Coyote Hunting South Dakota, Laws, Regulations, Season, & License Info

Coyote classification & license in South Dakota

What is the classification of coyotes in South Dakota?

A predator/varmint species, grouped by GFP with red fox, gray fox, skunk, raccoon, badger, prairie dog, gopher, crow, opossum, jackrabbit, ground squirrel, porcupine and marmot.¹

Practically, coyotes sit outside the furbearer season structure — the seasons table lists them alongside red and gray fox, badger, raccoon, skunk, opossum and jackrabbit as year-round, statewide.² They are also referred to in the license rules as part of the “unprotected species” a big game or small game license lets you take.³

Unlike Nebraska or Kansas next door, the classification does not do much scoping work here. South Dakota’s key restrictions — the night hunting rules — name coyotes explicitly, so there is no category to sit outside of. Read the statute, not the classification.

Are coyotes protected in South Dakota?

No. Year-round season, statewide, no bag or possession limit.²

Is a hunting license required to hunt coyotes in South Dakota?

Yes for most people — a Predator/Varmint License, and it is cheap.

The Predator/Varmint License is needed to hunt coyote, red fox, grey fox, skunk, raccoon, badger, prairie dog, gopher, crow, opossum, jackrabbit, ground squirrel, porcupine, and marmot. Other licenses that may be used in lieu of the Predator/Varmint License include any valid resident South Dakota hunting [or furbearer] license.¹

Resident $6. Non-resident $46.^{4 5} If you already hold any valid South Dakota hunting or furbearer license, that covers you and you do not need to buy the Predator/Varmint on top.¹

Two exemptions worth knowing:

• Resident landowners and their immediate family — husband, wife and children residing at home, on land owned or leased by the landowner — may hunt their own property for small game, furbearers and predators/varmints without a license, and are exempt from the habitat stamp on their own land.⁶
• Resident youth under 18 need no license.¹

The prices above are resident prices. A non-resident pays more, and may need a different license — see what a non-resident needs.

Is hunter education required?

South Dakota requires hunter safety certification for younger hunters before they can be issued a license, on the standard pattern. Because resident youth under 18 need no license for predators, and landowners’ children are exempt on their own ground, the requirement bites less here than in most states — but check with GFP before putting a young hunter in the field, because the exemption is about the license, not about safety.

Can a non-resident hunt coyotes in South Dakota?

Yes:

Nonresidents may hunt prairie dog, jackrabbit, gopher, ground squirrel, crow, porcupine, marmot, red fox, grey fox, coyotes, and skunks if they possess a Predator/Varmint License or any valid South Dakota Hunting or Furbearer License (other than nonresident shooting preserve).³

At $46 the non-resident Predator/Varmint is one of the better-value predator licenses in the country.⁵ A non-resident small game license also allows shooting coyotes, fox, skunks, prairie dogs and other unprotected species through 31 January.³

The bounty is residents-only. See the coyote bounty.

See also is a hunting license required — the license rules there, and the exemptions and add-ons that go with them, apply to you too.

Season, hours & bag limits in South Dakota

What is the season for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

Year-round, statewide.²

What is the bag limit for coyotes in South Dakota?

None. No daily, season or possession limit.²

What are the legal hunting hours for coyotes in South Dakota?

By day, unrestricted. Between sunset and sunrise the night hunting statute takes over, and it is strict enough that it effectively sets your hours for you — see night hunting.

Can you hunt coyotes during deer or big game season?

Yes. South Dakota imposes no equivalent of Nebraska’s November centerfire restriction, so your coyote rifle is unaffected by the deer seasons.

Wear blaze orange during firearm deer seasons regardless — it is not required of you as a predator hunter, and it is the obvious precaution when the same sections hold rifle deer hunters.

Night hunting coyotes in South Dakota

Can you hunt coyotes at night in South Dakota?

Yes — and South Dakota’s rule is the most carefully drafted on this site. SDCL 41-8-17 sets a flat prohibition and then names coyotes in three separate exceptions, each with its own land type, date window and equipment limit.

The baseline first:

Between sunset and sunrise, no person may use or possess night-vision equipment or throw or cast the rays of a spotlight, motor vehicle headlight, or other artificial light onto a highway, or into any field, pasture, woodland, forest, or prairie, for the purpose of spotting, locating, taking, attempting to take, or hunting any animal, if the person is in possession or control of a firearm, bow, or other implement by which an animal could be killed.⁷

Note use or possess — as in Nebraska, having the device on you is the offence. Violation is a Class 2 misdemeanour.⁷

Then the exceptions that matter to a coyote hunter:

All three carry the same equipment condition — a shotgun and shotshells, or a firearm and a cartridge having a bullet diameter of less than .312 inches.⁷ See the caliber cap.

