FRANKFORT – Applications for quota hunts on public lands for deer, waterfowl and pheasants are being taken online during the month of September. Hunters may also apply for the statewide sandhill crane quota hunt during September.
The cost to apply for any of these quota hunts is $3. Applications and detailed information about hunts are available online at fw.ky.gov.
Kentucky will offer pheasant hunts on three wildlife management areas (WMAs), 38 quota deer hunts and several waterfowl hunts on WMAs. Kentucky also will issue 1,200 permits for sandhill cranes through a separate quota application. Hunters must pass a bird identification test before receiving their permit.
This year marks the return of the traditional in-person drawings for waterfowl blinds and in-person deer check stations at certain WMAs. These were altered in 2020 due to COVID-19 precautions. Hunters should periodically check the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources’ website at fw.ky.gov for any updates prior to their quota hunt.
A complete list of all hunts, dates and special regulations – some hunts are reserved for youths or mobility-impaired hunters – are listed in the “Quota Hunts” section of the 2021-22 Kentucky Hunting and Trapping Guide publication.
Guides are available wherever hunting licenses are sold. Guides may also be viewed online at fw.ky.gov.
Results from these quota hunt drawings will be available by mid-October. Applicants can check to see if they have been selected by accessing the “My Profile” feature on the website.
Applications for Kentucky’s 2022 elk quota hunts will be taken from January 1-April 30 at fw.ky.gov and anywhere licenses are sold. The commonwealth offers hundreds of permits each year to hunt the largest elk herd east of the Rocky Mountains. These free-ranging elk occupy mountainous habitats spanning more than 4-million acres in 16 southeastern Kentucky counties. The random drawing to select elk hunt permit recipients is conducted in May each year.
For more information, call the Fish and Wildlife Information Center at 1-800-858-1549 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Eastern) weekdays.
