Got Nature? Blog

Wild Bulletin, IN DNR Fish and Wildlife: Hunting seasons begin in September and Indiana Department of Natural Resources are sharing the resources you need to plan your hunting trips.

Snipe: Sept. 1–Dec. 16
Sora: Sept. 1–Nov. 9
Early teal: Sept. 10–25
Dove: Sept. 1–Oct. 16
Canada geese (all zones): Sept. 10–18
Deer reduction zone: Sept. 15–Jan. 31, 2023
Youth deer: Sept. 24–25

Deer Reduction Zone Season Starts September 15th
Deer Reduction Zones give hunters opportunities to harvest deer in defined urban areas and along portions of Indiana highways, in addition to statewide bag limits.

Season facts

• Dates: Sept. 15, 2022, through Jan. 31, 2023.
• Bag limit: 10 deer, of which only one can be antlered. To satisfy the reduction zone bag limit, a hunter must harvest an antlerless deer in the Deer Reduction Zone before harvesting an antlered deer (a.k.a. earn-a-buck). The earn-a-buck requirement only applies to the reduction zone bag limit, which is in addition to all other bag limits. See the hunting guide for deer bag limits.
• License required: Deer Reduction Zone license, resident youth hunt/trap, lifetime comprehensive hunting, lifetime comprehensive hunting/fishing license, or license exemption. A valid license is required for each deer taken.
• Use of firearms: Where allowed by local ordinances, firearms legal for deer hunting can be used in reduction zones with a Deer Reduction Zone license or to count the deer towards the reduction zone bag limit from Nov. 12, 2022, through Jan. 31, 2023. The season does not override any local ordinances restricting the discharge of firearms and bows.
• For public land included in a Deer Reduction Zone Corridor, the area that can be hunted is limited to within one-half (1/2) mile on either side of the centerline of the indicated road and does not extend beyond the boundaries of the Deer Reduction Zone Corridor. Contact the property for more information about deer hunting rules.
• It’s illegal to hunt, shoot at, or kill a deer or to shoot at any deer from within, into, upon, or across any public road.
• Deer Reduction Zones may be altered annually at the DNR director’s discretion based on deer population management needs.

For more deer hunting season information view: IN DNR Deer Reduction Zone.

For full hunting season list with dates view the Indiana 2022-2023 Hunting & Trapping Season (pdf) list.

The 2022-2023 Hunting & Trapping Guide will answer any questions you may have.

Subscribe to Wild Bulletin.

Resources:
How to Score Your White-tailed Deer, video, The Education Store, Purdue Extension Resource Center
White-Tailed Deer Post Harvest Collection, video, The Education Store
Age Determination in White-tailed Deer, video, The Education Store
How to Build a Plastic Mesh Deer Exclusion Fence, The Education Store
Managing Your Woods for White-Tailed Deer, The Education Store
Bovine Tuberculosis in Wild White-tailed Deer, The Education Store
Subscribe to Purdue Extension-Forestry & Natural Resources YouTube Channel, Wildlife Playlist
Subscribe to MyDNR, Wild Bulletin and State Park Inns News, Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IN DNR)
Indiana Deer Hunting, Biology and ManagementFood Safety & Handling Take-Home Tips (80kb pdf), IN DNR

Indiana Department of Natural Resources – Department of Fish & Wildlife