Pennsylvania deer and bear hunting: WMUs, seasons and State Game Lands
PGC estimates Pennsylvania hunters took 185,145 antlered and 319,543 antlerless deer in the 2025-26 seasons, adding up its 22 WMUs, and counted 2,642 bears in 2024. The 2026 regular firearms deer season runs November 28 to December 13, and for the first time every Sunday inside a season is open. 316 State Game Lands cover 1,553,369 acres.
Data updated October 2026. Seasons: PGC 2026-27 Seasons and Bag Limits. Harvest: PGC Annual Deer Population Report, April 2026, PGC's 2024 bear harvest release. Game lands: PGC's maps.
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Pennsylvania manages deer, bear and turkey by Wildlife Management Unit: 22 WMUs drawn along roads and rivers so a hunter can tell which one he is in. Deer seasons, antlerless licenses and harvest figures are all kept by WMU. Most public hunting ground is State Game Lands, owned by the Game Commission and bought with hunters' license money, plus state forest and the Allegheny National Forest.
When are Pennsylvania's 2026-27 deer and bear seasons?
| Season | WMUs | Dates, 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|
| Deer, archery (antlered and antlerless) | 2B, 5C, 5D | September 19 to November 27, and December 26 to January 24, 2027 |
| Deer, archery (antlered and antlerless) | All others | October 3 to November 20, and December 26 to January 24, 2027 |
| Deer, antlerless muzzleloader | All | October 17 to 25 |
| Deer, antlerless special firearms (eligible hunters only) | All | October 22 to 25 |
| Deer, regular firearms (antlered and antlerless) | All | November 28 to December 13 |
| Deer, flintlock (antlered or antlerless) | All | December 26 to January 24, 2027 |
| Deer, extended antlerless firearms | 2B, 5C, 5D | December 26 to January 24, 2027 |
| Deer, extended antlerless firearms | 4A, 4C, 4D, 5A | December 26 to January 18 (PGC's page prints the year as 2026; the season belongs to the 2026-27 license year) |
| Bear, archery | 2B, 5C, 5D | September 19 to November 27 |
| Bear, archery | 3C, 3D, 5B | October 3 to November 20 |
| Bear, archery | 1A, 1B, 2A, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F, 2G, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E, 5A | October 17 to 25 |
| Bear, muzzleloader | All | October 22 to 25 |
| Bear, special firearms (eligible hunters only) | All | October 22 to 25 |
| Bear, regular firearms | All | November 21 to 24 |
| Bear, extended firearms | 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 4C, 4E, 5A | November 28 to December 6 |
| Bear, extended firearms | 2B, 5B, 5C, 5D | November 28 to December 13 |
| Fall turkey (either sex; shotguns and archery gear only) | 1A, 2G, 3A, 4A, 4B, 4D | October 31 to November 15 |
| Fall turkey (either sex; shotguns and archery gear only) | 1B, 3D, 4C, 4E | October 31 to November 8 |
| Fall turkey (either sex; shotguns and archery gear only) | 2A, 2F, 3B, 3C | October 31 to November 15, and November 25 to 27 |
| Fall turkey (either sex; shotguns and archery gear only) | 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E | October 31 to November 20, and November 25 to 27 |
| Fall turkey (either sex; shotguns and archery gear only) | 5A, 5B | October 31 to November 3 |
| Fall turkey | 5C, 5D | Closed |
| Spring gobbler (bearded birds; one bird) | All | May 1 to 31, 2027 (until noon through May 15) |
| Elk (by drawn license, in the elk hunt zones) | Elk zones | Archery September 12 to 27; firearms October 3 to 11, October 31 to November 8, and January 9 to 17, 2027 |
Source: PGC 2026-27 Seasons and Bag Limits, read 2026-10-18; PGC 2026-27 pocket guide to the Hunting & Trapping Digest.
