Title 41, GAME, FISH, PARKS AND FORESTRY

No dog may be used in hunting big game animals except as follows: (1) A dog may be used in the hunting of mountain lions during established hunting seasons in the manner and under such conditions as provided by rules promulgated by the Game, Fish and Parks Commission pursuant to …

No person may place any salt or salt lick or construct, occupy, or use any screen, blind, or scaffold, or other device at or near any salt or salt lick for the purpose of enticing or baiting big game animals to the same for the purpose of hunting, watching for, or killing of big …

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, loca…

Except as otherwise provided in § 41-8-17, between 10 p.m. and sunrise, from September first to January thirty-first, inclusive, no person may cast the rays of a spotlight, or any artificial light other than a motor vehicle headlight, into any field, pasture, woodland, forest, or…

A violation of § 41-8-2 , 41-8-6 , or 41-8-15 is a Class 1 misdemeanor for each prohibited act or each big game animal or any part thereof, taken, caught, killed, sold, offered, or exposed for sale, in possession or in possession with intent to sell, shipped by common carrier, or…

Except as authorized by chapter 41-6 and this chapter, no person may set or operate any trap, hunt, catch, take, trap, or kill any fur-bearing animal. A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor. Source: SDC 1939, § 25.0801; SL 1941, ch 121 ; SL 1947, ch 113 ; SL 1951, c…

Except as otherwise expressly provided, no person may pursue, hunt, take, possess, shoot at, kill, wound, or capture any big game animal within the limits of this state at any time. A violation of this section is subject to § 41-8-18 . Source: SDC 1939, § 25.0701; SL 1941, ch 119…

Fur - bearing animals may be hunted, caught, taken, trapped, or killed by the holder of the license provided by § 41-6-23 , or by a person specifically exempted from obtaining a license during seasons prescribed by the Game, Fish and Parks Commission. The commission may set the e…

The raw furs of animals hunted, caught, taken, trapped, or killed pursuant to § 41-8-20 may be had in possession after the close of any season prescribed by § 41-8-20 if they have been checked with a conservation officer within ten days after the close of the season. A violation …

Mink may be killed at any time if doing damage around buildings but all such mink killed are the property of the state, if taken during the closed season. If muskrat or beaver are injuring irrigation ditches, dams, embankments, or public highways, or causing any other damage to p…

No person may hunt any mink or muskrat with the aid of any dog, or dig, disturb, or molest any mink den or beaver house for the purpose of capturing any of these animals. No person may use poison, gas, or smokers of any kind to kill, take, or capture mink, muskrats, or beavers. N…

Muskrats may be hunted by shooting with rimfire cartridges of .22 caliber or smaller, muzzleloaders of .45 caliber or smaller, shotguns, or legal archery equipment. The Game, Fish and Parks Commission shall promulgate rules pursuant to chapter 1-26 to specify hunting seasons, hun…

No person may molest, injure, or destroy any muskrat house, except in the open season for the taking, catching, or killing of muskrats. However, muskrat houses may, for the purpose of placing traps therein, be opened in such manner as will not destroy, damage, or injure them as a…

The provisions of §§ 41-8-24 and 41-8-25 that refer to muskrats do not apply to the counties of Haakon, Jackson, Jones, Lyman, and Stanley. Source: SDC 1939, § 25.0801 as added by SL 1959, ch 123 ; SL 1961, ch 122 ; SL 1977, ch 331 ; SL 1982, ch 284 , § 2.

Any person who steals, damages or destroys a trap of another employed in the manner defined in subdivision 41-1-1(25), or who steals, damages, or destroys animals, animal carcasses, or the pelts thereof, held fast by such traps, is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. A violation of …

Any person who is found guilty as specified in § 41-8-28 who holds a South Dakota trapping license shall upon conviction deliver the license to the judge pronouncing sentence. The judge shall forward the license to the Department of Game, Fish and Parks. The department shall canc…

No person may at any time hunt, catch, take, attempt to take, or kill any small game or game animal in any other manner than by shooting the same with a firearm, except: (1) Game birds and animals may be taken with birds trained in falconry or with bow and arrow; (1A) Cottontail …

The provisions of § 41-8-31 notwithstanding, any person who holds a big game license to take a big game animal during the firearm season may take the animal by using a crossbow in lieu of a firearm. As used in this section, the term, crossbow, means a device for propelling a bolt…

No person may make use of, hunt or shoot from, any floating battery, sink box, or any similar device on any of the waters of this state. A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor. Source: SDC 1939, § 25.0414; SL 1967, ch 85 , § 5; SL 1969, ch 100 ; SL 1991, ch 337 , § …

No person may make use of, hunt, or shoot from any boat propelled except with oars or paddles, except when a boat or other craft with motor attached is beached, resting at anchor, or fastened within or tied immediately alongside of any type of fixed hunting blind or natural cover…

No person, who is in or on a motor vehicle, may discharge a firearm or bow and arrow at any wild animals except coyotes, jackrabbits, rodents, skunks, badgers, raccoons, and foxes. Licensed hunters who are paraplegics or otherwise physically unable to walk with or without crutche…

It is a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person to: (1) Kill or attempt to kill any wild bird or animal from an aircraft, except as otherwise provided for in § 41-8-39.1 ; or (2) Use an aircraft for the purpose of hunting, taking, concentrating, driving, rallying, stirring up, locatin…

Notwithstanding the provisions of § 41-8-39 , any person occupying land as an owner or lessee may apply to the Department of Game, Fish and Parks for a permit to kill or attempt to kill coyotes or foxes from an aircraft to protect or aid in the protection of the owner's or lessee…

Notwithstanding the provisions of § 41-8-39 , the Department of Game, Fish and Parks may contract with aerial hunters to control foxes and coyotes as permitted under P. L. 92-159 or § 40-36-9 if requested by landowners or tenants. Source: SL 1973, ch 268 , § 3; SL 1978, ch 297 , …

The taking of game, including any game bird or any game animal of any kind in any river, lake, or waters forming the boundary line between this and any other state, at any time or in any manner prohibited by the laws of any such adjoining state, is a Class 2 misdemeanor. The Depa…

A person using a firearm to hunt any big game animal, other than a turkey or a mountain lion, shall wear, in a visible manner above the waist, a fluorescent orange or fluorescent pink exterior garment. For purposes of this section, the term "exterior garment" means a hat, cap, sh…

A prairie dog shooting season is open statewide year-round, with no limitation on shooting hours and no prairie dog daily or possession limits. Source: SL 2011, ch 193 , § 1.

Any of two or more persons who mutually agree to hunt small game as a party and who maintain visual and unaided vocal contact may take more than one daily limit of small game. However, the total number of small game taken by the party may not exceed the aggregate daily limit for …

No person may pursue, hunt, take, or kill any big game animal at any time, except persons to whom a big game license has been issued. A violation of this section is subject to § 41-8-18 . Source: SDC 1939, § 25.0702; SL 1943, ch 96 ; SL 1967, ch 89 , § 2; SL 1977, ch 190 , § 557;…

Each act of pursuing, hunting, or killing any big game animal without a license is a distinct and separate offense; and every act of pursuing, hunting, or killing of any big game animal during the closed season is a distinct and separate offense. Source: SDC 1939, § 25.0706; SL 1…