The private-land route additionally requires you to be on private land; the GFP-leased route requires the landowner’s permission on top.⁷

Can you use artificial lights for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

Private land only, and there it is unrestricted by season:

A person may use night vision equipment and artificial light to take jackrabbits, coyotes, beaver during its hunting season, foxes, raccoons, opossums, badgers, skunks, and rodents, provided the person is on private land, and uses: (a) A shotgun and shot shells; or (b) A firearm and a cartridge having a bullet diameter of less than .312 inches⁷

On public land, artificial light is never allowed for coyotes — the two public-land exceptions permit night vision “but not artificial light.”⁷ GFP does not grant permission to use artificial light or night vision on GFP-owned, managed or leased property, and night hunting with light or night vision is prohibited on other publicly owned state and federal lands.

“Artificial light” is defined as “a man-made light or lighting device that projects lumination for an unaided eye.”⁷ That definition is what separates a lamp from an optic, and it is the hinge the whole section turns on.

Can you use night vision in South Dakota?

Yes — private land year-round, public land 1 January to 31 August.⁷

The September-to-December closure on public land is the deer and pheasant window. Plan public-ground night hunting for the first eight months of the year.

Can you use thermal in South Dakota?

Yes, and it follows the night vision rules — because South Dakota’s definition is broad enough to include it:

For purposes of this section, night-vision equipment, means an electronic or battery-powered device that enhances a person’s ability to see in the dark.⁷

Thermal imaging is an electronic device that enhances your ability to see in the dark, so it is night-vision equipment for the purposes of the section. South Dakota does not name thermal separately anywhere in 41-8-17 — unlike Wyoming and Alaska, which spell out “thermal or infrared imaging.”

That reading matters in both directions. It means thermal is lawful on private land year-round and on public land January to August. It also means thermal is caught by the use or possess prohibition outside those windows, and by the caliber cap inside them.

Are there specific weapons restrictions for hunting coyotes at night in South Dakota?

Yes, and this is the rule most likely to catch a visiting hunter. Every night hunting exception requires either a shotgun with shotshells, or a firearm chambered for a cartridge with a bullet diameter of less than .312 inches.⁷ See the caliber cap for what that includes.

The coyote bounty

South Dakota is the only state on this site currently paying a general coyote bounty, and the program is new.

On 6 March 2026 the GFP Commission ended the Nest Predator Bounty Program and split its $500,000 into two:⁸

The Coyote Bounty Program

• $30 per coyote tail
• Open to all South Dakota residents
• 1 April – 1 July 2026, or until funds are exhausted
• $300,000 total, capped at $590 per household⁸

The Youth Trapping Recruitment Program runs alongside it — $10 per tail for raccoon, striped skunk, badger, opossum and red fox, for residents aged 17 and under, 1 March – 1 July, $200,000, same $590 household cap.⁸

Coyotes were not part of the old Nest Predator Bounty Program, which targeted actual nest predators; this is a new payment, not a continuation. The original program ran from 2019 and removed 342,743 predators, with 46% youth participation in recent years.⁸

Two practical points. Whole carcasses cannot be submitted at GFP offices — you bring tails and dispose of the carcass yourself.⁸ And the funds are capped, so the season can close early; check with GFP before you plan around it.

Firearms, ammunition & the caliber cap in South Dakota

What firearms are allowed or restricted for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

By day, no restriction. By night, the statutory cap applies: a shotgun with shotshells, or a firearm and a cartridge having a bullet diameter of less than .312 inches.⁷

That is a measurement of the bullet, not the cartridge name, and it is worth being precise about because it is unusual. Comfortably inside it:

• .204 Ruger — .204″
• .223 Remington / 5.56 — .224″
• .22-250 — .224″
• .243 Winchester — .243″
• 6.5 Creedmoor — .264″
• .270 Winchester — .277″
• .308 Winchester / 7.62×51 — .308″

Outside it: anything .312″ or larger — 8mm Mauser at .323″, .338, .375 and up. 7.62×39 is .311″, which sits just under the line, and .303 British is .312″, which does not.

