Saturday Is Youth and Veterans Waterfowl Day in Louisiana's West Zone. Here's Who Can Hunt and What to Bring

Saturday, Nov. 7, is Youth and Veterans Waterfowl Day in Louisiana's West Zone, a one-day duck hunt open only to hunters 17 and younger, military veterans and active-duty service members. The regular West Zone duck season opens a week later, on Nov. 14, according to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries' 2026-27 season schedule.

The day gives young hunters and those who served a morning in the marsh before the regular season opens. East Zone hunters get their turn the following Saturday, Nov. 14, ahead of an East Zone opener on Nov. 21. Each zone also gets a second youth and veterans day after its season closes: Jan. 30 in the West Zone and Feb. 6 in the East.

Which zone you are in depends on where you hunt, not where you live. LDWF's zone description draws the line south from the Arkansas border along LA 79, LA 9, LA 147 and U.S. 167 to Lafayette, then east on U.S. 90 to the Mississippi line. Land between that line and the Texas border is the West Zone, and the rest of the state is the East Zone. Bayou Weekly walked through the zone line in more detail in its story on Louisiana's first whistling duck season last month.

Under the state's migratory bird rule and LDWF's 2026-27 hunting regulations pamphlet, only youths 17 or younger may hunt on the youth days, and each one must be accompanied by an adult 18 or older. The young hunter needs a hunter safety certification or proof of finishing a hunter safety course, though that requirement is waived for a youth under 16 if the accompanying adult has a hunter safety certification, a valid hunting license or proof of completing the course. A youth may carry only one firearm, and the supervising adult has to keep visual and voice contact at all times. The pamphlet adds that the adult may not carry a firearm or hunt ducks that day. Youths may take ducks, geese, mergansers, coots and gallinules on youth days, so a young hunter can legally shoot a goose on Saturday even though the regular goose season does not open until Nov. 14.

Veterans and service members have their own checklist. The state rule covers people who served in the active military, naval or air service and were discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, along with active-duty members of the armed forces, including National Guard and Reserve members on active duty other than for training. They must carry proof of service, such as a DD214, an active or retired military ID, a VA ID or the veteran designation on a Louisiana driver's license, plus their required waterfowl license, HIP certification and federal duck stamp. The rules list youth and veteran requirements separately and do not say whether a veteran who is also the supervising adult for a youth may hunt alongside that youth. As written, the youth-day rule bars the accompanying adult from carrying a firearm, so a veteran who wants to hunt and supervise a child on the same morning should check with LDWF first.

A few general requirements also apply. LDWF says every waterfowl hunter 16 or older needs a federal duck stamp, even hunters who are otherwise not required to buy a Louisiana license, and it costs $25 from the U.S. Postal Service. LDWF's 2026-27 pamphlet lists the electronic stamp at $27.72 through the state's license system. Adults hunting migratory birds also need free HIP certification, which LDWF now offers only online or at its Baton Rouge headquarters, not at retail license counters. Hunters 17 and younger do not need HIP. LDWF's waterfowl license guide lists which state licenses adult residents and nonresidents need.

Bag limits on Saturday follow the regular six-duck daily limit, with two exceptions. Because the West Zone youth and veterans day comes before the regular season, the daily limit that day is zero mottled ducks and one scaup, according to LDWF's migratory bird schedule. The rest of the daily limit stays as usual: no more than four mallards with two hens, three wood ducks, two canvasbacks, two redheads, one black duck and three pintails with one hen. Shooting hours for ducks run from a half-hour before sunrise to sunset.

After Saturday, the West Zone's regular season runs Nov. 14 through Dec. 6 and Dec. 19 through Jan. 24. For everyone else, goose seasons open statewide on Nov. 14 as well.

Hunter education classes are listed at LouisianaOutdoors.com, and LDWF's support line is (225) 267-9996. Deer hunters heading out the same weekend can read up on Louisiana's deer tracking dog law.

Photo: Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (resized). Marsh at Sabine National Wildlife Refuge.