Hunting coyotes in Ohio? Ohio is the tenth most populated state in the nation, but coyotes have lived here for over 100 years. They’ve managed to spread across the state, and there’s good coyote hunting to be had in Ohio.
In Ohio, a hunting license is required to hunt or trap coyotes. There are no bag limits, contests are legal, and suppressors are permitted. There is no closed season for coyotes in Ohio.
Purchase a license here.
Check out all the Ohio hunting seasons.
Related: Learn the rules for hunting fox in Ohio.
Related: How about learning how to hunt bobcats?
Hunting coyotes in Ohio.
Using lights to hunt coyotes in Ohio.
Lights. (A) It shall be unlawful for a person to hunt, trap, take or possess furbearing animals throughout the state, except according to this rule and other rules in the Administrative Code or the Revised Code.
(B) There is no bag limit or possession limit on fox, skunk, weasel, raccoon, opossum, mink, coyotes, beaver, or muskrat.
(C) It shall be unlawful for any person to pursue, hunt, or trap furbearing animals from sunset to sunrise, without carrying a continuous white light visible for a distance of at least one-quarter of a mile. However, persons hunting fox, raccoon, or coyote call from a stationary position may use a continuous single beam light of any color. When two or more persons are hunting or trapping together for such animals, one light only is required and may be carried by any member of the party.
(D) It shall be unlawful for any person to train dogs pursuing furbearing animals during the closed season except from six p.m. to six a.m. daily.
Legal implements for hunting coyotes in Ohio.
Small Game and Furbearers legal firearms
- Longbow or bow: This includes compound bows and recurves bows.
- Crossbow
- Handgun: Any caliber.
- Rifle: Any caliber.
- Shotgun: 10 gauge or smaller.
- Airgun.
Related: What are the best calls to use when hunting coyotes? Read this article here for the two best sounds to use.
You can use electronic callers when hunting coyotes in Ohio.
Electronic callers may be used while hunting, except while hunting migratory game birds (waterfowl, rails, and shorebirds) and wild turkeys. It is lawful to use electronic callers for crow hunting.
Check here for Amazon current prices on electronic predator callers.
Related: read here to find out who makes the best open reed coyote caller!
Spotlighting rules for hunting coyotes in Ohio.
Spotlighting of wild animals from vehicles, including illuminating with headlights, is prohibited. Spotlighting is illegal whether hunting implements are carried in the vehicle or not.
Persons hunting, trapping, or pursuing furbearing animals at night must carry a continuous white light visible for at least 1/4 mile. When two or more persons are hunting or trapping together for furbearing animals, only one light is required and may be carried by any member of the party. Persons hunting foxes, coyotes, or raccoons with a call from a stationary position may use a single beam of light of any color.
Check on Amazon for coyote light prices here.
Lawful/Unlawful acts when hunting coyotes in Ohio.
It is unlawful to possess a hunting device while training or working a dog pursuing coyotes from sunset to sunrise.
All hunting from motor vehicles, except boats and machinery being used in farm operations, is prohibited. Hunting small game and furbearers except for mink, muskrat, otter, and beaver is lawful from a boat or power craft. Aircraft or drones are prohibited in hunting or the aid of hunting for all games.
Poisoned or explosive arrows are unlawful. While hunting, it is unlawful to have attached to a longbow or crossbow any mechanical, electrical, or electronic device capable of projecting a visible beam of light. This does not include a device such as a range finder that utilizes nonvisible light.
It is unlawful to shoot from, on, across, or along a public road or highway.
Hunting any wild animal (except waterfowl) from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset during the youth deer gun season, deer gun season, and the deer muzzleloader season is unlawful unless the hunter is visibly wearing a vest, coat, jacket, or coveralls that are either solid hunter orange or camouflage hunter orange. This requirement applies statewide on both public and private land.
Longbows and crossbows may be used to take the legal game. Longbow hunters may use a hand-held mechanical release or a mechanical device with a working safety. Crossbows may be cocked with a device, but they must have a working safety and a stock more than 25 inches long.