So every normal coyote cartridge is inside the cap, and the rule is really aimed at keeping big-bore rifles out of night hunting. Measure rather than assume if you are running something unusual.

By day, the practical South Dakota rifle is a flat-shooting centerfire for open prairie. See the best coyote gun.

Are suppressors allowed for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

Yes. South Dakota places no wildlife-law restriction on hunting with a suppressor; the question is federal — ATF Form 4, tax stamp, approval.

Are there any ammunition restrictions?

Only the night-time bullet diameter cap above.⁷ Nothing restricts ammunition for coyotes by day. Federal refuges and some public lands impose non-toxic requirements — check the unit.

Can you hunt using a .22 LR or other rimfire cartridge?

Yes, by day and by night — a .22 LR is .223″ and sits inside the night caliber cap.⁷ On a South Dakota coyote at prairie distances it remains a short-range tool.

Is there a magazine capacity limit for hunting coyotes in South Dakota?

No. South Dakota sets no magazine capacity limit and no permit to buy a semi-automatic rifle. A standard AR-15 with a 30-round magazine is lawful, and in .223 it also sits inside the night caliber cap.

Calls, decoys, bait & dogs in South Dakota

Are electronic calls allowed for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

Yes, with no restriction on predator and varmint species.

Are decoys allowed for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

Yes, including motion decoys.

Is baiting allowed for coyote hunting in South Dakota?

Yes for coyotes on private land. South Dakota’s baiting prohibitions are written for big game, and public GFP-managed lands set their own rules — several prohibit baiting outright.

Can you use dogs to hunt coyotes in South Dakota?

Yes. Running coyotes with hounds is well established in South Dakota.

Note that the night statute’s handheld-light exception for dogs is written for raccoons treed by dogs, not for coyotes⁷ — so if you are running hounds at night you are relying on the private-land coyote exception, with its caliber cap, not on the raccoon clause.

Private property, vehicles & public land access in South Dakota

Is it legal to shoot coyotes on private property (e.g. in your backyard) in South Dakota?

On rural private land with permission, yes — and private land is where South Dakota’s night rules are most generous, allowing both light and night vision year-round.⁷

Resident landowners and immediate family may hunt predators on their own ground without a license at all.⁶ In town, municipal discharge ordinances govern.

Can you hunt coyotes from a motorized vehicle in South Dakota?

No. The night statute specifically names casting light from a “motor vehicle headlight” as part of the prohibited conduct,⁷ and South Dakota separately prohibits shooting from a public highway or right-of-way.

GFP employees performing animal damage control may use night vision and artificial lights, with the permission of the landowner or occupier — that is a departmental exception, not a public one.⁷

Can you hunt coyotes on public land in South Dakota?

Yes by day, on Game Production Areas, School and Public Lands, National Grasslands and the walk-in access program.

At night, public land is much more restricted. Night vision is permitted 1 January to 31 August with the caliber cap; artificial light never is.⁷ GFP does not grant permission for artificial light or night vision on GFP-owned, managed or leased property, and other publicly owned state and federal lands are closed to it as well.

South Dakota’s walk-in areas are private land enrolled for public access — several are leased to GFP, which puts them under the middle row of the table in night hunting rather than the private-land row.

Is it legal to trap or snare coyotes in South Dakota?

Yes. Resident landowners and immediate family may trap furbearers on their own land without a license;⁶ otherwise a furbearer license applies. The night statute expressly permits a handheld light on foot to “engage in trapping activity and take trapped fur-bearing animals.”⁷

And there is a five-month window where a resident needs no furbearer license at all to trap a coyote, which the license tables do not make obvious:

a Furbearer License is not required for residents to trap raccoon, skunk, badger, opossum, jackrabbit, red fox, grey fox, and coyote from April 1 – Aug. 31.⁹

Read what that covers. The species split matters — bobcat, river otter, opossum, mink, weasel, beaver and muskrat still need the license⁹ — and so does the season: 1 April to 31 August is the denning and pup-rearing half of the year, which is when a landowner with a livestock problem is most likely to want traps out and least likely to be thinking about licenses. No license is required for resident youth under 18 at any time of year.⁹

Outside that window, or as a non-resident, the license applies.

Is it legal to poison coyotes in South Dakota?

Not as a private individual. Predator toxicants are restricted-use pesticides administered through USDA Wildlife Services and the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, not something a hunter or landowner may deploy.

Are there protected areas or additional local restrictions in South Dakota?

