LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KATV) — Arkansas’s alligator hunters wasted no time during the season’s first weekend by harvesting 150 gators across the state’s three management zones.
Most alligator hunts took place on private property, but hunters did have the opportunity to apply for a permit to hunt on public land during July.
90 of the 150 gators harvested between Sept. 18-21 came from alligator management zone 3. That zone covers a portion of southeastern Arkansas along the Mississippi River from Louisiana to Monroe County. 81 gators came from private property, while 9 were harvested on public land.
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Arkansas’s management zones (Courtesy: Arkansas Game and Fish Commission)
Zone 1, The state’s smallest management zone located in southwest Arkansas, accounted for 56 gators. Hunters harvested 14 from public lands, while 42 were killed on public land.
Only four gators were taken from private land in zone 2, none were taken from public land. Zone 2 is the Arkansas’s largest zone, stretching from the Louisiana state line to Pope County.
Hunters hit the new quota for public hunting at Millwood Lake in zone 1 during the first weekend, meaning the area will be closed to hunters during the second week of the season.
The area historically had a lower harvest than permits allowed, resulting in the AGFC instituting a quota in 2025. It encouraged hunters to take their alligator as soon as they could instead of holding out for a larger specimen.
We did not meet that quota last year, but Millwood Lake hunters took advantage of their first weekend this year and filled the quota during the first two nights of this year’s hunt,” AGFC Herpetologist Amanda Bryant said. “That will be the only area closed to hunting at the start of the last weekend of the hunt.
According to a release, this year’s alligator season could be a potential record breaker. The commission said hunters set a new record by harvesting 205 alligators in 2025, 2 more than the previous record set in 2023.
Public land hunters have found the largest alligators so far this year,” Bryant said. “Seven of the top 10 largest alligators from the first weekend were from public hunts by people who applied for permits in July.
The season’s second weekend is set to take place from sunset on Sept. 25 through sunrise on Sept. 28.