All hunters younger than 16 years old need to be accompanied by an adult. It is unlawful for the responsible adult to allow a person under 16 years of age to hunt alone.
The holder of an all-purpose vehicle permit may hunt wild quadrupeds or game birds from a vehicle while on private property. Go to wildohio.gov for more information.
Related: Shoot a coyote, Save a deer? Learn why here.
Can you carry a pistol while hunting coyotes in Ohio?
A person possessing a valid Ohio concealed handgun license may carry their concealed handgun while hunting and trapping, but it may not be used to shoot, shoot at, or kill any wild animal. For more information, go to ohioattorneygeneral.gov.
Legal to use a suppressor while hunting coyotes in Ohio.
A person authorized through Ohio state and federal law to own a firearm noise suppressor is permitted to use it for hunting legal game animals. A valid hunting license is required to hunt with a suppressor. A suppressor is also called a silencer.
Hunting coyotes on all wildlife areas in Ohio.
Portions of Deer Creek, Killdeer Plains, Rest- haven, Lake La Su An, Berlin Lake, Big Island, Delaware, Grand River, Brush Creek, Waterloo, Cooper Hollow, East Fork, Woodbury, Spring Valley, and Fallsville wildlife areas will be open for persons with severe mobility impairments to drive their cars, trucks, or an all-purpose vehicle to designated interior areas for hunting. Disabled persons are required to have an all-purpose vehicle permit. Find more information or download a permit application at wildohio.gov.
It is unlawful to hunt with or possess any shot except a nontoxic shot at Metzger Marsh, Mallard Club, Pipe Creek, Magee Marsh, Toussaint, and Little Portage wildlife areas.
All hunting and trapping on Andreoff Wildlife Area, Eagle Creek Wildlife Area, Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, and Urbana Wildlife Area is by permit only.
It is illegal to sit, stand, or otherwise be in contact with oil or gas production or transmission wells, pumps, tanks, pipes, and other equipment.
Camping is prohibited in state wildlife areas, except primitive campgrounds located in Crown City and Woodbury wildlife areas. All campers must possess a valid hunting license, fishing license, or fur taker permit. Call 1-800-WILDLIFE (1-800-945- 3543) for more information.
It is unlawful to use a rifle, pistol, revolver, or a shotgun using slugs at any time on Greenfield Dam, Auburn Marsh, and Grant Lake wildlife areas. Deer and wild turkey hunting at Greenfield Dam, Auburn Marsh, and Grant Lake wildlife areas are lawful using archery equipment only.
All wildlife areas are closed to all activities other than hunting, trapping, and fishing from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. September 1 through May 1, and from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. May 2 through August 31 of each year.
State parks have special hunting and trapping regulations. Some are not open to hunting or trapping. A permit is required to build a duck blind on state park lakes.
It is unlawful to operate or park any vehicle on properties administered by the Division of Wildlife, except on designated roads and parking areas.
Related: Should you hunt coyotes in really bad weather?
Hunting coyotes in Ohio on public land.
It is unlawful for any person to use a rifle, pistol, revolver, shotgun, or other firearms at any time on any land or water area controlled or administered by the Division of Wildlife except while lawfully trapping or hunting wild animals or target practicing on a designated Division of Wildlife target range.
It is unlawful for any person to distribute, place, or scatter salt, grain, or other feed capable of luring, enticing, or attracting wild birds or deer on lands owned, controlled, or maintained by the Division of Wildlife, including the Wayne National Forest and other lands managed by the division by virtue of a lease or an agreement.
A tree stand on the Division of Wildlife public hunting areas is legal as long as it is portable and uses no nails, steps, or any other device placed or inserted into a tree. The tree stand may be installed from September 1 to the last day in February, annually.
Related: Is there a trick to calling coyotes? Yes, read this article to learn how to keep them interested
Getting permission to access land for coyote hunting in Ohio.
HUNTING WITH PERMISSION.
