 possession. Coot: 15/day; possession 3x daily.

Before the duck trip

Pair this duck guide with the county page for where you hunt; split counties follow the highway line.

All speciesSeason calendarArea mapDucks at TPWD

Other photos on this page: TexasExplorer98 (CC BY 2.0); Flappy Pigeon (CC BY-SA 4.0); born1945 (CC BY 2.0); Yellowstone National Park (Public domain); USFWS/Southeast (Public domain); gailhampshire (CC BY 2.0).