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Arkansas

Arkansas Duck Season Faces Drought Shortfall

Dry conditions have left Arkansas wetlands able to flood only 42 percent of managed moist-soil units heading into the first segment of duck season.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Hunting

Gouache-painted editorial illustration of a single portable pump on cracked clay beside a dry wetland basin under a pale autumn sky.
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission warned hunters that a fourteen-month drought has cut flooding to 42 managed wetland units ahead of the November 21 duck season opening. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has warned hunters that a fourteen-month drought has sharply reduced water available for managed wetlands. The first segment of duck season opens November 21, and the agency can currently flood 42 huntable moist-soil units totaling 3,553 acres.

Why it matters

Most of the agency's flooded wetlands depend on rainfall and surface water, and many of those sources have run dry or fallen too low to draw from with current infrastructure. Hunters in Arkansas may need to adjust expectations for the opening weeks of the season.

The agency reports 42 huntable moist-soil units totaling 3,553 acres can currently be flooded, out of 71 units holding some water totaling about 4,627 acres. The projection of how many units will stay floodable depends on whether the drought continues, which the agency has not forecast.

The players

Arkansas Game and Fish Commission

The state agency responsible for managing Arkansas wildlife, wildlife habitat and hunting regulations.

The details

Some wetlands are filled by gravity-fed canals from nearby lakes, while many others require relift pumps placed in rivers, streams and ditches to move water in. Roughly 95 percent of artificially flooded wetlands rely on rainfall and surface water, and the agency has added portable pumps for Cypress Bayou, Prairie Bayou and Steve N. Wilson Raft Creek wildlife management areas.

Timeline

  1. Fourteen months of drought have affected Arkansas wetlands leading up to November 2026.

  2. On October 7, 2026, the Game and Fish committee met in Little Rock to discuss the drought.

  3. The first segment of Arkansas duck season opens November 21, 2026.

  4. Permit hunt locations at Raft Creek are projected to reach 34 by Christmas 2026.

Season Trajectory

The reduction in Arkansas rice acreage this year has compounded the drought by lowering the water available to waterfowl. Together these factors place the current duck season on a tighter footing than hunters have seen in recent seasons.

Duck hunters planning trips this season should expect fewer flooded wetland units and plan for the possibility of limited hunting areas early in the season. Checking Game and Fish updates before traveling can help hunters avoid wasted trips to dry units.

The takeaway

Hunters should check current water conditions before heading to managed wetlands, since drought can change which units are huntable from week to week. Planning around the Raft Creek permit hunts may offer the most reliable access this season.

What happens next

The first segment of Arkansas duck season opens November 21, and permit hunt locations at Raft Creek are projected to reach 34 by Christmas.

Further reading

For more on hunting conditions across the state, see Hunting.

Source note: This article includes information reported by ArkansasOnline.

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Would drought conditions change your plans for a fall hunting or outdoor trip?