The landowner’s written permission is required for hunting and trapping on private land, regardless of whether the land is posted. Permission slips are available at all Division of Wildlife district offices, at wildohio.gov, and on page 38 of this publication.
THE PENALTY FOR HUNTING WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION.
The maximum penalty for hunting without written permission of the landowner for a first offense is 60 days in jail and a $500 fine. The maximum penalty for a second offense is 90 days in jail and a $750 fine.
A person must carry written permission (see page 38) at all times while engaging in hunting or trapping on private land and exhibit it upon request to a state wildlife officer, sheriff, deputy sheriff, police officer, other law enforcement officer, owner of the land, or the landowner’s authorized agent.
Related: Learn how to get permission to hunt private land here.https://thepredatorhunter.com/8-ways-to-get-permission-to-hunt-private-land/.
Transporting firearms when coyote hunting in Ohio.
No person shall knowingly transport or have a firearm in a motor vehicle unless it is unloaded and is carried in one of the following ways:
- In a closed package, box, or case.
- In a compartment which can be reached
only by leaving the vehicle. - In plain sight and secured in a rack or holder made for the purpose.
- If the firearm is at least 24 inches in overall length as measured from the muzzle to the part of the stock farthest from the muzzle, and if the barrel is at least 18 inches in length in plain sight with the action open or the firearm stripped, or, if the firearm is of a type which the action will not stay open or which cannot easily be stripped, in plain sight.
A person possessing a valid Ohio-issued concealed handgun license may carry a concealed handgun in compliance with motor vehicle transportation guidelines of the Ohio Revised Code.
As used in this section, unloaded means with respect to a firearm employing a percussion cap, flintlock, or another obsolete ignition system, that the firearm is uncapped, or that the priming charge is removed from the pan.
The above sections also apply to watercraft, except while lawfully engaged in hunting.
Related: Where is the best place to shoot a coyote? Learn how to turn every shot into dead right there dog.
Coyote trapping regulations in Ohio
Trapping Regulations
A fur taker permit is required to hunt or trap furbearing animals (except coyotes) in Ohio.
Except for river otters, there are no restrictions on bag limits. All traps and snares must be checked, and all animals removed once every calendar day.
- All foothold or foot-encapsulating traps set on land must have at least two swiveling points.
- Foothold traps set on land must be covered.
- Foothold traps that are submerged may not have an inside jaw spread greater than 8-1/4 inches.
- Deadfalls are illegal.
- Foothold traps set on land may not have an inside jaw spread greater than 5-3/8 inches, except foothold traps greater than 5-3/8 inches, but 6 inches or less may be utilized provided they have a minimum of three swiveling points, and the gripping surface is 5/16 inch or greater.
Except for cage traps, no traps or snares may be set within 150 feet of another person’s occupied residence without advising the resident. - Body-gripping traps set on land or in a tile, den, or burrow on land may not have an inside diameter jaw spread greater than 5 inches in diameter.
- Body-gripping traps with an inside diameter jaw spread greater than 5 inches- es, but less than or equal to 7 inches must be set in a natural body of water.
*Body-gripping traps with an inside jaw spread greater than 7 inches must be completely submerged in water and may only be utilized during the beaver or river otter season. - All furbearers are required to be killed immediately and reduced to the per- son’s possession or released immediately at the capture site.
- No person may disturb a legally set trap or snare or remove a furbearing animal from a trap or snare of another person without permission.
- All flesh baits must be totally covered. Traps with teeth on the gripping surface are prohibited.
Related: Mistakes that ruin your whole trap line!
First time trapping coyotes in Ohio?
FIRST-TIME TRAPPERS
All first-time trappers in Ohio, except apprentice license buyers, must successfully complete a hunter and a trapper education course offered through the Division of Wildlife before purchasing a hunting license and fur taker permit to trap furbearers.
If you catch a river Otter.
RIVER OTTER CHECKING AND TAGGING REQUIREMENTS
The pelt of each harvested river otter is required to be checked in and tagged within five business days of taking. The pelt may be checked and tagged by a wildlife officer (by appointment), at a designated otter check station (by appointment, consult the river otter trapping regulations pamphlet for locations), or at a district office during business hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). All state offices are closed on holidays.
