10/15/2026
Good luck and be safe!
The DNR reminds hunters and the general public that the 2026 pheasant season opens at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026, and runs through Sunday, Jan. 3, 2027.
The opening weekend, Oct. 17-18, has a daily bag limit of one rooster per day. Starting Monday, Oct. 19, the daily bag limit increases to two roosters per day. This limit remains in place for the remainder of the season.
Pre-stocking efforts began the week of Oct. 12 to ensure birds are on the landscape for the season opener. This season, the DNR plans to stock approximately 65,000 pheasants from the state game farm on 82 properties statewide.
Several pheasant hunting properties close at noon on weekdays beginning Oct. 19 through Nov. 3. Hunters are encouraged to double-check the legal shooting hours on the properties they intend to hunt in the online hunting regulations.
Additionally, hunters are encouraged to wear blaze orange or pink while pheasant hunting to increase visibility for other hunters and outdoor recreators. During any gun deer season, at least 50% of any hunter’s clothing above the waist must be blaze orange or fluorescent pink, except for waterfowl hunters.