Pennsylvania's 22 WMUs
The most deer in 2025-26 came from WMU 2D (42,685), WMU 2C (34,306) and WMU 5B (30,076). The most bears in 2024: WMU 2G (476), WMU 3B (303) and WMU 3D (287). The most public land: WMU 2G (50.4%), WMU 2F (42.9%) and WMU 4D (28.9%).
| WMU | Square miles | Public land | Antlered deer, 2025-26 | Antlerless deer, 2025-26 | Bears, 2024 | Antlerless licenses, 2026-27 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WMU 1A | 1,847 | 6.7% | 9,969 | 15,790 | 26 | 52,000 |
| WMU 1B | 2,118 | 4.7% | 11,070 | 17,627 | 67 | 44,000 |
| WMU 2A | 1,811 | 4.1% | 8,446 | 13,614 | 6 | 49,000 |
| WMU 2B | 1,363 | 0.2% | 9,097 | 14,639 | 2 | 62,000 |
| WMU 2C | 2,933 | 13.3% | 11,407 | 22,899 | 102 | 117,000 |
| WMU 2D | 2,487 | 2.7% | 15,371 | 27,314 | 173 | 112,000 |
| WMU 2E | 1,428 | 10.2% | 7,709 | 12,476 | 53 | 63,000 |
| WMU 2F | 2,410 | 42.9% | 10,785 | 15,651 | 213 | 67,000 |
| WMU 2G | 4,112 | 50.4% | 7,572 | 12,307 | 476 | 57,000 |
| WMU 3A | 1,507 | 10.4% | 7,633 | 6,929 | 203 | 21,000 |
| WMU 3B | 2,220 | 22.8% | 7,911 | 14,079 | 303 | 53,000 |
| WMU 3C | 2,190 | 3.4% | 7,957 | 14,672 | 145 | 57,000 |
| WMU 3D | 2,102 | 24.2% | 6,004 | 9,641 | 287 | 52,000 |
| WMU 4A | 1,736 | 17.9% | 5,005 | 8,523 | 71 | 64,000 |
| WMU 4B | 1,583 | 15.4% | 6,700 | 14,394 | 50 | 71,000 |
| WMU 4C | 1,716 | 18.4% | 9,386 | 13,864 | 197 | 51,000 |
| WMU 4D | 2,743 | 28.9% | 9,388 | 15,439 | 143 | 120,000 |
| WMU 4E | 1,736 | 5.2% | 7,521 | 17,490 | 96 | 61,000 |
| WMU 5A | 1,310 | 12.6% | 4,821 | 7,304 | 10 | 65,000 |
| WMU 5B | 2,640 | 2.3% | 10,257 | 19,819 | 2 | 86,000 |
| WMU 5C | 1,982 | 2.8% | 8,141 | 18,000 | 17 | 101,000 |
| WMU 5D | 1,326 | 1.8% | 2,995 | 7,072 | 0 | 44,000 |
Harvest and licenses: PGC Annual Deer Population Report, April 2026. Bears: PGC's 2024 bear harvest release. Public land measured by FilledTag from USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US 4.1).
How do Pennsylvania's deer licenses work?
A general hunting license carries one antlered deer harvest tag, a spring turkey tag and a fall turkey tag. A bear license is bought on top of it. In 2026-27 one antlered deer may be taken per license year in all seasons together, and one bear.
Antlerless deer are hunted with an antlerless license for one WMU, or a DMAP permit for one enrolled property. PGC sets each WMU's number of antlerless licenses every spring. For 2026-27 a resident who bought by 7 a.m. on July 13, 2026 was sure of a license for the WMU of his choice; after that, licenses are sold until a WMU's allocation runs out. A hunter may hold up to six unfilled antlerless licenses at a time, or up to fifteen in WMUs 5C and 5D.
Antler rules for adult hunters: in most WMUs an antlered deer must have at least three points on one side, brow tine included. In WMUs 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B and 2D the rule is Three Up: three points on one side not counting the brow tine. Junior license holders, mentored youth, holders of a disabled person permit to hunt from a vehicle and resident active-duty military may take a deer with two or more points on one antler or a spike at least three inches long (PGC Hunting & Trapping Digest).
How much of Pennsylvania is public hunting ground?
16.1% of Pennsylvania is public land by PAD-US 4.1: state forest 2,223,937 acres, state game lands 1,553,624 acres, national forest 514,029 acres, state park 279,836 acres, National Park Service 53,228 acres, Army Corps of Engineers 37,875 acres and national wildlife refuge 15,933 acres.
State Game Lands with their own page
290 game lands have a page with PGC's parking areas, roads and gates. The 26 others are under 300 acres or have no parking area on PGC's map. Each is listed under the WMU that holds most of it. The largest: SGL 13 (50,745 acres), SGL 57 (46,676 acres), SGL 211 (44,480 acres), SGL 44 (39,335 acres), SGL 75 (27,500 acres), SGL 127 (26,235 acres), SGL 12 (24,598 acres), SGL 25 (24,380 acres), SGL 91 (23,931 acres) and SGL 108 (22,740 acres).