Each trapper must personally present their own river otter and may not present a river otter taken by another person. Trappers must also provide a copy of their fur taker permit at the time of checking and provide information about the date and location in which the river otter was trapped.
BEAVER AND OTTER TRAPPING
ON PUBLIC HUNTING AREAS Beaver and river otter trapping is prohibited on state-managed areas, including state wildlife areas, state parks, and state forests without a special beaver and/or river otter trapping permit from the Division of Wildlife.
The Division of Wildlife offers controlled trapping permits for beaver and river otters on some managed areas. The application period for beaver and otter trapping lotteries is in October annually. Visit wildohio.gov or call 1-800-WILDLIFE (1-800- 945-3543) for more information. Snares may be utilized for beaver or river otter on managed areas but must have a minimum loop diameter of 10 inches, and the bottom of the snare must be covered by at least 1 inch of water at all times.
RIVER OTTER BAG LIMITS
No more than one river otter may be taken by any trapper in Zone B. No more than three river otters may be taken by any trapper in Zone C. The total season bag limit is three.
AVOIDANCE TECHNIQUES
Trappers who have reached the river otter bag limit are encouraged to implement river otter avoidance techniques while beaver trapping.
If you catch an otter in excess of your season bag limit and it is still alive, carefully release it without causing injury to yourself or the animal. If the otter is dead, leave it in the trap and contact the wildlife officer assigned to that county.
TRAPPERS MAY DO THE FOLLOWING:
- Set, use, and maintain snares for the purpose of taking furbearing animals. All snares must have a relaxing lock and a stop to prevent the opening of the snare from closing to less than 21⁄2 inches in diameter or a relaxing lock system with a breaking point of not greater than 350 pounds.
- Attach a drag to a foothold trap.
- Trap coyotes without a fur taker per- mit. However, anyone hunting, trapping, or snaring coyotes must have a valid hunting license.
TRAPPERS MAY NOT DO THE FOLLOWING: - Pursue, hunt, trap, or snare furbearing animals between sunset and sunrise without the use of a continuous white light visible for at least 1/4-mile. How- ever, persons hunting fox, coyote, or raccoon with a call from a stationary position may use a single continuous beam of light of any color. When two or more people are hunting or trapping together for these animals, only one light is required and may be carried by any member of the party.
- Use or possess climbers or any other device, except climbing tree stands, that may be used for climbing trees while hunting, trapping, or pursuing furbearing animals.
- Erect, post, or place any stake, flagging, or any other type of marker for the purpose of identifying a potential trap set location on any area designated as a public hunting area, unless authorized by the chief of the Division of Wildlife.
- Set, use, or maintain a trap or snare in or upon any path or road ordinarily used by domestic animals or humans.
- Set, use, or maintain a trap or snare to take a wild animal, unless that trap or snare has attached to it a durable, waterproof tag was bearing the name and mailing address or the unique Division of Wildlife Customer ID Number of the user in English that is legible at all times, or which has the name and mailing address or the unique Division of Wildlife Customer ID Number of the user stamped into the trap in English that is legible at all times.
- Attach a snare to a drag. Snares must be staked or otherwise attached to an immovable object.
- Set traps on state public hunting ar- eas, including state parks and state forests, for beaver or river otter without a permit (See Beaver and Otter Trapping on Public Hunting Areas).
- Set, use, or maintain a snare on public hunting areas, except for beaver and river otter (See Beaver and Otter Trapping on Public Hunting Areas.
- Use any snare constructed of any material other than multi-strand steel cable.
- Set a snare with a loop diameter of more than 15 inches.
- Have attached to a snare any spring-loaded or mechanical device to assist the snare in closing.
- Set, use, or maintain any snare that does not comply with the requirements listed above.
- Set, use, or maintain a foot-encapsulating trap that has an opening greater than 2 inches in diameter or 2 inches along one side.
