Alabama Hunting Season Dates&Rules 2024 Schedule

The Alabama hunting season in 2024 varies from county to county and from game to game in the United States. Understanding the Alabama hunting season dates and regulations and choosing the right hunting gear will be crucial for a successful hunt.

Here is the 2024 Alabama hunting season summary for your reference! It would help if you prepared yourself adequately before you go hunting.

What Can You Hunt In Alabama?

If you are ready to embark on an exciting adventure in the great outdoors, look no further than Alabama. Here, you’ll find over 1.3 million acres of public hunting land just waiting to be explored!

With some of the most generous hunting seasons and bag limits in the country, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to hunt a variety of species, including white-tailed deer, wild turkey, doves, bobwhite quail, alligator, waterfowl, rabbits, squirrels, coyote, Raccoon, opossum and many more.

Alabama provides a wide variety of hunting opportunities in its diverse terrain, allowing you to enjoy tracking and capturing your prey in this exciting and wonderful state.

When Does Hunting Season Start In Alabama?

In Alabama, the start dates for hunting seasons vary depending on the type of animal and the specific area. Alabama Hunting seasons typically start in early September and end in early February of the following year.

Get ready for an exciting season in Alabama! This new hunting calendar offers a variety of opportunities to pursue your favorite game. Here we will break down the hunting schedules for different wildlife in detail.

Alabama Deer Season

Depending on the zone and whether the deer has antlers or not, the season dates vary in five hunting zones in Alabama. Here is the details:

Zones	Seasons	Dates	Limits
Zone A, B	Bow and Arrow Stalk Hunting	October 14, 2023 – February 10, 2024	Either Sex
	Special Youth GAun	November 10-13	Either Sex
	Special Muzzleloader And Air Rifle	November 13-17	Either Sex. No dogs
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Private Or Leased Land)	November 18, 2023- February 10, 2024	Either Sex
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Open Permit-Public Land)	November 18 – December 8	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 9-31	Either Sex
		January 1, February 10, 2024	Bucks Only
	Gun Deer Dog Hunting(Private Or Leased Land)	November 18, 2023 – January 15, 2024	Either Sex
	Gun Deer Dog Hunting(Open Permit-Public Land)	November 18 – December 8	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 9-31	Either Sex
		January 1-15, February 10, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only

 

Zones	Seasons	Dates	Limits
Zone C	Bow and Arrow Stalk Hunting	October 14, 2023 – February 10, 2024	Either Sex
	Special Youth GAun	November 10-13	Either Sex
	Special Muzzleloader And Air Rifle	November 13-17	Either Sex
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Private Or Leased Land)	November 18-26	Either Sex
		November 27 – December 15	Either Sex
		December 16-31	Antlered Bucks Only
		January 1 – February 10, 2024	Either Sex
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Open Permit-Public Land)	November 18 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex
		January 1 – February 10, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Private Or Leased Land)	November 18-26	Either Sex
		November 27 – December 15	Either Sex
		December 16-31	Antlered Bucks Only
		January 1-15, 2024	Either Sex
	Gun Deer Dog Hunting(Open Permit-Public Land)	November 18 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex
		January 1-15, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only

 

Zones	Seasons	Dates	Limits
Zone D	Bow and Arrow Stalk Hunting	September 30, 2023 – January 15, 2024	Either Sex
		January 16-27, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only
	Special Youth GAun	October 27-30	Either Sex
	Special Muzzleloader And Air Rifle	October 30 – November 3	Either Sex. No dogs
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Private Or Leased Land)	November 4-17	Antlered Bucks Only
		November 18-26	Either Sex
		November 27 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex
		January 1-27, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Open Permit-Public Land)	November 4 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex
		January 1-27	Antlered Bucks Only
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Private Or Leased Land)	November 4-17	Antlered Bucks Only
		November 18-26	Either Sex
		November 27 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex
	Gun Deer Dog Hunting(Open Permit-Public Land)	November 4 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex

 

