Quail Hunting Season in New York: Dates, Limits, and Where to Hunt

Quail hunting season in New York is one of the smallest upland seasons in the Northeast, and that surprises a lot of hunters who assume every state east of the Mississippi has a robust bobwhite tradition. Wild northern bobwhites hold on in only a few pockets of the Hudson Valley and Long Island, which means the rules change sharply depending on the county you plan to hunt.

This article walks you through the season windows, bag limits, licenses, legal methods, and the licensed shooting preserves that give most New York bird hunters their quail time. If you hunt other game in the state, our pages on dove hunting season in New York and turkey hunting season in New York cover the rest of your fall calendar.

Important Note: Third-party season guides disagree on New York quail. Some list only the DEC-published county windows, while one aggregator describes wild quail as closed statewide with hunting limited to preserves. Treat the DEC Hunting and Trapping Guide as the final word, and confirm your county before you go afield.

Quail Hunting Season Dates in New York

New York splits its wild bobwhite season into two windows based on geography. The state’s own regulation text lists 6 NYCRR 2.25 as the rule governing upland game birds, and it sets the season by county and wildlife management unit. Putnam and Orange Counties run from October 1 through the last day of February, while Wildlife Management Units 1A and 1C on Long Island run November 1 through December 31.

The DEC’s small game hunting guide lists the same pattern: an October 1 to February 28 season in the Hudson Valley counties and a November 1 to December 31 season on Long Island. The same table shows the season closed in the other counties on the map, including Sullivan, Ulster, Dutchess, Rockland, Westchester, and the Bronx.

Area	Season Window
Orange and Putnam Counties	October 1 to end of February
Long Island (WMUs 1A and 1C)	November 1 to December 31
All other counties	Closed for wild quail

Dates were published for the 2025 to 2026 hunting year in the sources I reviewed, and DEC sets dates annually. Check the current Hunting and Trapping Guide for the 2026 to 2027 calendar before you plan travel, since a few third-party sites list slightly different Putnam County dates.

Quail Species You Can Hunt in New York

The only wild quail you can hunt in New York is the northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus). The DEC’s small game page treats it as the state’s single quail species, and it appears on the DEC small game seasons page alongside rabbit, grouse, pheasant, and squirrel.

Bobwhites are a hard bird to find here. Project Upland describes opportunities as limited to Putnam, Orange, and Long Island, and notes that many hunting clubs and outfitters stock quail and chukars to fill the gap.

On preserves, the rules widen. DEC lists quail among the captive-bred game birds that licensed preserves can raise and release, along with pheasant, chukar, and several other species. That is why you may see Japanese or other pen-raised quail on a preserve menu even though they are not a wild huntable species.

Quail Bag and Possession Limits in New York

Limits depend on where you hunt. According to the DEC small game guide, Orange and Putnam hunters get a daily bag of four with a season limit of 10, while Long Island hunters get a daily bag of six with a season limit of 40. The state regulation text agrees on the daily numbers, allowing up to six quail a day in Nassau and Suffolk Counties and four in Putnam and Orange.

Area	Daily Bag	Season Limit
Orange and Putnam Counties	4	10
Long Island	6	40

Pro Tip: A 10-bird season limit in the Hudson Valley is easy to hit over a few good days with a dog. Keep a running tally in your phone or on your license paperwork so you do not overshoot without noticing.

Limits on a licensed shooting preserve work differently. Preserve birds are captive-bred, and the preserve’s own rules set how many you can take, usually tied to the package you buy.

Licenses and Permits Required to Hunt Quail in New York

To hunt wild quail, you need a New York hunting license. DEC’s guidance for small game says you must have a license in hand, and the pheasant hunting page states the same requirement for stocked birds. Youth hunters ages 12 to 15 need a license and must be accompanied by a licensed adult.

Licenses are sold online, at DEC license-issuing agents, and by phone at 1-866-933-2257, according to Ultimate Upland. Most hunters will also need to take a hunter education course before their first purchase, so build that into your timeline if you are new to the sport.

Preserve hunting is the exception. A DEC-licensed shooting preserve can let you hunt without a New York hunting license, because the license that preserve holds covers shooting captive-bred birds on its grounds. Always ask the preserve operator how they handle licensing before you book.

Legal Weapons and Methods for Quail Hunting in New York

A shotgun is the standard tool for bobwhites, and it is what most hunters carry in the Hudson Valley and on Long Island. The DEC’s general small game rules prohibit rifles and handguns for pheasant and migratory game birds, and most upland hunters apply that same caution to quail by sticking with a shotgun. Bow and crossbow are also listed among allowed small game methods in some summaries, though you should confirm the exact quail language in the current guide.

Dogs are legal and widely used. DEC notes that in the Northern Zone there are limits on running dogs while hunting small game, so check the guide if your travels take you north of the Hudson Valley counties.

• Use a shotgun gauge and shot size you shoot well, since bobwhites flush fast and close.
• Respect landowner permission rules, which DEC requires for private land.
• Do not release birds you intend to hunt without the correct DEC licenses and landowner permission.

Common Mistake: Hunters sometimes assume preserve rules and wild-bird rules are the same. They are not, and a preserve may allow methods or schedules that would be illegal on public land.

Shooting Hours and Sunday Hunting Rules for Quail in New York

DEC lists bobwhite quail hunting hours as sunrise to sunset, and that is the window to plan around for any wild bird hunt. Pre-dawn and after-dark hunting is not legal for quail.

Sunday hunting is where New York has changed. The sources I reviewed did not give a clear, dated statement of Sunday rules for quail specifically, so I will not guess. Ask DEC or check the current Hunting and Trapping Guide to confirm whether Sunday is open in your county for small game this year.

Preserves have their own calendar. A DEC shooting preserve can allow the shooting of captive-bred birds from September 1 through April 15, which stretches your quail time well beyond the wild season.

Quail Hunting on Public Land and Hunting Preserves in New York

Public land quail hunting is thin. The counties with an open wild season are densely settled, and much of the huntable ground is small parcels, so hunters scouting on their own often find preserves more productive. On Long Island, DEC requires a Managed Land Access Permit for most DEC-managed hunting areas, and daily access permits apply on parts of Rocky Point and Otis Pike during November and December.

Preserves are where most New York quail hunting actually happens. Operators hold a DEC Class A or Class B license, and Class A commercial preserves must cover at least 100 acres. One example is Best Pheasantry in Westtown, Orange County, a DEC-licensed shooting preserve that offers pheasant, quail, and chukar hunting and dog training.

Option	Best For	License Notes
Public land, open counties	Wild bird challenge with a dog	NY hunting license, plus access permits on some Long Island sites
Licensed shooting preserve	Reliable birds, long season, dog work	Often no hunting license needed on the grounds

If you also chase other game in New York, compare this season with deer hunting season in New York and bear hunting season in New York, since the fall calendars overlap and your blaze orange requirements differ by species. For a neighboring state’s small game picture, our New Jersey hunting season guide is a useful comparison.