Hunting

Waterfowl

Williamson County offers the waterfowl hunter an excellent opportunity to harvest Canada geese and a variety of puddle and diving ducks. Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge lies in the west central part of the county, and it is the major wintering ground for the Canada goose.  Goose season begins in early November; however, the majority of the flock wings its way into the county during early December, and they stay until February.

Canada goose hunters have several options available for hunting geese in the county.  Many commercial clubs are available with goose decoys and a guide being furnished with the club fee.  Hunters may hunt on the Public Shooting Areas of Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge with land and water sites available.  Hunters may also draw and pay a small fee for hunting on the land or water blinds, which are built by the refuge.  Unless you are hunting a commercial club, you will need to bring your decoys.  Bring your camera for some winter memories!

Duck season begins with and early teal season during the first week in September.  Four teal per day may be taken with only eight in possession.  Look for the greenwing or bluewing teal on small farm ponds or lakes. You can jump shoot them off ponds or use two-dozen decoys or less to attract them.  greenwing teal are one of the best eating of the ducks.

The larger puddle and diving ducks start migrating through the area during the latter part of October.  The duck season re-opens during early November and generally runs into the first week of January.  Crab Orchard Lake offers some of the best duck hunting in the county.  The main species of ducks that are hunted on the lake include mallards, gadwalls, teal, bluebills, ringnecks, canvasback, and redheads.

State and federal biologists conduct weekly aerial counts of the Canada and Snow goose flock in the southern Illinois quota zone.  Population counts and harvest data are available weekly by contacting the Williamson County Tourism Office, 1-800-GEESE-99 or 1-800-433-7399 day or night. Individuals may also view updated weekly population and harvest data reports here

Waterfowl hunters will need a state license, federal duck stamp, state duck stamp, and a Recreational User fee, which is charged to those hunting on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife property.  The Recreational User Permits are available at the Crab Orchard Visitors Center on Route 148 south, daily from 8 A.M.-5 P.M.  See this brochure for the stores that sell Illinois hunting and fishing license.  Federal duck stamps can be purchased at the U.S. Post Office and Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center.

Waterfowl hunting seasons for ducks, Canada geese, snow geese, and white-fronted geese are set by the Fish and Wildlife service each year. Current regulations of bag limits and season length can be viewed here.

Wild Turkey

Outsmarting a spring gobbler has to be considered an ultimate challenge.  Turkey hunters will try every trick in the book to legally outwit this tough bird.  The Williamson County turkey season first opened in 1982 with a total of 11 gobblers falling to the roar of a shotgun.  The county now has an annual harvest of 40-50 gobblers. The twenty to twenty-five pound birds are found in or near the timbered areas of the county.  The county has public ground in the Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge as well as many private farms in this agricultural area.  Hunters in Illinois must apply to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for this $15 permit.  The applications are drawn in late winter to determine the lucky hunters.

Although there are many products that entice spring turkeys, the turkey decoy works very well, and it sometimes makes the difference between success and failure.  It can turn a smart, know-it-all gobbler into a lovesick dumb bird that will make a critical error in judgment.  Hunters will enjoy a nice turkey dinner when this happens.  When you come to Williamson County, bring your favorite calls, camo, rainwear, and camera equipment to record your success.  The county is beautiful this time of year with wildflowers and morel mushrooms springing up in the woods.

Many hunters return to Williamson County in October to hunt the younger turkeys that have hatched out during May.  Fall hunters attempt to scatter the flock off the roost before daylight.  The hunter will sit at the base of a large tree and try to call in the young poults.  It won’t be long until these young birds are calling and trying to regroup. Young turkeys will weigh between 8-12 pounds and many hunters consider them one of the best eating wild game birds in the mid-west.

Many hunters are busy with fall deer archery season and squirrels; and therefore, they seldom hunt these challenging birds.  Permits are available through the lottery system from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources for $15.00.  The fall shotgun turkey season is generally the last week in October.  Fall turkey bow hunting is from October 1 through January 14, except during the fall dear shotgun seasons.  Turkey bow permits are available from local license vendors for $5.50.