Zones	Seasons	Dates	Limits
Zone E	Bow and Arrow Stalk Hunting	September 30, 2023 – January 15, 2024	Either Sex
		January 16-27	Antlered Bucks Only
	Special Youth GAun	October 27-30	Either Sex
	Special Muzzleloader And Air Rifle	October 30 – November 3	Either Sex. No dogs
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Private Or Leased Land)	November 4, 2023 – January 15, 2024	Either Sex
		January 16-27, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only
	Gun Stalk Hunting (Open Permit-Public Land)	November 4 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex
		January 1-27, 2024	Antlered Bucks Only
	Gun Deer Dog Hunting(Private Or Leased Land)	November 4, 2023 – January 1, 2024 – Either Sex	Either Sex
	Gun Deer Dog Hunting(Open Permit-Public Land)	November 4 – December 15	Antlered Bucks Only
		December 16-31	Either Sex

*Deer season bag limits: you can take three Antlered Bucks in all combined seasons but only one buck in a day.

Alabama Turkey Season

Zones	Dates	Limits
Zone 1	March 25 – May 8 (DECOYS ALLOWED APRIL 4 – MAY 8)	One gobbler per day Four gobblers during fall and spring seasons No more than two gobblers from any District No more than one gobbler during the first 10 days of each season
Zone 2	April 1 – May 8 (DECOYS ALLOWED APRIL 11 – MAY 8)
Zone 3	November 18 – 26 (NO DECOYS ALLOWED)
	December 9 – 31 (NO DECOYS ALLOWED)
	March 25 – May 8 (DECOYS ALLOWED APRIL 4 – MAY 8)

*Zone 1: Autauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton, Choctaw, Cleburne, Coffee, Conecuh, Coosa, Crenshaw, Cullman (except north of Lewis Smith Lake and north of Cullman County Road 437 and west of Interstate 65), Dale, Dallas, DeKalb, Elmore, Escambia, Etowah, Fayette, Geneva, Greene, Hale, Henry, Houston, Jackson, Jefferson, Lamar, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Marion, Marshall, Mobile, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Russell, St. Clair, Shelby, Sumter, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Walker, Washington, and Wilcox.

Zone 2: Colbert, Cullman (north of Lewis Smith Lake and north of Cullman County Road 437 and west of Interstate 65), Franklin, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Morgan, and Winston.

Zone 3: Clarke, Clay, Covington, Monroe, Randolph, and Talladega.

📅 To check more turkey seasons in other states in the US, please read this: Spring Turkey Seasons Dates&Limits By States

Alabama Alligator Season

Zones	Dates	Bag Limits	Possession Tag Limits
Southwest Management Area	August 8-11, August 15-18, 2024	1 alligator each person	100 in total
Coastal Management Area	August 8 -11, August 15 – 18, 2024		50 in total
Southeast Management Area	August 10 – September 2, 2024		40 in total
West Central Management Area	August 8 -11, August 15 – 18, 2024		50 in total
Lake Eufaula Management Area	August 17 – October 6, 2024		20 in total

Hunting Hours:

• Southwest, Coastal, Southeast, and West Central Zones – Official Sunset until Official Sunrise.
• Lake Eufaula Zone – Daytime and Nighttime Hours.

Alabama Small Game Season

• Bobwhite Quail: November 4, 2023 – February 29, 2024 (Limit 8 a Day)
• Rabbits and squirrels: September 9, 2023 – March 3, 2024 (Limit 8 a Day)
• Raccoon: No closed season (No Bag Limit)
• Opossum: No closed season (No Bag Limit)
• Starlings, Crows, and House Sparrows: No closed season (No Bag Limit)
• Bobcat, Coyote, Feral Swine, and Fox: No closed season; Daylight hours only (No Bag Limit)
• Bullfrog and Pig Frog: No closed season (Limit 20 frogs)
• Beaver, Nutria, and Groundhog: No closed season (No Bag Limit)
• Woodcock: December 15 – January 28, 2024 (Limit 3 a Day)
• Snipe: November 11– February 25, 2024 (Limit 8 a Day)
• Clapper Rail, King Rail, Virginia Rail, Sora, And Gallinule: September 9 – September 24, November 25 – January 17, 2024 (Limit 15 a Day)

Alabama Trapping Season

For Bobcat, Fox, Mink, Muskrat, Otter, and Striped Skunk: October 28, 2023 – February 29, 2024.

