Hunting & Fishing

To qualify for a resident hunting or fishing license, a person must be a bona fide resident of Alabama for a minimum of 90 days continuously immediately prior to purchasing any such license or be a member of U.S. military stationed in Alabama. For the purpose of buying hunting and fishing licenses, residency is determined by the Driver’s License issuance. Resident and nonresident annual hunting and fishing licenses are valid from September 1 through August 31 each year. Successfully completing an approved hunter education course is mandatory for all hunting license buyers born on or after August 1, 1977. Licenses must be in possession while hunting or fishing. An antlered buck and turkey harvest record must be in possession every time a person is hunting deer or turkey. It is unlawful to utilize or possess more than one harvest record.

It is illegal to kill or cripple any species of game bird, game animal or game fish without making a reasonable effort to retrieve same and include it in the daily bag or creel limit, except all game fish not meeting legal length regulations, and protected species. An individual should not trail or retrieve game on property they do not have permission to enter. All game bags, hunting coats, camping equipment, live boxes, automobiles and such used in hunting and fishing will be open for inspection by officers of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.