Arkansas · Turkey · 2027 Edition
Arkansas Turkey Season 2027: Spring Dates, Bag Limits
01 — Spring gobbler
| Season | Zones | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Youth Turkey Hunt | Zones 1, 1A, 2 & 2A | Apr 10 – Apr 11 |
| Regular Season | Zone 3 | Apr 5 – Apr 25 |
| Regular Season | Zone 2 | Apr 12 – May 2 |
| Regular Season | Zone 2A | Apr 12 – Apr 20 |
| Regular Season | Zone 1A | Apr 19 – Apr 27 |
| Regular Season | Zone 1 | Apr 19 – May 9 |
02 — Bag limits
| Statewide season limit | 2 legal turkeys — no more than 1 during the first 7 days of a zone's regular season, no more than 1 per day. Hen turkeys, including bearded hens, may never be taken. |
|---|---|
| Zone 1A & Zone 2A | 1 legal turkey per zone — a hunter must travel to an NWR, WMA, or Zone 1, 2 or 3 to take a second bird |
| Individual wildlife management areas | 1 legal turkey per WMA |
| Nonresidents | 1 turkey total in the season bag limit (youth and adult alike) |
03 — Shooting hours
Legal light on opening day (April 5, 2027) 06:19 — 20:03
Rule: Half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset (per AGFC — turkeys may not be taken from 30 minutes after sunset until 30 minutes before sunrise). Sunrise/sunset shift daily — the times above are computed for opening day; use your local Arkansas sun times for any other date.
04 — License
An Arkansas hunting license and turkey permit are required. Check whether the permit is sold with the license or separately, and note any cap on gobblers per hunter per year.
Arkansas hunting license cost & turkey permits →
Where to hunt public land in Arkansas — WMAs by county & access rules →
05 — Scouting gear
Patterning a gobbler's roost and strut zone before Arkansas's opener usually means glassing from a distance and running a trail camera through late winter and early spring.
- Hunting binoculars on Amazon →
- Trail cameras on Amazon →
- Trail camera SD cards — class, capacity & format explained →
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. These are category links, not a single named pick — we run no product tests of our own.
06 — FAQ
When does turkey season start in Arkansas?
The earliest 2027 opener is April 5, 2027. See the tables above for each segment.
When does turkey season end in Arkansas?
The latest 2027 closing date is May 9, 2027. Individual segments and zones close on their own dates.
When does spring turkey season start in Arkansas?
Youth Turkey Hunt opens April 10, 2027 (Zones 1, 1A, 2 & 2A).
How many turkeys can you shoot in Arkansas?
2027 bag limits: Statewide season limit — 2 legal turkeys — no more than 1 during the first 7 days of a zone's regular season, no more than 1 per day. Hen turkeys, including bearded hens, may never be taken. Zone 1A & Zone 2A — 1 legal turkey per zone — a hunter must travel to an NWR, WMA, or Zone 1, 2 or 3 to take a second bird. Individual wildlife management areas — 1 legal turkey per WMA. Nonresidents — 1 turkey total in the season bag limit (youth and adult alike). Limits are set per zone and per permit — check the agency's own regulations before you hunt.
What time can you start shooting turkey in Arkansas?
On opening day (April 5, 2027) legal light runs 06:19 to 20:03. The rule is: Half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset (per AGFC — turkeys may not be taken from 30 minutes after sunset until 30 minutes before sunrise). Sunrise and sunset shift daily, so work the offset against your local Arkansas sun times for any other date.
Can I hunt turkey on my own land in Arkansas without a license?
No — Arkansas's own regulation is unconditional: a resident must carry a hunting license to hunt by any means, with only two listed exceptions (licensed game-bird shooting resorts, and a narrow age-based carve-out) — neither is a landowner exemption. This directly contradicts a claim that circulates on several third-party sites.
Verified · Arkansas Game and Fish Commission · Last verified 2026-08-16
Publisher's note. Dates from AGFC's own 'Turkey Dates, Rules & Regulations' page. Arkansas runs spring turkey only — no fall season. Five private-land zones (1, 1A, 2, 2A, 3) each carry their own window and their own zone bag limit (1 or 2 legal turkeys); a hunter who fills the 1-bird limit in Zone 1A or 2A must travel to an NWR, WMA, or one of the 2-bird zones to take a second bird. Wildlife management areas run their own separate WMA-by-WMA schedule, not reproduced here — check the current Hunting Guidebook for WMA zone info. The youth hunt (April 10-11) covers only Zones 1, 1A, 2 and 2A; Zone 3 has no separate youth date. RE-VERIFIED 2026-09-01, fetched directly from agfc.com with a browser user agent — the block recorded elsewhere in this project did not recur. The zone table matches row for row: 'Zone 1 April 19-May 9, 2027 | Two legal turkeys', 'Zone 1A April 19-27, 2027 | One legal turkey', 'Zone 2 April 12-May 2, 2027 | Two legal turkeys'. The travel rule is quoted because the page gives its reasoning: 'Hunters who harvest a turkey in this zone must travel to an NWR, WMA or Zone 1, 2, 2A or 3 to harvest a second bird' — so in Zone 1A (and 2A) the second bird is not forbidden, just not available there. On zone shape AGFC says: 'Zones follow county lines with the exception of the inside of the Mississippi river levee in Crittenden, Lee, Mississippi, Phillips and St. Francis county.' WMA zones are listed separately in the Hunting Guidebook and are not modelled here.