Game lands in WMU 1A
- SGL 39, 10,869 acres
- SGL 130, 3,170 acres
- SGL 148, 575 acres
- SGL 150, 594 acres
- SGL 151, 1,584 acres
- SGL 173, 1,058 acres
- SGL 213, 5,646 acres
- SGL 214, 9,662 acres
- SGL 216, 491 acres
- SGL 270, 2,191 acres
- SGL 284, 1,590 acres
- SGL 285, 2,841 acres
- SGL 294, 621 acres
- SGL 336, 591 acres
Game lands in WMU 1B
- SGL 69, 4,476 acres
- SGL 85, 677 acres
- SGL 96, 5,031 acres
- SGL 101, 5,058 acres
- SGL 102, 384 acres
- SGL 109, 2,003 acres
- SGL 122, 2,735 acres
- SGL 143, 8,476 acres
- SGL 144, 648 acres
- SGL 146, 526 acres
- SGL 152, 641 acres
- SGL 154, 1,418 acres
- SGL 155, 393 acres
- SGL 162, 1,072 acres
- SGL 163, 333 acres
- SGL 167, 628 acres
- SGL 190, 395 acres
- SGL 191, 1,223 acres
- SGL 192, 335 acres
- SGL 197, 1,656 acres
- SGL 199, 1,129 acres
- SGL 202, 469 acres
- SGL 218, 1,339 acres
- SGL 263, 671 acres
- SGL 269, 683 acres
- SGL 277, 1,193 acres
- SGL 291, 1,259 acres
- SGL 306, 1,091 acres
- SGL 314, 3,550 acres
- SGL 337, 2,231 acres
Game lands in WMU 2A
- SGL 117, 2,895 acres
- SGL 179, 5,814 acres
- SGL 189, 411 acres
- SGL 223, 8,063 acres
- SGL 232, 5,183 acres
- SGL 238, 776 acres
- SGL 245, 4,043 acres
- SGL 296, 2,616 acres
- SGL 297, 634 acres
- SGL 302, 2,976 acres
Game lands in WMU 2B
- SGL 203, 1,541 acres
Game lands in WMU 2C
- SGL 26, 12,347 acres
- SGL 42, 18,041 acres
- SGL 48, 11,080 acres
- SGL 50, 3,232 acres
- SGL 51, 16,945 acres
- SGL 82, 7,930 acres
- SGL 93, 660 acres
- SGL 104, 8,138 acres
- SGL 111, 10,286 acres
- SGL 138, 2,879 acres
- SGL 153, 3,057 acres
- SGL 198, 8,688 acres
- SGL 228, 4,226 acres
- SGL 231, 428 acres
- SGL 265, 524 acres
- SGL 271, 1,849 acres
Game lands in WMU 2D
- SGL 31, 5,157 acres
- SGL 63, 3,553 acres
- SGL 95, 10,646 acres
- SGL 105, 3,112 acres
- SGL 137, 915 acres
- SGL 164, 455 acres
- SGL 244, 4,872 acres
- SGL 247, 460 acres
- SGL 259, 350 acres
- SGL 266, 493 acres
- SGL 287, 2,009 acres
- SGL 304, 457 acres
- SGL 320, 476 acres
- SGL 328, 528 acres
- SGL 330, 2,479 acres
- SGL 332, 2,314 acres
Game lands in WMU 2E
- SGL 78, 777 acres
- SGL 79, 11,705 acres
- SGL 87, 17,296 acres
- SGL 120, 7,398 acres
- SGL 174, 3,932 acres
- SGL 185, 626 acres
- SGL 195, 3,460 acres
- SGL 248, 825 acres
- SGL 262, 5,476 acres
- SGL 273, 1,146 acres
- SGL 276, 4,775 acres
- SGL 334, 2,072 acres
Game lands in WMU 2F
- SGL 24, 8,585 acres
- SGL 28, 11,268 acres
- SGL 29, 9,830 acres
- SGL 44, 39,335 acres
- SGL 45, 6,138 acres
- SGL 47, 2,215 acres
- SGL 54, 19,408 acres
- SGL 72, 2,030 acres
- SGL 74, 6,568 acres
- SGL 86, 14,320 acres
- SGL 253, 661 acres
- SGL 282, 496 acres
- SGL 283, 3,061 acres
- SGL 309, 996 acres
Game lands in WMU 2G
- SGL 14, 17,360 acres
- SGL 25, 24,380 acres
- SGL 30, 11,653 acres
- SGL 34, 9,558 acres
- SGL 61, 9,972 acres
- SGL 68, 3,761 acres
- SGL 75, 27,500 acres
- SGL 77, 2,867 acres
- SGL 89, 10,571 acres
- SGL 90, 4,157 acres
- SGL 92, 5,234 acres
- SGL 94, 2,297 acres
- SGL 100, 21,071 acres
- SGL 114, 2,884 acres
- SGL 255, 2,221 acres
- SGL 268, 3,049 acres
- SGL 293, 5,470 acres
- SGL 311, 3,589 acres
