New Mexico
12,200
Duck Statewide Harvest
4,900
Goose Statewide Harvest
2,400
No. Waterfowl Licenses Sold Annually
5.8
Ducks Per Hunter
5.3
Geese Per Hunter
$15
Cost of Resident Waterfowl Hunting License
$4 habitat management and access validation stamp; $10 habitat stamp for hunting on U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management properties
Cost of Resident State Stamps and Permits
$25
Federal Duck Stamp
$65; temporary game hunting license (four-day) $33
Cost of Non-Resident Waterfowl Hunting License
$4 habitat management and access validation stamp; $10 habitat stamp for hunting on U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management properties
Cost of Non-Resident State Stamps and Permits
$25
Federal Duck Stamp
Photo by Keneva Photography
There's nothing wrong with New Mexico duck and goose hunting. Where it happens, it can be phenomenal. It's just that there's not much of it in a state dominated by high plains, rolling foothills, rugged mountains and excellent big-game hunting.
New Mexico's resident duck hunters probably laugh at that and really like reading it. They know it keeps guest hunters from coming in. Not that there's not enough room in a state that's more than 50 percent publicly owned.
Here's the other thing about New Mexico duck hunting: Yes, water can be scarce. But where you find it (think stock dams, valley floors, agricultural areas, river or creek bottoms, random wetlands or basins, and dammed lakes, ponds or reservoirs), chances are it will hold ducks. Mallards reign here, but it is the West, so you have a good chance at pintails. Note that the state is divided into Central Flyway and Pacific Flyway zones for setting season dates.
— Compiled and written by Tom Carpenter
