Important Changes Heading in to the 2026-2027 Hunting Seasons

• Deer license sales will now begin at 9 a.m., on Aug. 15, which is a change from previous years.
• Audubon, Carroll and Greene counties have been added to the Antlered-buck only first regular gun season.
• Population Management January Antlerless Season will be available in Allamakee and Winneshiek counties only, if the number of unsold antlerless licenses on the third Monday in December exceeds 100.
• ONLINE DEER AND TURKEY license sales will stop two weeks prior to the season opening to ensure tag delivery.
• TREESTANDS on public land must have a metal tag with the owner’s DNR issued customer identification number attached and visible from the ground.
• A new online tool now allows for instant reporting of buck deer “deadheads” from Feb. 1 through July 31. More information about the new digital reporting process is on p. 42 of the upcoming hunting regulations.
• TRAPPING Identification tags attached to traps may include either the trapper’s name and address OR their DNR issued customer identification number.

Iowa now has TWO ZONES for resident deer hunting: ZONE A and ZONE B. Hunters may purchase up to two General Deer licenses, including any combination of ZONE A or ZONE B licenses, consisting of no more than one archery season and one firearm season tag of choice.

NEW ZONE B (county Any-Deer quotas for resident hunters)

The new ZONE B counties (in red) includes CRAWFORD, IDA, LYON, O’BRIEN, PLYMOUTH, SHELBY, SIOUX, & WOODBURY.

• A limited quota of county specific Any-deer licenses will be available for purchase in select ZONE B counties on a first come basis, beginning at 9 a.m., Aug. 15. Quotas are shown as the number in each county. Purchasing a ZONE B county Any-deer license counts toward one of the two available resident General Licenses (archery and/or firearm). Limit one per hunter.
• ZONE B allows hunting for Antlered-buck only (at least one forked antler) in all seasons EXCEPT Youth, Disabled, Landowner-Tenant and Depredation. PARTY HUNTING is NOT allowed in ZONE B for residents and nonresidents- ZONE B requires each hunter to tag their own deer.
• ZONE B Antlered-buck only licenses are valid zone-wide; county-specific Any-deer licenses are valid only in the designated county.
• ZONE B licenses are NOT allowed in ZONE A.

NEW ZONE A (all counties not shaded black)

• All other counties not in ZONE B, are in ZONE A. County Antlerless-deer quotas are shown as the number in each county. ZONE A licenses are NOT allowed in ZONE B.
• ZONE A counties in yellow continue the Antlered-buck only restriction during first regular gun season, EXCEPT for Landowner-Tenant. The remaining ZONE A regulations are unchanged.