MADISON — Wisconsin’s ninth elk hunting season since the reintroduction of elk in the state started Saturday, Oct. 17, the Department of Natural Resources announced.
The 16 hunters participating in the 2026 state-administered hunt were randomly selected from a pool of more than 34,000 Wisconsin resident applicants. The department received 13,970 harvest applications to hunt bull elk in the Northern Elk Management Zone hunting unit groups and 20,728 combined bull and antlerless applications for the Central Elk Management Zone for this season. An eight-bull quota was established for the Northern Zone, with four licenses being awarded to state hunters and four to tribal members. In the Central Zone, six antlerless and six bull licenses were issued to state hunters.
“New this year, elk tags are unit-specific, which allows for focused harvest pressure in units where human-elk conflicts are higher while simultaneously setting lower quota levels in other hunting units where the desired objective is to allow for population growth,” said Christina Kizewski, DNR biologist for the Central Elk Zone.
The random drawing ensures that each applicant has an equal chance of selection within the respective management zones. Applicants were required to select a unit grouping of choice to apply to during the elk hunting application process. Applicants had the ability to apply for a bull and/or antlerless tag but could only accept one license.
2026 Pheasant Season Opens
The 2026 pheasant season opened 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 will begin the week of Oct. 12 to ensure birds are on the landscape for the season opener. The DNR plans to stock approximately 65,000 pheasants from the state game farm on 82 properties statewide. Stocking for the 2026 pheasant season will end on Nov. 19. This is earlier than in years past and is a necessary cost-saving measure due to budget shortfalls.
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.
The Richard Bong State Recreation Area, which supports a managed pheasant hunt and releases pheasants daily, will be the only property that will stock pheasants the week of Nov. 30. Daily pheasant hunting permits are required. More information can be found on the Richard Bong hunting website.
Hunters can use the DNR’s Fields and Forest Lands Interactive Gamebird Hunting Tool to locate properties stocked with pheasants. The tool also allows hunters to use aerial maps, topography and measuring tools to identify areas of interest and make their trips more productive and enjoyable.
Hunters are also reminded to please double-check the DNR’s Pheasant Stocking Information webpage for a list of the properties that will be stocked with pheasants this fall. Some properties that were stocked last year are not being stocked this year, and some new properties were added to the list as well. Select the county you intend to hunt in to see which properties in that county will be stocked.
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 pink, except for waterfowl hunters.
For more information, including complete pheasant hunting regulations, shooting hours and helpful tips, visit the DNR’s Pheasant Hunting webpage.
