New Jersey · Rabbit · 2026–27 Edition
New Jersey Rabbit Season 2026–27: Dates & Bag Limits
01 — Seasons
| Season | Zone | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Cottontail Rabbit | Statewide | Sep 30 – Dec 6 |
| Cottontail Rabbit | Statewide | Dec 13 – Feb 27 |
02 — Bag limits
| Daily | 4 |
|---|---|
| Possession | Not independently confirmed this round — not found beyond the daily bag figure |
03 — Shooting hours
Legal light on opening day (September 30, 2026) 06:24 — 19:11
Rule: Half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset generally — EXCEPT on the statewide firearms small-game opening day (Nov. 7, 2026, aligned with the pheasant opener), when shooting hours begin at 8:00 a.m. instead of sunrise. This exact wording ('8 a.m. start on Nov. 8, 2025') was confirmed on the rabbit-specific page of NJDEP's 2025-26 digest; the Nov. 7, 2026 date is inferred by one-year calendar continuity rather than independently confirmed against the 2026-27 digest, which was not accessible this round. Sunrise/sunset shift daily — the times above are computed for opening day; use your local New Jersey sun times for any other date.
04 — License
Rabbit hunters in New Jersey need a New Jersey hunting license — Rabbit season closes entirely during New Jersey's six-day firearm deer season (Dec. 7-12, 2026) — confirmed directly for 2026. An extra single closure day around mid-December, seen in the 2025-26 season, may recur but wasn't independently confirmed for 2026-27.
New Jersey hunting license cost →
Where to hunt public land in New Jersey — WMAs by county & access rules →
05 — FAQ
When does rabbit season start in New Jersey?
The 2026–27 opener is September 30, 2026. See the table above for the full window.
When does rabbit season end in New Jersey?
The 2026–27 closing date is February 27, 2027.
Is there a closed season on rabbit in New Jersey?
Yes — see the dates above. Outside that window, taking rabbit is closed in New Jersey.
How many rabbits can you shoot in New Jersey per day?
2026–27 bag limits: Daily — 4. Possession — Not independently confirmed this round — not found beyond the daily bag figure. Limits are set per zone and per permit — check the agency's own regulations before you hunt.
What time can you start shooting rabbit in New Jersey?
On opening day (September 30, 2026) legal light runs 06:24 to 19:11. The rule is: Half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset generally — EXCEPT on the statewide firearms small-game opening day (Nov. 7, 2026, aligned with the pheasant opener), when shooting hours begin at 8:00 a.m. instead of sunrise. This exact wording ('8 a.m. start on Nov. 8, 2025') was confirmed on the rabbit-specific page of NJDEP's 2025-26 digest; the Nov. 7, 2026 date is inferred by one-year calendar continuity rather than independently confirmed against the 2026-27 digest, which was not accessible this round. Sunrise and sunset shift daily, so work the offset against your local New Jersey sun times for any other date.
Can I hunt rabbits on my own land in New Jersey without a license?
A New Jersey farm occupant who actually lives on a qualifying farm (5 or more acres, at least $500 gross farm income, assessed as farmland) — plus immediate family living there too — may hunt, trap, and fish it without a license. They still need a free Conservation ID for harvest reporting, and the exemption doesn't extend to tenants, employees, or other non-family residents.
Verified · New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife · Last verified 2026-08-14
Publisher's note. dep.nj.gov's small-game landing page and the actual 2026-27 Hunting & Trapping Digest PDF both returned empty/unparseable content to automated fetch this round (the 2026-27 digest does not yet appear to be fully indexed as of Aug. 2026). Season-date figures therefore come from an eRegulations.com mirror of NJDEP's 2025-26 digest (quoted directly: cottontail season 'September 27, 2025 – February 21, 2026', shooting hours 'Sunrise to 1/2 hour after sunset, with a special provision: 8 a.m. start on Nov. 8, 2025', 'Closed Dec. 8-13 & 17, 2025', daily bag 4) combined with one independently confirmed 2026-27 data point: NJ's statewide small-game/pheasant firearms opener — which carries the same 8 a.m.-start rule — falls on Nov. 7, 2026 (a Saturday, matching 2025's Nov. 8 exactly one year later in the calendar), confirmed via NJ Fish & Wildlife's own social-media announcement pattern and cross-checked against multiple aggregators. NJ's six-day firearm deer season, which closes rabbit hunting, is independently confirmed for Dec. 7-12, 2026 (stated directly as opening 'the second Monday after Thanksgiving'). The Sept. 30, 2026 opener and Feb. 27, 2027 close used below are secondary/aggregator-sourced extrapolations of the 2025-26 pattern, NOT independently verified against a 2026-27 primary document — treat those two dates as the least certain figures in this file. An additional single-day closure (2025-26 had one on Dec. 17) may also apply in Dec. 2026 but wasn't confirmed. No Sunday hunting is allowed for small game in New Jersey.