- SGL 321, 3,254 acres
- SGL 323, 3,308 acres
- SGL 331, 6,438 acres
Game lands in WMU 3A
- SGL 37, 13,136 acres
- SGL 59, 7,023 acres
- SGL 62, 9,258 acres
- SGL 64, 8,100 acres
- SGL 204, 4,030 acres
- SGL 208, 8,833 acres
- SGL 301, 2,332 acres
- SGL 313, 485 acres
Game lands in WMU 3B
- SGL 12, 24,598 acres
- SGL 13, 50,745 acres
- SGL 36, 18,972 acres
- SGL 57, 46,676 acres
- SGL 66, 8,106 acres
- SGL 133, 2,542 acres
- SGL 134, 8,615 acres
- SGL 142, 369 acres
- SGL 172, 730 acres
- SGL 250, 440 acres
- SGL 298, 1,140 acres
- SGL 335, 1,169 acres
Game lands in WMU 3C
- SGL 35, 7,772 acres
- SGL 70, 6,335 acres
- SGL 123, 1,604 acres
- SGL 140, 1,346 acres
- SGL 159, 9,448 acres
- SGL 175, 733 acres
- SGL 219, 5,703 acres
- SGL 236, 2,044 acres
- SGL 239, 840 acres
- SGL 289, 1,642 acres
- SGL 299, 2,646 acres
- SGL 307, 1,221 acres
Game lands in WMU 3D
- SGL 38, 5,818 acres
- SGL 40, 6,200 acres
- SGL 91, 23,931 acres
- SGL 116, 3,089 acres
- SGL 119, 8,375 acres
- SGL 127, 26,235 acres
- SGL 129, 3,705 acres
- SGL 135, 3,540 acres
- SGL 168, 7,814 acres
- SGL 180, 12,506 acres
- SGL 183, 2,805 acres
- SGL 186, 965 acres
- SGL 187, 8,157 acres
- SGL 207, 2,573 acres
- SGL 209, 4,383 acres
- SGL 221, 4,684 acres
- SGL 292, 629 acres
- SGL 300, 5,755 acres
- SGL 310, 1,197 acres
- SGL 312, 4,459 acres
- SGL 316, 2,721 acres
- SGL 318, 858 acres
Game lands in WMU 4A
- SGL 41, 3,234 acres
- SGL 49, 6,437 acres
- SGL 53, 5,958 acres
- SGL 65, 6,000 acres
- SGL 67, 5,770 acres
- SGL 71, 5,204 acres
- SGL 73, 20,814 acres
- SGL 81, 4,037 acres
- SGL 97, 7,587 acres
- SGL 99, 4,471 acres
- SGL 118, 6,133 acres
- SGL 121, 2,234 acres
- SGL 124, 6,847 acres
- SGL 128, 1,710 acres
- SGL 147, 9,378 acres
- SGL 261, 3,220 acres
Game lands in WMU 4B
- SGL 76, 4,297 acres
- SGL 88, 7,005 acres
- SGL 170, 9,463 acres
- SGL 171, 1,068 acres
- SGL 194, 717 acres
- SGL 215, 1,276 acres
- SGL 230, 1,290 acres
- SGL 235, 6,271 acres
- SGL 251, 4,229 acres
- SGL 254, 1,163 acres
- SGL 256, 1,258 acres
- SGL 258, 852 acres
- SGL 281, 1,648 acres
Game lands in WMU 4C
- SGL 58, 12,630 acres
- SGL 80, 10,818 acres
- SGL 106, 9,857 acres
- SGL 110, 10,335 acres
- SGL 141, 17,227 acres
- SGL 149, 1,991 acres
- SGL 210, 11,131 acres
- SGL 211, 44,480 acres
- SGL 217, 8,699 acres
- SGL 222, 2,377 acres
- SGL 227, 1,528 acres
- SGL 229, 3,041 acres
- SGL 257, 3,441 acres
- SGL 286, 488 acres
- SGL 290, 1,042 acres
- SGL 326, 2,699 acres
- SGL 329, 1,744 acres
Game lands in WMU 4D
- SGL 33, 17,755 acres
- SGL 60, 8,821 acres
- SGL 103, 8,995 acres
- SGL 107, 8,263 acres
- SGL 108, 22,740 acres
- SGL 112, 6,633 acres
- SGL 113, 523 acres
- SGL 126, 646 acres
- SGL 131, 310 acres
- SGL 158, 17,463 acres
- SGL 166, 12,375 acres
- SGL 176, 6,501 acres
- SGL 184, 4,607 acres
- SGL 188, 1,648 acres
- SGL 252, 2,904 acres
- SGL 267, 1,045 acres
- SGL 278, 1,868 acres
- SGL 295, 12,338 acres
- SGL 317, 1,103 acres
- SGL 322, 3,149 acres
- SGL 333, 1,213 acres
Game lands in WMU 4E
- SGL 55, 2,651 acres
- SGL 84, 9,010 acres
- SGL 115, 1,686 acres
- SGL 132, 1,830 acres
