Waterfowl Hunting

2025-2026 Regulations

The following is only a summary, not the legal language. See the Fish and Game Commission’s website(opens in new tab) for the actual language adopted on April 16, 2025, by the Fish and Game Commission.

• Regulations Booklet (PDF)
• Waterfowl Zone Map (PNG)

Seasons and Bag / Possession Limits by Zone

AREA	SPECIES	SEASONS	DAILY BAG & POSSESSION LIMITS
Statewide	Coots & Moorhens	Concurrent w/duck season	25/day. 75 in possession.
Northeastern Zone	Ducks	Oct 4 – Jan 14	7/day, which may include: 7 mallards (no more than 2 females), 3 pintail, 2 canvasback, 2 redheads, 2 scaup. Possession limit: triple the daily bag.
	Scaup	Oct 4 – Nov 30 & Dec 18 – Jan 14
	Geese	Regular Season Canada Geese: Oct 4 – Jan 11 White and white-fronted geese: Oct 4 – Nov 30 & Jan 2 – Jan 14 Late Season White and white–fronted geese: Feb 5 – Mar 10	30/day, which may include: 20 white geese, 10 dark geese (no more than 2 Large Canada geese). Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Southern San Joaquin Valley Zone	Ducks	Oct 18 – Jan 28	7/day, which may include: 7 mallards (no more than 2 females), 3 pintail, 2 canvasback, 2 redheads, 2 scaup. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
	Scaup	Nov 4 – Jan 28
	Geese	Oct 18 – Jan 28	30/day, which may include: 20 white geese, 10 dark geese. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Southern California Zone	Ducks	Oct 18 – Jan 28	7/day, which may include: 7 mallards (no more than 2 females), 3 pintail, 2 canvasback, 2 redheads, 2 scaup. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
	Scaup	Nov 4 – Jan 28
	Geese	Oct 18 – Jan 28	23/day, which may include: 20 white geese, 3 dark geese. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Colorado River Zone	Ducks	Oct 23 – Jan 31	7/day, which may include: 7 mallards (no more than 2 females or Mexican ducks), 3 pintail, 2 canvasback, 2 redheads, 2 scaup. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
	Scaup	Nov 7 – Jan 31
	Geese	Oct 23 – Jan 31	24/day, up to 20 white geese, up to 4 dark geese. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Balance of State Zone	Ducks	Oct 18 – Jan 28	7/day, which may include: 7 mallards (no more than 2 females), 3 pintail, 2 canvasback, 2 redheads, 2 scaup. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
	Scaup	Nov 4 – Jan 28
	Geese	Early Season: (Large CAGO only) Sept 27 – 29 Regular Season: Oct 18 – Jan 25 Late Season: Canadian Geese Feb 14 – 15 Whitefronts and White geese Feb 14 – 18	30/day, which may include: 20 white geese, 10 dark geese except in the Sacramento Valley Special Management Area where only 3 may be taken. Possession limit triple the daily bag.

Special Management Areas

AREA	SPECIES	SEASONS	DAILY BAG & POSSESSION LIMITS
North Coast	All Canada Geese	Oct 4 – Dec 20 & Feb 12 – Mar 10	10/day, only 1 may be a Large Canada goose. Possession limit triple the daily bag. Large Canada geese are closed during the Late Season.
Humboldt Bay South Spit (West Side)	All species	Closed during brant season
Klamath Basin	Dark and white geese	Canada geese Oct 4 – Jan 11 White and White-fronted geese Oct 4 – Jan 16	30/day, which may include: 20 white geese, 10 dark geese (only 2 may be a Large Canada goose). Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Sacramento Valley	White-fronted geese	Open concurrently with general goose season through Dec 21	3/day. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Morro Bay	All species	Open in designated areas only	Waterfowl season opens concurrently with brant season.
Martis Creek Lake	All species	Closed until Nov 16
Northern Brant	Black Brant	Nov 29 – Dec 14	2/day. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Balance of State Brant	Black Brant	Nov 30 – Dec 15	2/day. Possession limit triple the daily bag.
Imperial County	White Geese	Nov 1 – Jan 28, Jan 31 – Feb 6, Feb 12 – 20	20/day. Possession limit triple the daily bag.

Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days

AREA	SPECIES	SEASONS	DAILY BAG & POSSESSION LIMITS
Northeastern Zone	Same as regular season	Sept 20 – 21	Same as regular season
Southern San Joaquin Valley Zone		Feb 7 – 8
Southern California Zone		Feb 7 – 8
Colorado River Zone		Feb 7 – 8
Balance of State Zone		Feb 7 – 8

Veterans and Active Military Personnel Waterfowl Hunting Days

AREA	SPECIES	SEASONS	DAILY BAG & POSSESSION LIMITS
Northeastern Zone	Ducks only	Jan 17 – 18	Same as regular season
Balance of State Zone	Ducks only	Jan 31 – Feb 1
Southern San Joaquin Valley Zone	Same as regular season	Jan 31 – Feb 1
Southern California Zone	Same as regular season	Jan 31 – Feb 1

Falconry Take of Ducks (including Mergansers), Geese, American Coots, and Common Moorhens