Yes. GFP-owned, managed and leased property and other public land are closed to night light and, outside January–August, to night vision. Tribal lands cover a substantial share of the state and are separate jurisdictions — get tribal permission. Municipal discharge ordinances apply in and near towns.

After the shot: pelts, bounties & contests in South Dakota

Are there regulations for possessing or transporting dead coyotes or pelts across state lines?

No tag, no seal, no check-in for coyotes. South Dakota’s tagging requirements attach to bobcat and river otter, not to coyote. Nothing restricts taking a coyote or its pelt out of state.

If you are claiming the bounty, you keep the tail and dispose of the carcass yourself — GFP offices do not accept whole carcasses.⁸

Can you sell coyote pelts, and do you need a fur handler’s license?

You can sell them. Selling fur commercially brings in the fur dealer rules; selling what you took yourself does not require a dealer license.

Note the interaction with the bounty: the tail goes to GFP for the $30, which means deciding between the bounty and a whole prime pelt on the same animal.⁸

Is there a coyote bounty program in South Dakota?

Yes — $30 per tail, residents only, from April 2026. See the coyote bounty for the terms and the caps. This is the only general state coyote bounty on this site.

Are coyote contests legal in South Dakota, or can I hunt in South Dakota for an out-of-state contest?

Yes to both. South Dakota has not banned predator hunting contests, and a state that pays $30 a tail is an unlikely candidate to. Winter tournaments run across the state.

One scheduling point: contests held between September and December cannot use night vision on public land, and can never use artificial light there.⁷

Coyotes in South Dakota

Are there coyotes in South Dakota? How many, and where?

Yes, in every county — West River breaks and badlands, the Missouri River corridor, the Black Hills fringe, and the row-crop and grassland country East River.

South Dakota publishes no population estimate. The clearest signal of scale is what the state is willing to spend: $300,000 on coyote bounties in a single three-month window in 2026, which at $30 a tail funds up to 10,000 animals.⁸

Are South Dakota coyotes dangerous to people or pets?

To people, very rarely. To sheep, calves and poultry they are the state’s principal predator problem, and the reason the bounty exists at all. Unattended small pets on the urban fringe are at risk.

When is coyote mating season in South Dakota, and when do pups arrive?

Breeding runs through February, with pups on the ground from April. Late winter is the best calling of the year — pairs are territorial, response is aggressive and pelts are prime.

Note the timing tension the bounty creates: the $30 payment runs April to July, which is after prime fur and into pup season.⁸ The best calling and the best pelts come earlier than the money does.

When are coyotes most active in South Dakota?

First and last light year-round, with heavy night movement in open country. For the full breakdown of season, weather and moon phase, see when to hunt coyotes.

What’s changing in South Dakota

• 6 March 2026 — the GFP Commission created a Coyote Bounty Program and ended the Nest Predator Bounty Program, splitting $500,000 into $300,000 for coyotes at $30 a tail for all residents from 1 April to 1 July, and $200,000 for a Youth Trapping Recruitment Program at $10 a tail. Both cap at $590 per household.⁸
• 2025 — the night hunting statute was amended again. SDCL 41-8-17 has been amended in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022 and again in 2025 (SL 2025, ch 177) — six times in eleven years. It is the most frequently rewritten provision on this page, and worth re-reading before each season.⁷
• The public-land night vision window runs 1 January to 31 August, which is the shape the recent amendments have converged on: night vision opened up on public ground, artificial light kept to private land.⁷

These answers get re-checked before they go stale. The verification date at the top of the page is the record of when that last happened, not decoration.

Anything else worth noting about coyote hunting in South Dakota

South Dakota is a strong coyote state that has just started paying residents to hunt them, and its rules reward reading the statute rather than the summary.

Four things to get right:

Buy the Predator/Varmint license — $6 resident, $46 non-resident — unless you already hold a South Dakota hunting or furbearer license, in which case you are covered.

Know which land you are on before dark. Private land gets light and night vision year-round. Public land gets night vision only, and only 1 January to 31 August.

Check your bullet diameter. Every night hunting exception caps you at under .312 inches, or a shotgun with shotshells. Normal coyote cartridges are all inside it; a .303 British is not.

The bounty is residents-only, April to July, and capped. Keep the tail, dispose of the carcass yourself, and check the funds have not run out.

Is it legal to own a coyote as a pet in South Dakota?

No. South Dakota does not permit keeping coyotes as pets. Contact GFP before assuming any exception applies.

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