- SGL 165, 1,267 acres
- SGL 193, 325 acres
- SGL 206, 1,513 acres
- SGL 212, 504 acres
- SGL 224, 878 acres
- SGL 226, 4,322 acres
- SGL 233, 915 acres
- SGL 260, 3,100 acres
- SGL 264, 9,018 acres
- SGL 325, 637 acres
Game lands in WMU 5A
Game lands in WMU 5B
- SGL 46, 6,053 acres
- SGL 83, 789 acres
- SGL 145, 2,987 acres
- SGL 156, 5,894 acres
- SGL 181, 554 acres
- SGL 242, 1,517 acres
- SGL 243, 1,167 acres
- SGL 246, 424 acres
- SGL 274, 457 acres
- SGL 280, 2,552 acres
Game lands in WMU 5C
- SGL 43, 2,571 acres
- SGL 52, 2,439 acres
- SGL 56, 1,791 acres
- SGL 157, 2,102 acres
- SGL 196, 424 acres
- SGL 205, 1,315 acres
- SGL 234, 490 acres
- SGL 315, 342 acres
What are the rules on State Game Lands?
State Game Lands are open to hunting, trapping and fishing, and to picking berries and mushrooms. Camping is not allowed, and neither are alcohol, feeding wildlife or putting out salt or minerals.
Tree stands and blinds may go up two weeks before deer season and must come down two weeks after it closes, and must carry the owner's name and address or a PGC equipment number. From October 1 to January 31 and April 20 to May 31, anyone on game lands who is not hunting must wear 250 square inches of fluorescent orange.
Starting in 2026-27, every Sunday inside a season's dates is open to hunting, except in migratory bird seasons.
Questions hunters ask
When does deer season open in Pennsylvania in 2026?
Archery opens October 3, 2026 in most of the state and September 19 in WMUs 2B, 5C and 5D. The regular firearms season runs November 28 to December 13, 2026. Sundays inside those dates are open to hunting for the first time in 2026-27.
How many deer are harvested in Pennsylvania?
PGC estimates hunters took 505,600 deer in the 2025-26 seasons: 185,310 antlered and 320,290 antlerless (PGC's 2025-26 harvest release).
Can you hunt on Sundays in Pennsylvania?
Yes, from 2026-27. PGC's 2026-27 rules open every Sunday that falls inside a season's dates, except in migratory game bird seasons.
Can you camp on State Game Lands?
No. Camping and campsites are not allowed on State Game Lands. Small fires for cooking or warmth are allowed except when the state's fire danger rating is high or worse.
How many State Game Lands are there?
PGC's boundary map shows 316 numbered State Game Lands covering 1,553,369 acres, in every region of the state.
Get a Pennsylvania hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Pennsylvania are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Pennsylvania included.
Where these numbers come from
- Seasons: PGC 2026-27 Seasons and Bag Limits; PGC 2026-27 pocket guide to the Hunting & Trapping Digest.
- Deer harvest, licenses and populations: PGC Annual Deer Population Report, April 2026; PGC's 2025-26 deer harvest release. Bears: PGC's 2024 bear harvest release.
- WMUs: PGC Wildlife Management Units. Game lands: PGC State Game Lands boundaries. Public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US 4.1).
FilledTag is not part of the Pennsylvania Game Commission. PGC's hunting pages are the final word on every rule.