Kentucky · Duck · 2026–27 Edition
Kentucky Duck Season 2026–27: Dates & Bag Limits
01 — Seasons by zone
| Season / Segment | Zone | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Teal & Wood Duck | Statewide | Sep 19 – Sep 23 |
| Duck, Coot & Merganser · Segment 1 | Statewide | Nov 26 – Nov 29 |
| Duck, Coot & Merganser · Segment 2 | Statewide | Dec 7 – Jan 31 |
| Youth-only Waterfowl Day | Statewide | Nov 21 – Nov 21 |
| Youth-only Waterfowl Day | Statewide | Feb 13 – Feb 13 |
| Military/Veteran-only Waterfowl Day | Statewide | Nov 22 – Nov 22 |
| Military/Veteran-only Waterfowl Day | Statewide | Feb 14 – Feb 14 |
| Falconry (ducks, coots & mergansers) | Statewide | Nov 26 – Feb 21 |
02 — Bag limits
| Teal & Wood Duck — Daily | 6 birds, no more than 2 wood ducks |
|---|---|
| Teal & Wood Duck — Possession | 18 birds, no more than 6 wood ducks |
| Duck — Daily | 6 birds, may include no more than 4 mallards (only 2 hens), 3 wood ducks, 2 redheads, 3 pintails, 2 black ducks and 2 canvasback. Scaup: 1 during Nov. 26-29 and Dec. 7-17, 2 from Dec. 18 on |
| Duck — Possession | Triple the daily bag limit |
| Coot — Daily / Possession | 15 / 45 |
| Merganser — Daily | 5, only 2 may be hooded mergansers |
| Merganser — Possession | Triple the daily bag limit |
| Youth-only & Military/Veteran-only Days | Same as the regular duck season, except the scaup limit is a flat 2 daily on these days |
| Falconry (ducks, coots & mergansers) | 3 daily / 9 possession, singly or in the aggregate |
03 — Shooting hours
Legal light on opening day (September 19, 2026) 06:57 — 19:42
Rule: Half an hour before sunrise to sunset (per KDFWR) — Wildlife Management Areas may run different hours, noted in KDFWR's public-hunting section. Sunrise/sunset shift daily — the times above are computed for opening day; use your local Kentucky sun times for any other date.
04 — License, HIP & Duck Stamp
Duck hunters in Kentucky need three things (in addition to any state-specific waterfowl stamp): a Kentucky hunting license, HIP registration (Harvest Information Program) and a Federal Duck Stamp — required for hunters 16+ under federal law.
Kentucky hunting license cost & waterfowl stamp →
Where to hunt public land in Kentucky — WMAs by county & access rules →
05 — FAQ
When does duck season open in Kentucky?
The 2026–27 opener is September 19, 2026. Waterfowl seasons run under federal flyway frameworks with state-set zone splits — see the zone table above.
When does duck season end in Kentucky?
The latest 2026–27 closing date is February 21, 2027. Late-zone and second-segment closes vary — see the zone table.
Do I need a Federal Duck Stamp?
Yes. Every waterfowl hunter 16 or older must carry a signed current-year Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (Duck Stamp). It is available at U.S. Post Offices, many license retailers, most National Wildlife Refuges, and online from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
How many ducks can you shoot in Kentucky per day?
2026–27 bag limits: Teal & Wood Duck — Daily — 6 birds, no more than 2 wood ducks. Teal & Wood Duck — Possession — 18 birds, no more than 6 wood ducks. Duck — Daily — 6 birds, may include no more than 4 mallards (only 2 hens), 3 wood ducks, 2 redheads, 3 pintails, 2 black ducks and 2 canvasback. Scaup: 1 during Nov. 26-29 and Dec. 7-17, 2 from Dec. 18 on. Duck — Possession — Triple the daily bag limit. Coot — Daily / Possession — 15 / 45. Merganser — Daily — 5, only 2 may be hooded mergansers. Merganser — Possession — Triple the daily bag limit. Youth-only & Military/Veteran-only Days — Same as the regular duck season, except the scaup limit is a flat 2 daily on these days. Falconry (ducks, coots & mergansers) — 3 daily / 9 possession, singly or in the aggregate. Limits are set per zone and per permit — check the agency's own regulations before you hunt.
What time can you start shooting ducks in Kentucky?
On opening day (September 19, 2026) legal light runs 06:57 to 19:42. The rule is: Half an hour before sunrise to sunset (per KDFWR) — Wildlife Management Areas may run different hours, noted in KDFWR's public-hunting section. Sunrise and sunset shift daily, so work the offset against your local Kentucky sun times for any other date.
Can I hunt ducks on my own land in Kentucky without a license?
Kentucky resident farmland owners — or their spouse or dependent children — may hunt (not trap) and fish that land without a license; resident tenants living there and their dependent children get the same right. Season dates, zone rules, bag limits, and telecheck reporting still apply.
Verified · Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources · Last verified 2026-08-16
Publisher's note. From the official Kentucky Hunting Guide for Migratory Birds and Waterfowl, September 2026 – March 2027, cross-checked against the KDFWR 2026-27 season poster (fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/Hunting_Poster.pdf) — the guide's own table lays duck, coot and merganser out as three separate bag-limit rows sharing one set of season dates, and a first read of that table risked crediting the merganser row with the goose group's later closing date instead; the poster's cleaner single-page layout is what caught and fixed that. Coot and merganser share every duck season date below and are covered here since they're taken under the same permit and often the same blind — Kentucky's goose seasons run in the same guide but are out of scope for this page. Nontoxic shot is mandatory statewide for waterfowl — lead shot is prohibited even on your own property. Hunters need a Kentucky hunting license, the Kentucky Migratory Bird/Waterfowl Permit, a completed HIP survey, and a Federal Duck Stamp — everyone except hunters aged 12-15, who need only the hunting license.