AREA	SPECIES	SEASONS	DAILY BAG & POSSESSION LIMITS
Northeastern Zone	Same as regular season	Oct 4 – Jan 14	3/day, possession limit 9
Balance of State Zone		Oct 28 – Jan 28, Jan 31 – Feb 1, Feb 7 – 8
Southern San Joaquin Valley Zone	Ducks only	Oct 18 – Jan 28, Jan 31 – Feb 1, Feb 7 – 8
Southern California Zone	Same as regular season	Oct 18 – Jan 28, Jan 31 – Feb 1, Feb 7 – 8
Colorado River Zone	Ducks only	Oct 23 –Jan 31, Feb 1 – 4

Licensing

Requirements for Hunting Waterfowl

• Hunting License
• California Duck Validation, unless hunting under the authority of a Junior Hunting License
• Federal Duck Stamp, unless hunter is under the age of 16 (Federal Duck Stamps are not sold at CDFW offices, but may be purchased at many post offices and some license agents - more information about the Federal Duck Stamp)
• Harvest Information Program (HIP) Validation, if hunting for ducks, dove, gallinules, geese, band-tailed pigeon, black brant, coots, or snipe (no cost) - more information about HIP

Purchasing Licenses or Validations

• Hunting License Fees
• Purchase a Hunting License or Validation Online
• Collectible Duck and Upland Game Bird Stamps
• Hunting License FAQs

Reservations and Passes for Hunting Waterfowl on State-operated Areas

Reservations are available for many State-operated wildlife areas and are issued by random drawings. You can apply for waterfowl reservation drawings starting on September 1 through the Online License Service, at any CDFW License Agent or CDFW License Sales Office. The fee is $1.34 per hunt choice. The deadline to apply is 17 days before each hunt.

How to Apply Online for Reservations

Log in to the Online License Service, using your date of birth, last name and GO ID (from your hunting license). Select “Purchase Licenses” and proceed to 2024 Hunting. Season-long Reservation Applications, Multiple Choice Reservation Applications, and Active Military and Veteran Reservation Applications are available under the Drawings section.

• Season-Long Reservation Application - can be submitted at license agents, CDFW license sales offices or online. The season-long application may be used to apply for every available Saturday, Sunday or Wednesday shoot date.
• Multiple-Choice Reservation Application - allows a hunter to select hunt areas and choose any combination of hunt dates from a calendar of hunts.
• Active Military and Veteran Reservation Application - allows an active military personnel or veteran to apply for available military only waterfowl hunts.
• Duplicate Hunt Choices - You may submit as many hunt choices as you like as long as you do not submit more than one hunt choice for the same area on the same day. Duplicate hunt choices will be disqualified. CDFW recommends keeping a record of requested areas and shoot dates to avoid duplication and rejection from the drawing.

Reservation Drawing Results

Results will be posted at least seven days prior to each hunt day.

To view your submitted drawing applications and drawing results, go to the Online License Service(opens in new tab) and proceed to the customer lookup page. Enter your date of birth, last name and Go ID (from your hunting license) to retrieve your customer record.

Once you retrieve your customer record, select “View My Draw Applications / Preference Points.” Then select Calendar Based Draw Results to view your waterfowl drawing results. From the results screen you can view your submitted drawing applications and drawing results.

See Also

• Waterfowl Hunting Newsletter (PDF)(opens in new tab)
• Reservation Drawing Statistics
• Reservation Area Details (PDF)(opens in new tab) (Number of hunters per reservation, opening time, refill procedures for Type-A Areas)
• Hunting Passes for State-operated Wildlife Areas

Public Hunting Areas

• CDFW Wildlife Areas
• National Wildlife Refuges in California(opens in new tab)
• Wildlife Areas with Blinds for Mobility Impaired Waterfowl Hunters

Hunt Results

Hunt Results Archive

• 2023-2024 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2022-2023 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2021-2022 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2020-2021 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2019-2020 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2018-2019 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2017-2018 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2016-2017 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2015-2016 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2014-2015 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2013-2014 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2012-2013 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2010-2011 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2008-2009 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PDF)
• 2007-2008 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PFD)
• 2006-2007 Waterfowl Hunt Results (PFD)

Comparison Tables

• 2023/24 - 2022/23 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2021/22 - 2020/21 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2020/21 - 2019/20 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2019/20 - 2018/19 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2018/19 - 2017/18 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2017/18 - 2016/17 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2016/17 - 2015/16 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2015/16 - 2014/15 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2014/15 - 2013/14 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2013/14 - 2012/13 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2012/13 - 2011/12 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2011/12 - 2010/11 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2010/11 - 2009/10 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2009/10 - 2008/09 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2008/09 - 2007/08 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2007/08 - 2006/07 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2006/07 - 2005/06 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2005/06 - 2004/05 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2004/05 - 2003/04 Comparison Table (PDF)
• 2003/04 - 2003/02 Comparison Table (PDF)

Related Information

• Report a Banded Bird
• Waterfowl Identification
• Delta Island Waterfowl Hunts
• Waterfowl Management and Biology