Oklahoma Hunting Season: Dates and Rules 2025 – 2026

*The spring turkey season has been updated for 2026.

Oklahoma is a haven for hunters, offering a wide variety of game and hunting opportunities. Here is the summary for the newest Oklahoma hunting season. It includes all the season dates and limits that you will need to know before going on a hunting trip in the state.

Oklahoma Deer Season Dates (2025 – 2026)

The deer seasons in Oklahoma last about three months, from early October to late December. They are divided into 5 periods with different bag limits and dates depending on the season.

Here are the official deer hunting seasons in Ohio, including dates and bag limits by weapon type:

Season Type	Dates (2025–2026)	Bag Limits
Deer Archery	Oct 1, 2025 – Jan 15, 2026	6 (max 2 antlered)
Youth Deer Gun	Oct 17 – Oct 19, 2025	2 (max 1 antlered)
Deer Muzzleloader	Oct 25 – Nov 2, 2025	4 (max 1 antlered)
Deer Gun Season	Nov 22 – Dec 7, 2025	4 (max 1 antlered)
Holiday Antlerless Gun	Dec 18 – Dec 31, 2025	2 (antlerless only)

Antlered Deer Definition: Any deer, regardless of sex, with at least three inches of antler length above the natural hairline on either side.

Except for the antler length, learn how to age a deer in the field and make sure you hunt the legal ones.

⚠️Important Rules

1. It is required to wear hunter orange clothes for safety.
2. Hunting hour is one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.
3. Thermal tracking devices are illegal.
4. Hunters must have all necessary licenses before hunting a deer. For example, hunters using air-powered arrow rifles must obtain a one-time Arrow Rifle Permit.
5. Hunters 17 years old or younger must be accompanied by an adult hunter.
6. All deer harvested during the deer muzzleloader season contribute to the hunter’s combined season limit of six deer.

License Requirements for Deer Seasons

For residents:

• Youths under the age of 16 must obtain a resident youth deer license.
• Youths above 16 years old must possess both a resident youth hunting license and a resident youth deer license.
• Residents must have a Resident Hunting License and a Resident Deer License unless they qualify for exemptions.
• Hunters must also have a current year’s resident hunting and deer archery license if hunting deer between January 1 – 15.

For non-residents:

• Nonresident youth must have a Nonresident Youth Deer Either Sex License, Nonresident Youth Deer Antlerless License, or Nonresident Deer License for each deer they hunt, unless they qualify for exemptions.
• Nonresident adults must have a Nonresident Deer License for that specific season, or a resident lifetime hunting or combination hunting/fishing license.

Oklahoma Elk Seasons

The OK elk seasons have been divided into five periods, with different weapons allowed. Check the following chart for the hunting zones and bag limits. For some zones, there are limited quotas. Once the quotas have been reached, the seasons may close early.

Elk Archery: Oct 1, 2025 – Jan 15, 2026

Elk Muzzleloader: Oct 25 – Nov 2, 2025

Elk Gun: Nov 22 – Dec 8, 2025

Youth Elk Gun: Oct 17 – Oct 19, 2025

Holiday Antlerless Elk Gun: Dec 18 – Dec 31, 2025

Elk Open Zones	Ranges	Limits	Total Quotas
Panhandle Zone	All private lands in Beaver, Cimarron, and Texas counties	Two elk, one must be antlerless	60
Special Northwest Zone	All private land in Woodward, Dewey, and Ellis counties, as well as a section of Roger Mills County, extend north of State Highways 33 and 47 to the north county line, west to the state border, and east to the county line	One elk, either sex	2
Northwest Zone	All private lands north of Interstate 40 and west of Interstate 35, excluding the counties in the Panhandle Zone and counties or parts thereof in the Special Northwest Zone	One elk, either sex	8
Northeast Zone	All private lands north of Interstate 40 and east of Interstate 35	One elk, either sex	20
Southeast Zone	All private lands south of Interstate 40 and east of Interstate 35	One elk, either sex	5
Southwest Zone	All private lands south of Interstate 40 and west of Interstate 35, excluding the counties in the Special Southwest Zone	One elk, either sex	30

⚠️Important Elk Hunting Rules

1. Bag limits: Two either-sex elk in total for all combined seasons.
2. Hunter orange is required.
3. Hunting hour is one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.
4. A legal bull is described as any bull with antlers. A special case in the Special Southwest Zone is that a legal bull must have at least five points on one side of the antlers.
5. All elk hunters need to have written permission from the landowner and bring it with them while in the hunting field.
6. The elk seasons in each hunting zone will be closed earlier if the quota has been met. So, hunters should check the quota at the official website( wildlifedepartment.com) before they go for the hunt.
7. Hunters need to E-check their successful elk harvest within 24 hours.

License Requirements for Elk Seasons:

• Residents must have both a Resident Hunting License and a Resident Elk License for every elk they hunt.
• Non-residents must obtain a separate Nonresident Elk License, or they can opt for a resident lifetime hunting or combined hunting/fishing license.

Oklahoma Bear Seasons

Bear Archery Season: Oct 1 – Oct 19, 2025
Bear Muzzleloader Season: Oct 25 – Nov 2, 2025

Season Limit: One bear, either sex in these two combined seasons.

Hunting hour: one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.

