JACKSON – The 2018 Public Waters Alligator Hunting Season opens in Mississippi on Friday, August 31, at 12 p.m. The season will be open for ten days and will close at 12 p.m. on Monday, September 10, 2018. A total of 930 permits in seven hunting zones across the state were offered in two random drawings of over 4,000 applicants during the application process in mid-June. This is the 14th year of public waterway hunting opportunity in Mississippi. Ricky Flynt, the Alligator Program Coordinator for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, (MDWFP) is expecting high participation among the hunters. Flynt says, “Alligator hunters should experience good hunting conditions with favorable weather and most river levels being slightly above normal depths for this time of year, which will improve navigation on waterways across most of the state.”
All persons, 16 years of age or older, who are in a vessel with or assisting a permit holder, must possess an Alligator Hunting License ($25) and a valid prerequisite hunting license, which includes the following: a Mississippi Sportsman License, All-Game Hunting/Fishing License, Small Game Hunting/Fishing License, Apprentice Sportsman License, Apprentice All Game License, Apprentice Small Game License, Senior Exempt License, or Disabled Exempt License. Lifetime License holders are exempt. Licenses are available on-line at www.mdwfp.com, via the official MDWFP App, at any point of sale location where Mississippi hunting and fishing licenses are sold, or by calling 1-800-5GO-HUNT.