For Beaver, Coyote, Nutria, Feral Swine, Raccoon, and Opossum: No Closed Season!

*Please note that a permit may be obtained through your local district office for the trapping of nuisance furbearers outside the specified trapping season dates.

With these hunting season details in hand, you’re well-prepared to make the most of your time in the great outdoors during the Alabama hunting season.

Alabama Hunting Licenses

Alabama hunting licenses are valid from September 1 through August 31 of each year. To acquire a hunting license, residents must possess a current driver’s license or non-driver’s ID issued by Alabama.

If you do not have these documents, you can still prove your residency by going in person to the Montgomery Office of Wildlife & Freshwater Fisheries, Marine Resource Offices, License Commissioners, or Probate Offices in the area.

You can purchase a hunting license more conveniently by using the online sales system or by going in person to any License Agent. It’s crucial to remember that Alabama citizens are the only ones eligible for the lifetime license option, which offers a permanent commitment to the pursuit of hunting activities.

The following is the table of hunting license fees for residents and non-residents who want to hunt in Alabama:

Licenses	Resident	Non-Resident
All Game	$32.55	Annual – $377.25 10-Day Trip – $232.90 3-Day Trip- $164.30
Small Game	$21.55	Annual – $123.05 10-Day Trip – $74.95 3-Day Trip- $54.30
Baiting Privilege	$17.55	$59.95
Nighttime Feral Swine & Coyote Hunting License	$17.10	$58.30
Commercial Fowl Hunting Preserve 7-Day Trip	$10.00	$10.00
Duck Stamps	State – $11.75 Federal – $28.00	/
Wildlife Heritage License	$13.30	/
Wildlife Management Area License	$21.55	$21.55
Optional Senior Lifetime Hunting	$35.00	/
Lifetime Hunting	Prices vary	/

Alabama Hunting Regulations

1. There are specific legal hunter orange requirements to follow. All hunters must wear a minimum of 144 square inches of hunter orange or a full-sized hunter orange hat.
2. Only hunter orange, commonly called blaze orange is legal.  Various shades of red as well as camo orange are not legal.
3. Alabama offers liberal seasons and bag limits for various species, and hunters need to follow the specific season dates, hunting hours and bag limits.
4. Hunter education is mandatory for license buyers aged 16 or older, with in-person and online options available.
5. It is illegal to hunt, trap, capture, injure, kill, or destroy any wild game on someone else’s land. A written permission from the landowner is required.
6. It is important to comply with Alabama hunting regulations for specific arms, ammunition, and equipment.

Why Is Hunting Season Regulated?

There are many reasons why the hunting season is regulated, all of which contribute to wildlife preservation and environmental health.

Firstly, regulation of hunting seasons is essential for maintaining healthy and sustainable wildlife populations. Hunters could potentially cause extinctions by overhunting species without regulations.

The regulation of hunting also ensures that humane and environmentally friendly hunting practices are followed. The proper setting of hunting seasons will enable wildlife to be protected from over-hunting and exploitation. A balance is also achieved between the needs of hunters and the environment.

Additionally, the regulation of hunting seasons protects both hunters as well as the game that they hunt as well. Setting specific hunting dates can prevent conflicts between hunters and other animals. Be sure to review the specific regulations for your area and always practice safe and responsible hunting.

Sum Up

Depending on the animal and the season, hunting regulations, bag limits, and special hunting seasons differ in most states. For more details on how to obtain a license, harvest records, permits, and regulations relating to Alabama hunting, you can visit the official website for more detailed information.

Preparation is a very important part of the hunting process before you’re able to leave. Knowing the hunting season is important for any hunter to plan their hunting trips, purchase necessary hunting equipment, and obtain required licenses and permits.

Without this information, you may miss out on your preferred hunting dates or locations or risk violating hunting laws and regulations. Therefore, it is crucial to stay informed about any changes that may occur. Follow up with our article for the newest updates!