September 2024 hunting and trapping opportunities
September is the official start to many of Michigan's hunting seasons. Get ready for a great fall in the fields and forests or on the water.
Small game seasons open statewide Sept. 15 for the following species:
- Cottontail rabbit and snowshoe hare.
- Fox and gray squirrels (black phase included).
- Ruffed grouse.
- Woodcock
- All woodcock hunters must get a free woodcock stamp, which includes registration with the federal Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program (HIP).
Season dates, bag limits and the full small game hunting regulations are available in the mobile-friendly small game hunting regulations summary.
This fall marks 10 years of GEMS
In 2024, we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Grouse Enhanced Management Sites program and its 10 years of success in managing wildlife habitats, providing hunting opportunities and offering outdoor experiences for conservationists.
There are 19 GEMS across 73,000 acres in the Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula, each offering a rich and unique bird hunting experience.
GEMS provide comfortable yet adventurous opportunities for recreationists, including kids, first-time public land users and those with mobility challenges. Equipped with walking paths, parking lots, trail maps and site information, these areas feature convenient access for an enjoyable experience.
To plan your GEMS trip, visit the DNR's Where to Hunt page.
Join the celebration and kick off the season in Gladwin, Sept. 14
Celebrate the 10th anniversary of GEMS and the American Woodcock Society at the Gladwin Field Trial Grounds in Meredith (Clare County). Spend the day learning about all things upland game birding hunting, including firearm skills and care, grouse and woodcock habitat, dog nutrition and training, tick management, cooking demonstrations and much more!
Cost is $50 per attendee, with lunch and dinner included. To learn more about the day’s events and to register, visit RuffedGrouseSociety.org/events.
Nearby camping accommodations can be found at Trout Lake and House Lake state forest campgrounds on a first-come, first-served basis. Hunting is strictly prohibited on the Gladwin Field Trial Grounds.
Waterfowl hunting kicks off this month. Visit one of Michigan's managed waterfowl hunt areas for exceptional hunting opportunities.
Statewide
- Early teal season is Sept. 1-15.
- Common gallinule, Virginia rail, sora rail and Wilson's snipe season opened Sept. 1.
North Zone
- Duck, coot and merganser season opens Sept. 30.
- Goose season opened Sept. 1.
Middle and South zones
- Goose season opened Sept. 1.
The full waterfowl hunting regulations summary information, with details on teal hunting and everything else waterfowl, is now available online. This all-new, mobile-friendly format allows you to click through or search the entire selection of waterfowl regulations summary content. It's also easy to print the sections you are most interested in from your favorite browser. Just click or tap in the bar to view the regulations and open up the entire table of contents, then select the information you're looking for – it's that simple.
Whether you're looking for season dates and bag limits, hunting hours or anything in between, you can find it all in the mobile-friendly hunting regulations summary.
Deer hunting begins with the Liberty Hunt and early antlerless firearm season.
- Liberty Hunt: Sept. 14-15 – open to youth and hunters with disabilities.
- Early antlerless firearm season: Sept. 21-22.
The full deer hunting regulations summary, with information on all things deer, is now available online. This all-new, mobile-friendly format allows you to click through or search the entire selection of the deer regulation summary content. It's also easy to print the sections you are most interested in from your favorite browser. Just click or tap in the bar to view the regulations and open up the entire table of contents, then select the information you're looking for – it's that simple.
Whether you're looking for season dates and bag limits (including antler point restriction charts) or anything else you have looked for in the past, you can find it all in the mobile-friendly hunting regulations summary. In fact, there is now more content than ever before.
This year, chronic wasting disease testing will still be focused in some areas of the northern Lower Peninsula as well as the Upper Peninsula. The counties for CWD testing in 2024 include Antrim, Arenac, Baraga, Benzie, Cheboygan, Chippewa, Clare, Dickinson, Gladwin, Grand Traverse, Houghton, Iosco, Kalkaska, Keweenaw, Leelanau, Luce, Mackinac, Manistee, Ogemaw, Ontonagon, Otsego and Schoolcraft.
In these counties a variety of sites will be popping up with at least one of the following depending on the county: drop boxes, staffed submission sites, and partner processors and taxidermists to assist with collection efforts. To find out about available sites near where you hunt, see the CWD testing page.
Historically, testing has occurred in and around areas where CWD has been detected to date.
Starting in 2021, the DNR began a rotational approach to testing for CWD around the state. With this approach, a group of counties is selected each year, with a desire to eventually test sufficient numbers of deer in every county across the state. This has led to detection of CWD in 13 of Michigan’s 83 counties, with Ogemaw being the latest in the fall of 2023.
The goal of this approach is early disease detection, as management has the potential to be most effective when the disease is caught early. Most of these areas have not had a CWD detection or have not previously been part of intensive testing efforts, so little is known about disease status in these locations. To date, we have collected enough baseline information in 61 of our 83 counties and are conducting surveillance in the remaining 22 counites to meet the baseline information needs in these areas.
Find information on fur harvesting regulations, bag limits and seasons in the 2024 Michigan Furbearer Harvest Regulations Summary, available at Michigan.gov/Trapping.
2024 fur harvester licenses are valid May 1, 2024 - April 30, 2025.
Residents with a fur harvester license who intend to harvest bobcat, otter, fisher or marten must request free kill tags for these species.
- Kill tags are available through the last day of the trapping season for fisher, marten and otter.
- Bobcat kill tags are available through Oct. 31, 2024.
You can purchase your fur harvester license and request kill tags online at Michigan.gov/DNRLicenses or anywhere DNR licenses are sold.
Fall turkey hunting starts Sept. 15.
If you didn't enter the drawing for a limited-quota license, you still could snag a turkey tag. Leftover fall turkey licenses will be sold until quotas are met, and hunters may purchase up to one license a day. Hunters may harvest one turkey per license.
Check leftover turkey license availability and find additional fall turkey hunting information at Michigan.gov/Turkey.
The free Michigan DNR Hunt Fish app offers a convenient way for hunters, anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts to:
- Buy hunting and fishing licenses and trail permits.
- Report deer or fish harvests.
- Look up hunting and trapping regulations.
- Find their license history, including point and chance balances.
- Check out maps with multiple layers, showing features such as shooting ranges and boat launches.
- Get timely notifications from the DNR.
The Michigan DNR Hunt Fish app is available:
If you have any questions about the app, call the DNR licensing customer service staff at 517-284-6057 during normal business hours, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Download and save 20% on onX Hunt digital mapping memberships by using the code Michigan at checkout. Plus, a portion of every purchase will be donated to support Michigan conservation.
Contact the DNR Wildlife Division at 517-284-WILD (9453).
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