Waterfowl Hunting Regulations
Waterfowl Hunting Zone Descriptions
North Duck Zone: That portion of the state north of a line extending west from the Indiana border along Peotone-Beecher Road to Illinois Route 50, south along Illinois Route 50 to Wilmington-Peotone Road, west along Wilmington-Peotone Road to Illinois Route 53, north along Illinois Route 53 to New River Road, northwest along New River Road to Interstate Highway 55, south along I-55 to Pine Bluff-Lorenzo Road, west along Pine Bluff-Lorenzo Road to Illinois Route 47, north along Illinois Route 47 to I-80, west along I-80 to I-39, south along I-39 to Illinois Route 18, west along Illinois Route 18 to Illinois Route 29, south along Illinois Route 29 to Illinois Route 17, west along Illinois Route 17 to the Mississippi River, and due south across the Mississippi River to the Iowa border.
Central Duck Zone: That portion of the state south of the North Duck Zone line to a line extending west from the Indiana border along I-70 to Illinois Route 4, south along Illinois Route 4 to Illinois Route 161, west along Illinois Route 161 to Illinois Route 158, south and west along Illinois Route 158 to Illinois Route 159, south along Illinois Route 159 to Illinois Route 3, south along Illinois Route 3 to St. Leo’s Road, south along St. Leo’s Road to Modoc Road, west along Modoc Road to Modoc Ferry Road, southwest along Modoc Ferry Road to Levee Road, southeast along Levee Road to County Route 12 (Modoc Ferry entrance Road), south along County Route 12 to the Modoc Ferry Route and southwest on the Modoc Ferry Route across the Mississippi River to the Missouri border.
South Duck Zone: That portion of the state south and east of a line extending west from the Indiana border along Interstate 70, south along U.S. Highway 45, to Illinois Route 13, west along Illinois Route 13 to Greenbriar Road, north on Greenbriar Road to Sycamore Road, west on Sycamore Road to N Reed Station Road, south on N Reed Station Road to Illinois Route 13, west along Illinois Route 13 to Illinois Route 127, south along Illinois Route 127 to State Forest Road (1025 N), west along State Forest Road to Illinois Route 3, north along Illinois Route 3 to the south bank of the Big Muddy River, west along the south bank of the Big Muddy River to the Mississippi River, west across the Mississippi River to the Missouri border.
South Central Duck Zone: The remainder of the state between the south border of the Central Zone and the North border of the South Zone.
Goose Zones
North Goose Zone: That portion of the state north of a line extending west from the Indiana border along Interstate 80 to I-39, south along I-39 to Illinois Route 18, west along Illinois Route 18 to Illinois Route 29, south along Illinois Route 29 to Illinois Route 17, west along Illinois Route 17 to the Mississippi River, and due south across the Mississippi River to the Iowa border.
Central Goose Zone: That portion of the state south of the North Goose Zone line to a line extending west from the Indiana border along I-70 to Illinois Route 4, south along Illinois Route 4 to Illinois Route 161, west along Illinois Route 161 to Illinois Route 158, south and west along Illinois Route 158 to Illinois Route 159, south along Illinois Route 159 to Illinois Route 3, south along Illinois Route 3 to St. Leo’s Road, south along St. Leo’s Road to Modoc Road, west along Modoc Road to Modoc Ferry Road, southwest along Modoc Ferry Road to Levee Road, southeast along Levee Road to County Route 12 (Modoc Ferry entrance Road), south along County Route 12 to the Modoc Ferry Route and southwest on the Modoc Ferry Route across the Mississippi River to the Missouri border.
South Goose Zone: Same zones as for ducks.
South-central Goose Zone: Same zones as for ducks.
Hunting Credential Requirements
To hunt migratory waterfowl, residents and non-residents will need: a hunting license, State Waterfowl Stamp, Federal Waterfowl Stamp and HIP Certification. Exemptions to these requirements are specified in table. For residency qualification, see Resident definition in Statewide Regulations hereafter.
See waterfowl hunting maps for associated zones.
| Waterfowl Hunting Credentials (does not include vendor fees) | ||||||
| Price | How to apply for or purchase | |||||
| License/Permit/Stamps | Resident | Non-Resident | Lottery | Online | Vendors | Specifications |
| Hunting License | Variable | Variable | X | X | See Statewide Regulations section for license types. | |
| State Migratory Waterfowl Stamp | $15.00 | $15.00 | X | X | Required for any person 18 years of age or older, including lifetime license holders, to hunt migratory waterfowl except toe-clipped, hand- reared mallards on licensed Game Breeding and Hunting Preserve Areas. Disabled individuals, servicemen, and landowners may be exempt from this stamp. See table on page 4. | |
| Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp | $25.00 | $25.00 | X | X | Required for any person 16 years of age or older, including lifetime license holders, to hunt migratory waterfowl except toe-clipped, hand- reared mallards on licensed Game Breeding and Hunting Preserve Areas. Must be signed in ink across the face of the stamp. E-stamps are now available from many states and are legal nationwide. Upon purchase, the E-stamp will be temporarily valid, and a physical copy will be mailed to the purchaser. www.fws.gov/service/buy-duck- stamp-or-e-stamp | |
| HIP Certification | Free | Free | X | X | To hunt migratory birds, all licensed hunters, including lifetime license holders, must register with HIP and have their proof of registration with them while migratory bird hunting, see HIP Registration description hereafter. Not required to hunt crows in Illinois. | |
| Site-specific Duck and Goose Hunting Permits | Variable | Variable | X | X | See Permit Applications hereafter for details. Some Permits require in- person drawing. Fee may be charged at sites. | |
Federal Migratory Bird Hunting & Conservation Stamp
Each year waterfowl hunters purchase Migratory Waterfowl Stamps, or “duck stamps” as a requirement to hunt migratory waterfowl. Authorization for a federal duck stamp came in 1934 from passage of theMigratory Bird Hunting Stamp Act, which was largely driven by waterfowl hunters’ concern over habitat loss and declining waterfowl populations.Funds from the purchase of these stamps are directed towards the purchase or lease of lands for inclusion in the National Wildlife Refuge System, providing critical breeding, migration and wintering habitat for waterfowl and a variety of other species, and recreation opportunity inmany areas. With an initial cost of $1 and current cost of $25, Federal Duck Stamp funds to date have totaled over $1.1 billion to protect more than 6 million acres of wildlife habitat nationwide.
