MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) celebrates the start of the 2025 elk hunting season on Saturday, Oct. 18. This is Wisconsin’s eighth elk hunting season since the reintroduction of elk in the state, and the first year with antlerless harvest opportunities.
The 13 hunters participating in the state-administered hunt were randomly selected from a pool of more than 26,000 applicants. There were 17,737 applications to hunt in the Clam Lake Elk Range and 8,452 applications for the Black River Elk Range for this season. An eight-bull quota is established for the Clam Lake Elk Range, with four licenses being awarded to state hunters. Per treaty rights, the Ojibwe tribes have declared four bulls of the eight-bull harvest quota. In the Black River Elk Range, five antlerless and four bull licenses were issued to state hunters, up from a four-bull quota in 2024.
“Both elk herds experienced strong recruitment through the winter, and staff documented a successful spring calving period,” said Christina Kizewski, DNR Central Elk Herd biologist. “With the introduction of antlerless harvest opportunities in the Black River Elk Range, the department is looking to strike a balance between a strong, robust elk population and managing human-elk conflicts.”
The random drawing ensures that each applicant has an equal chance of selection within the respective management zones. Applicants were required to identify their management zone of choice during the elk hunting application process.
How To Apply For The 2026 Elk Hunting Season
The DNR’s elk management program is driven by the revenue received from hunter application fees, which contribute directly to the future of the state’s elk population. For each $10 application fee, $7 goes directly toward elk management, habitat restoration and research.
The 2026 elk hunt application period for Wisconsin residents is expected to open with the new license year on March 1 and run through May 31, 2026. The 2026 elk hunting season will open on Saturday, Oct. 17. Hunters must select which unit they would like to hunt during the application process.
For more information on elk in Wisconsin, visit the DNR’s Elk webpage.
Pheasant season
The 2025 pheasant season also opens at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 18, and runs through Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
The opening weekend, Oct. 18-19, has a daily bag limit of one rooster per day. Starting Monday, Oct. 20, the daily bag limit increases to two roosters per day. This limit remains in place for the remainder of the season. Hunters may harvest a rooster or hen when hunting in designated rooster and hen hunting areas (see page 18 of the hunting regulations for a list of these areas).
Once again, the DNR plans to stock approximately 75,000 pheasants from the state game farm on over 80 properties statewide. Depending on production levels, pheasants are released once before the pheasant hunting season and up to twice a week for the first two to three weeks of the season. After that, birds are released about once a week until the nine-day gun deer season opens on Nov. 23, and stocking resumes once per week on only a handful of properties following the nine-day gun deer season.
Hunters can use the DNR’s Fields and Forest Lands Interactive Gamebird Hunting Tool to locate properties stocked with pheasants. The tool also allows hunters to use aerial maps, topography and measuring tools to identify areas of interest and make their trips more productive and enjoyable.
Several pheasant hunting properties close at noon on weekdays beginning Oct. 20 through Nov. 2 (see page 18 of the hunting regulations for a list of these areas). Hunters are encouraged to double-check the legal shooting hours on the properties they intend to hunt.
Pheasant hunters should remember to follow the basic rules of firearm safety:
T – Treat every firearm as if it is loaded.
A – Always point the muzzle in a safe direction.
B – Be certain of your target, what’s before and beyond it.
K – Keep your finger outside the trigger guard until ready to shoot.
Additionally, hunters are encouraged to wear blaze orange or pink while pheasant hunting to increase visibility for other hunters and outdoor recreators. During any gun deer season, at least 50% of any hunter’s clothing above the waist must be blaze orange or pink, except for waterfowl hunters.
For more information, including complete pheasant hunting regulations, shooting hours and helpful tips, visit the DNR’s Pheasant Hunting webpage.
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