⚠️Important Notes

1. Hunter orange is required.
2. No baiting is permitted in wildlife management areas.
3. It is illegal to shoot cubs or females with cubs or collared bears.
4. Pursuing bears with dogs is illegal.
5. After harvesting a bear, all hunters must immediately secure their name and customer ID number to the carcass.
6. The muzzleloader harvest quota is 20 bears. There is no harvest quota during bear archery season.
7. Hunters must check by phone whether the quota has been met before going hunting each day.

Hunting License Requirements

1. Nonresident bear hunters don’t need to have a hunting license while hunting bears, but they must have a nonresident bear license.
2. Residents must have a hunting license as well as a bear license.

Oklahoma Turkey Seasons

2026 Spring Turkey Season

• Youth Turkey Spring Hunt: Apr 11 – Apr 12, 2026
• General Turkey Spring Hunt: Apr 16 – May 16, 2026

⚠️Important Notes

1. Bag limit: One tom turkey (harvest of non-bearded turkeys is prohibited).
2. For youth hunters, they should be 17 years old or younger. All youth hunters must be accompanied by an adult aged 18 or older.
3. The harvest of non-bearded turkeys is prohibited.
4. Rifles and handguns are not permitted during the spring season.
5. The legal hunting methods are archery equipment and shotguns that are either conventional or muzzleloading as long as they use shots no larger than BB (.180 of an inch in diameter).

License Requirements

• Resident: Resident hunting license & fall turkey licenses are required.
• Nonresident: Nonresident hunting licenses & fall turkey licenses are required.

Oklahoma Migratory Game Bird Seasons

For Oklahoma migratory game bird hunting, there are a few key details hunters should know beyond the season calendar.

Most hunters are required to have a HIP (Harvest Information Program) permit, which is mandatory for all migratory game birds.

Bag limits and shooting hours can vary by species, so it’s important to check each bird’s specific rules before heading out.

Oklahoma Waterfowl Season

Species	Dates
September Teal	Sep 13 – Sep 21, 2025
Special Resident Canada Goose	Sep 13 – Sep 22, 2025
Waterfowl Youth, Vet and Military (Panhandle)	Sep 27, 2025 and  Jan 31, 2026
Waterfowl Youth, Vet and Military (Zones 1 & 2)	Nov 1, 2025 and Jan 31, 2026
Waterfowl (Zones 1 & 2)	Nov 8 – Nov 30, 2025 Dec 6 – Jan 25, 2026
Waterfowl (Panhandle)	Oct 4, 2025 – Jan 7, 2026
White-Fronted Geese	Nov 1 – Nov 30, 2025 Dec 6, 2025 – Feb 1, 2026
Sandhill Cranes	Oct 18, 2025 – Jan 18, 2026
Dark Geese	Nov 1 – Nov 30, 2025 Dec 6, 2025 – Feb 8, 2026
Light Geese	Nov 1 – Nov 30, 2025 Dec 6, 2025 – Feb 8, 2026
Conservation Order Light Goose Season (COLGS)	Feb 13 – Mar 30, 2026

Regulations For Hunting Waterfowl

When taking waterfowl, hunters cannot:

• Use various methods such as traps, nets, rifles, pistols, specific firearms, fishhooks, poison, drugs, explosives, or substances that cause unconsciousness.
• Use shotguns capable of carrying more than three shells.
• Use sink boxes or motor-driven conveyances, except for paralyzed individuals and leg amputees who are allowed to hunt from stationary vehicles.
• Use live decoys or imitate bird calls.
• Operate a motorized device or sailboat to assist in hunting by driving, rallying, or pursuing birds.
• Use baits.

Oklahoma Small Game Seasons

Oklahoma’s small game hunting offers plenty of opportunities for different types of species. The season schedules vary, and hunters can always hunt certain game throughout the year.

Non-Resident Licenses

Oklahoma Hunting Regulations

Oklahoma has certain regulations in place to ensure responsible and ethical hunting. Some of these regulations include:

1. The use of dogs for hunting is not allowed when pursuing bear, deer, elk, antelope, and turkey.
2. It is prohibited to use computer software or services that enable remote control of firearms or weapons to hunt live animals or birds without physical presence.
3. Hunters are required to report all deer, elk, antelope, bear, or turkey harvested to the Department within 24 hours of leaving the hunting area.
4. Using artificial light, thermal, or night vision equipment for hunting from a public roadway is strictly forbidden.
5. It is unlawful to harass, attempt to capture, capture, attempt to take, take, kill, or attempt to kill any wildlife with the assistance of motor-driven land, air, or water conveyances, except for non-ambulatory individuals who may hunt from such conveyances with a valid non-ambulatory or motor vehicle permit.
6. Hunters must get prior permission from landowners for access to posted or occupied land, especially on properties primarily dedicated to farming, ranching, or forestry purposes.
7. Shooting from or across any public road, highway, or railroad right-of-way, or its adjacent areas, is prohibited by law.
8. Shooting hours: One-half hour before official sunrise to one-half hour after official sunset.
9. Hunter orange: All hunters participating in any season using a firearm (muzzleloader or gun) must wear both a head covering and an outer garment above the waistline, both totaling at least 400 square inches of hunter orange that are clearly visible while in the field.

For more detailed information, please refer to the Oklahoma Hunting Regulations 2025-2026.

In The End

We will keep you updated with any new changes in dates and regulations for the Oklahoma Hunting season each year. Follow us to prepare early for the hunting season in your state!