Quail Hunting Season in Louisiana: Dates, Limits, Licenses, and Where to Hunt

Louisiana was once a quail hunter’s paradise, and the bobwhite is still worth chasing if you know where to look. According to Quail Forever, the state historically hosted more than 40,000 quail sportsmen a year. Habitat loss has since shrunk those numbers, but the season is long, the limits are generous, and pockets of pine country still hold coveys.

This guide covers quail hunting season in Louisiana from start to finish: dates, bag limits, licenses, legal methods, shooting hours, and where to hunt. Rules can change, so confirm the details with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) before you load the truck.

Quail Hunting Season Dates in Louisiana

Louisiana’s quail season runs from late November through the end of February, which gives you more than three months of hunting. Under LDWF’s rules, the season opens on the third Saturday of November and closes on the last day of February.

For the 2026-2027 season, HuntWise lists quail season as November 21, 2026 through February 28, 2027. The LDWF quick reference guide also shows a November 21 to February 28 window.

Season	Opening Date	Closing Date
2025-2026	November 15, 2025	February 28, 2026
2026-2027	November 21, 2026	February 28, 2027

Important Note: Some third-party sites list a November 15 opener or an 8-bird daily limit for the upcoming season. Those figures appear to be carried over from earlier years. LDWF’s own rule ties the opener to the third Saturday of November, so trust the department’s current regulation pamphlet over any secondhand summary.

The dates above apply to private land. Wildlife management areas (WMAs) and federal lands can set their own quail schedules, so check the area-specific listing before you go. The Louisiana eRegulations page points hunters to WMA and federal land schedules for specifics.

Quail Species You Can Hunt in Louisiana

Your target is the northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus), the only wild quail species hunters pursue in the state. Dive Bomb Industries lists Northern bobwhite quail alongside dove, woodcock, and snipe as Louisiana’s main upland game birds.

Bobwhites favor a specific kind of cover. They use young pine stands, overgrown clear-cuts, briar thickets, and brushy field edges. Fields bordering brush also draw them, since quail need low ground cover for feeding and nesting.

Timing matters on the hunt itself. Early mornings and late afternoons are the best windows, when coveys move between feeding and loafing areas.

Pheasant season also opens alongside quail. LDWF’s regulations say pheasant opens concurrently with quail season with no limit, though wild pheasant is not something you will realistically find in the state.

Quail Bag and Possession Limits in Louisiana

The daily bag limit for quail in Louisiana is 10 birds, and you can hold 30 in possession. The LDWF quick reference guide lists 10 and 30 for the November 21 to February 28 window, and HuntWise reports the same figures for the 2026-2027 season.

Game	Daily Bag Limit	Possession Limit
Quail	10	30
Rabbit	8	24

Those numbers are generous compared with the bird populations of the past few decades. For context, Quail Forever noted that during the 2012-2013 season, about 1,100 hunters harvested an estimated 8,200 wild quail over 4,300 days. Most hunters never come close to a limit.

Pro Tip: Your possession limit covers birds in your freezer and truck, not just the field. Count any quail you are storing from earlier trips before you start a new hunt.

Licenses and Permits Required to Hunt Quail in Louisiana

You need a valid Louisiana hunting license to hunt quail, and a basic license is the main requirement. AskHunting lists basic hunting as the permit needed for quail. Nonresidents need the appropriate nonresident license as well.

Unlike dove, woodcock, and snipe, quail are a resident game bird, so you do not need Harvest Information Program (HIP) certification to hunt them. That certification applies only to migratory species, according to Dive Bomb Industries.

If you plan to hunt public ground managed by LDWF, add a WMA access permit. LDWF’s regulations state that either a WMA Access Annual or 5-day permit is required for all users of LDWF-administered lands. Ultimate Upland lists the resident basic hunting license at $20 and the annual WMA access permit at $20, though prices change, so confirm at purchase.

• Basic hunting license (resident or nonresident)
• WMA access permit (annual or 5-day) for LDWF lands
• No HIP certification needed for quail alone

For a full breakdown of license types, age exemptions, and costs, see our Louisiana hunting license requirements guide. If you also hunt birds earlier in the fall, our dove hunting season in Louisiana article covers the HIP requirement in detail.

Legal Weapons and Methods for Quail Hunting in Louisiana

A shotgun is the standard tool for quail in Louisiana. Both AskHunting and State Outdoors list shotgun as the legal method in their season overviews. Small game rules in the state allow hunting by any legal method during legal shooting hours, so confirm shot and gauge rules in the current LDWF pamphlet.

Most hunters load No. 7.5 or No. 8 shot, which Dive Bomb Industries calls ideal for bobwhite. Fast-flushing coveys at close range reward a light, open-choked gun.

Dogs and Safety Gear

Quail hunting is a dog sport. One source notes that quail hunting usually means you need dogs, and pointers or setters that lock up on scent let you approach and flush birds safely. Dogs are also useful for recovering downed birds in thick briars.

Wear blaze orange, especially in thick cover and during overlapping deer seasons. Louisiana’s deer firearms seasons run through the winter, and you will often share the woods with deer hunters. Our Louisiana deer hunting season guide shows when those overlaps happen.

Shooting Hours and Sunday Hunting Rules for Quail in Louisiana

Legal shooting hours for quail run from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset. That comes straight from LDWF’s resident game birds rule in the Louisiana Administrative Code. Night hunting for quail is not allowed.

The search results I reviewed did not include a specific statement about Sunday quail hunting. Louisiana has no general ban on Sunday hunting for resident game, and the season framework lists no Sunday exclusion for quail. Even so, individual WMAs and federal lands can set their own day-of-week restrictions, so check the area listing before you plan a Sunday trip.

Important Note: Confirm Sunday rules for any WMA, refuge, or national forest tract in the current LDWF regulations pamphlet. Area-specific rules override the general statewide framework.

Quail Hunting on Public Land and Hunting Preserves in Louisiana

Public land gives you real options in a state where much of the best quail cover is private. LDWF manages more than 1.6 million acres of land and water as WMAs, refuges, and conservation areas. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service adds 23 national wildlife refuges in the state.

Kisatchie National Forest

Kisatchie is the most important public quail ground in Louisiana. Quail Forever’s state forecast says it is the largest area regularly burned that provides suitable quail habitat, with focal areas being developed with the U.S. Forest Service. The forest spans over 600,000 acres in central and northern Louisiana.

The Kisatchie hunting page states that the forest follows LDWF rules, and that quail share the same dates, shooting hours, and bag limits as outside the forest. Prescribed burns and selective thinning create the open ground layer and scattered brush that coveys need.

Other Public Options and Preserves

Dive Bomb Industries also lists Sherburne WMA, Tensas River NWR, the Red River Valley, and private hunting preserves among the top upland locations. Remember that WMA-specific quail dates are separate from the private land season, so read each area’s rules first.

Hunting preserves offer a more predictable option, since they typically release birds and sell guided or unguided hunts. Season dates and bag limits for preserves can differ from the wild bird framework, so ask the operator and verify with LDWF.

Option	Best For	What to Check
Kisatchie National Forest	Wild bobwhite in managed pine	Federal lands schedule, LDWF rules
LDWF WMAs	Low-cost public access	WMA permit, area-specific dates
National wildlife refuges	Varied terrain	Refuge hunting rules
Private preserves	Reliable bird contact	Operator rules, fees, release season

If you hunt other game across the state, you may also like our guides to turkey hunting season in Louisiana, bear hunting season in Louisiana, and alligator hunting season in Louisiana.

Pack your license, WMA permit, blaze orange, and a good dog, and check LDWF’s latest pamphlet before opening day on the third Saturday of November.