White-Tailed Deer

Your heart will be pounding deep within your chest when a buck nears your tree stand on any one of the 23,000 acres of public land in Williamson County.  The county provides excellent habitat for white-tailed deer.  Oak forests, pine timbers, agricultural fields, oil field succession, brushy strip-mined spoil banks, and secluded marshy areas provide feeding, bedding, and mating areas for the deer.  Bow season starts the first of October and runs through mid-January.  The area ranks in the top ten counties of the state each year for archery harvested deer with approximately 650 deer taken.  Williamson County will bag over 1500 deer during the firearm seasons.  Allen Albers took the third largest typical buck in the state in 1991 from the county.  This 17-point buck scored a whopping 192 7/8.

The county has private and public ground available for the hunter. Williamson County has a shotgun, handgun, and black powder season for the hunter who enjoys firearm shooting.  Hunters may also apply for the special hunt deer permit in the closed area of Crab Orchard Refuge.  The refuge firearm hunt will take over 600 whitetails each fall.

Small Game

Williamson County offers the small game hunter a variety of species to hunt from August through early January.  The county has over 23,000 acres of public land to hunt squirrels, doves, rabbits, and quail.

Squirrel

Squirrel season starts the first week in August and Williamson County has an abundance of mature woods on public land to hunt gray and fox squirrels. Over 50 percent of the squirrel harvest takes place during this first month.  The number of squirrels harvested per gun-hour peaks during the week of September 5-11.  Many hunters prefer the gray squirrel for eating, and approximately 65 percent of the squirrels taken are the fast moving gray squirrels.

Squirrels will start cutting hickory nuts during late August.  Many hunters planning a hunting trip to the public lands of the Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge system in the county will come to the area in mid-September to camp and enjoy great squirrel hunting.  The mornings are cooler, and the grays start cutting nuts from 6 to 7 A.M. The fox squirrels rise a little later, around 7 A.M. The fox squirrels are generally more active during mid-day than the grays.  The evening hunt can be very exciting since both squirrels will feed up to dark.  You will enjoy a camping trip during the cooler nights of September.  While fewer people hunt during early October, some of the most enjoyable hunts and best eating young squirrels are taken during this time of year.  Nothing beats campfire-fried squirrels, steamy beans, and hot biscuits.

The squirrel season runs August 1-December 31 statewide. The season is closed during the shotgun deer season. Five squirrels may be taken each day with 10 in possession.  Shooting hours are ½ hour before sunrise to ½ hour after sunset.

Dove

Dove season starts the first of September, and hunters find doves using silage and sunflower fields, ponds for watering, and hedgerows or pine groves for roosting. Passing cold fronts during this time of year will send a wave of migrating doves into the area. The same cold front will often cause the local buildup of doves to wing their way to states south of the county. Dove hunters annually take over 10,000 doves from the county. Look for dove hunting on the 23,000-acre Crab Orchard Wildlife Refuge area. Hunters should bring their steel shot to bag these birds on the refuge ground. Pheasant Run Preserve plants sunflower fields, and they provide great dove hunting for their paid customers.

Rabbit

Rabbit hunting begins during early November and runs through early January.  The cottontail is generally most abundant in the semi-forested sectors of Williamson County. Highs and lows in abundance are longstanding characteristics of cottontail populations.  The average number of rabbits taken per hunter in the county during the season is approximately ten rabbits.  Hunters can harvest four rabbits per day with ten in possession. A good rabbit dog will increase the action and the number of rabbits in your hunting coat.

Quail

Quail hunting is enjoyed by many upland game hunters. The season begins during early November and runs through mid-January. Quail populations run in cycles every ten years. However, with the milder winters in the county, the quail population has been stable. Look for good quail hunting in grassy fields, harvested cornfields, or wheat stubble fields near wooded areas.

Heavy cover is preferred more by rabbit hunters than quail hunters. Some of the better quail hunting is on private ground and farmers in the county often give permission