State Migratory Waterfowl Stamp
Similar to the federal duck stamp, Illinois hunters initiated the Illinois Migratory Waterfowl Stamp Fund, which was established in 1975. The stampsoriginally cost $5, increasing to $15 in 2011. Over the life of the fund, stamp purchases have led to over $29 million deposited in this fund, with current average sales of about 60,000 stamps annually, leading to nearly $1 million annual revenue. Physical paper Illinois stamps affixed to hunters’ licenses were discontinued in 2011 and now only appear as a line item on printed licenses. Half of the funds generated annually are used within Illinois to manage, maintain and acquire waterfowl and wetland habitat and hunting areas.The remaining funds are used to conserve critical grassland and wetland habitat on the Canadian breeding grounds, where many of theducks that visit Illinois and the Mississippi Flyway originate.
HIP Registration
Free registration with HIP (National Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program) is required by law every year to hunt migratory game birds. Any licensed hunter who plans to hunt any species of migratory game bird must register with HIP before hunting. Get your HIP certification when purchasing your hunting or sportsman license or register for HIP by calling 1-866-716-6550 (record the transaction number on your license). Lifetime license holders also need to register with HIP on an annual basis. HIP is a nationwide program and you must register separately in every state where you hunt waterfowl, coots, doves, rails, snipe, woodcock and other migratory game birds except American crow. www.fws.gov/program/migratory-bird-harvest-surveys. Cooperation and support from hunters make sound resource management possible.
Waterfowl Bands
The U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Laboratory maintains a website for reporting all migratory bird bands, including waterfowl. If you harvest a banded bird, please visit www.reportband.gov and provide information about when and where you shot the bird. The
1-800 call-in number is no longer available for reporting bird bands. The phone number will direct you to the www.reportband.gov website. All federal bird bands, even those without a web address printed on them, can be reported online. Old bands with numbers worn off may still be reported by emailing: [email protected] for instructions. The band may need to be sent in, but the process does not destroy the band, and it will be returned to you. Band reporters will be emailed a Certificate of Appreciation with information about when and where the bird was banded. Your cooperation on reporting band numbers gives waterfowl biologists a wealth of information useful in managing the resource to provide hunters with maximum recreational opportunities while protecting waterfowl populations.
Public Duck and Goose Hunting Area Permit Applications | ||||
Application Period | Methods | Opens | Closes | Notes |
Regular Season | ||||
First (residents only) | Internet | 16 Aug | 31 Aug | dnr.illinois.gov/hunting/waterfowlhunting.html |
Second | Internet | 1 Sep | 15 Sep | |
Third | Internet | 16 Sep | 28 Sep | |
First-come-first-served | Internet | 1 Oct | See Website | |
Youth (Ages 10-17) | Paper Application | 31 Aug | 1 Oct | |
Site-Specific Hunting Permits
Waterfowl hunting permits for specific dates on several IDNR sites are available through a lottery system. A total of 5 permits for ducks and five permits for geese may be obtained through the lotteries and unfilled quotas system. Applications from Illinois residents only will be accepted for inclusion in the first lottery. A second lottery will be held for unsuccessful resident applicants, non-residents or anyone who did not apply in the first lottery. A third lottery will be held for applicants to receive either a first and/or second permit. Additional permits may be obtained from unfilled quotas on a first-come, first-served basis ending 72 hours prior to the hunt date by visiting www2.illinois.gov/dnr/hunting/Pages/WaterfowlHunting beginning Oct. 1.
Waterfowl Hunting Outlook
See the IDNR Waterfowl Hunting website here: www2.illinois.gov/dnr/hunting/Pages/WaterfowlHunting
Waterfowl and Wetland Management
See the IDNR Wetland Wildlife website here: www2.illinois.gov/dnr/conservation/wildlife/Pages/WetlandWildlife Management.aspx
Other Hunting Opportunities
Public waterfowl hunting opportunities exist at over 100 sites in Illinois covering a broad range of access and management. Please see the regional site maps at the end of this digest for sites offering waterfowl hunting, check Hunter Fact Sheets or call sites directly for details on hunting opportunities and regulations.
