Hunting in Arkansas: Six Animals to Hunt in the Spring

Arkansas is a popular destination for hunting, and the state, consistent with its frontier history, maintains an active hunting program for visitors and residents alike. As Arkansas.com notes, the state "is well populated by a wide variety of Arkansas wildlife found on several million acres of public lands."

However, consistent with its desire to remain the "Natural State," it doesn't allow much hunting in the spring, when presumably the animals are busy breeding up their numbers.

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Bear in mind that most hunting in Arkansas is slotted for the fall and winter seasons, and that these figures are for the 2015 to 2106 season; Arkansas closes certain areas and species to hunting depending on population levels, so one part of the state may be open to hunting for a particular species while another area is closed at the same time. Be sure to check with the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission before planning an excursion.

Many of the rules that have long applied to hunters the world over apply in Arkansas: no hunting from a moving motorized vehicle, whether on land or in the air, or from boats; no drugs, poisons, or booby traps, no hunting critters that are running to escape fire or flood. And no thrill kills: it is specifically stated by the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission: "You may not waste the edible portions of game or fish or waste marketable fur." Here's what you can legally hunt in that season in Arkansas.

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Beaver, Muskrat, and Nutria Trapping from November 7 to March 31 and hunting from September 1 to March 31 (Nutria is a large South American mammal related to rats, introduced ages ago for the fur trade)

Coyote
Trapping only from August 1 to March 31.

Raccoon
Day or night hunting, September 1 to March 31 (in summer, you may hunt raccoons only at night).

Turkey
Arkansas's turkey season is generally in the latter half of April, is very short, and may change. Find updates at the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission website.

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