As publishedOct. 15, 2026 – Feb. 28, 2027
GA regulations list simply as "Grouse" — ruffed grouse is Georgia's only native grouse species, found in the north Georgia mountains. Separate falconry season Oct. 1, 2026 – Mar. 15, 2027, 3/day. Same dates as the 2025-26 cycle (unchanged year over year).
Confirmed absence of a hunter-facing forecast: WRD's own spring drumming-count survey was tried and abandoned as ineffective; monitoring has shifted to a multi-year (2022-2027) University of Georgia (Chandler Lab) research collaboration (automated recording units, roadside drumming routes, citizen-submitted DNA samples) -- a genuine active academic monitoring effort, but not a WRD-published annual pre-season outlook with a defined publish window.