Hunter and trapper education for coyote hunting in Ohio.
HUNTER AND TRAPPER’S EDUCATION
All first-time hunting license buyers, except apprentice license buyers, must successfully complete a hunter education course before purchasing a hunting license. The hunting course is designed to instill a code of ethics and responsibility, as well as pro- vide instruction on guns and how they work, types of ammunition, gun handling, field care of game, wildlife identification, wildlife management, hunting regulations, and other topics. Statistics show that hunter education has helped reduce the number of hunting-related injuries and incidents.
Anyone applying for a hunting license is required to successfully complete a hunter education course. Applicants must do one of the following:
Present a previously held hunting license.
Present evidence of having successfully completed a hunter education course (from any state).
Attest he or she is 21 years of age or older and previously held a legal hunting license (from any state).
Obtain an apprentice license.
The trapper education course, taken after successful completion of a hunter education course, covers trap set making, trapping equipment, pelt preparation, furbearer life history, identification, and management. These courses provide an opportunity for adults to introduce a young person to hunting and trapping and to share the excitement that goes with it. To obtain a fur taker permit for trapping, applicants must do one of the following:
Present a previously held trapping license (from any state).
Attest he or she is 21 years of age or older and has held a previous trapping license (from any state).
Present evidence of having successfully completed a trapper education course.
Obtain an apprentice permit.
APPRENTICE LICENSE PROGRAM
Ohio residents and nonresidents may purchase an apprentice hunting license or apprentice fur taker permit without having taken a hunter or trapper education course.
Apprentice hunting licenses and apprentice fur taker permits allow new hunters and trappers, both adults and youth, to sample the experience of hunting and trapping under the mentorship of a licensed adult prior to completing a hunter or trapper education course.
To hunt or trap, apprentice license and permit holders must be accompanied by a licensed hunter or trapper 21 years old or older. The licensed hunter may not accompany more than two apprentice license holders at the same time.
Accompany means to go along with another person while staying within a distance from the person that enables uninterrupted, unaided visual and auditory communications.
Having previously held an apprentice license does not qualify the holder to purchase a regular hunting license or fur taker permit. To obtain a regular hunting license, a hunter education course must be successfully completed. To obtain a regular fur taker permit, a hunter education course and trapper education course must be successfully completed. Apprentice licenses and fur taker permits are available to both Ohio residents and nonresidents, youth and adults.
License exemptions for hunting coyotes in Ohio.
Certain categories of persons are exempted from buying licenses, permits, and stamps.
- Ohio resident landowners, spouses, and their children are not required to have a hunting license, fur taker permit, either-sex deer permit, deer management permit, spring or fall turkey permit, or Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp when hunting or trapping on land they own.
- A nonresident landowner, and the spouse and children living with the landowner, may hunt on that property without a license, either-sex deer permit, deer management permit, spring or fall turkey permit, Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp, or fur taker permit if the non- resident’s home state allows residents of Ohio owning property in the nonresident’s home state, and the spouse and children living with the Ohio property owner, to hunt without a license, deer permit, spring or fall turkey permit, wetlands habitat stamp, or fur taker permit.
- A member of a limited liability company or partnership is a landowner provided the member is an Ohio resident, and the limited liability company or limited liability partnership consists of three or fewer individual members or partners, or the beneficiary or trustee of a trust that has three or fewer trustees or beneficiaries.
- Tenants and their children on land on which they reside and from which they derive the majority (more than 50 percent) of their income from agricultural production on that land are not required to have a hunting license, fur taker permit, either-sex deer permit, deer management permit, spring or fall turkey permit, or Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp when they are hunting or trapping on land where they reside.
- Ohio resident landowners’ grandchildren who are under 18 years of age are not required to have a hunting license or an Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp while hunting on their grandparents’ land. All other licenses and permits are required.
- Members of the U.S. Armed Forces on active duty while on leave or furlough are not required to purchase a hunting license, Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp, or fur taker permit. All other licenses and permits are required.
Members of the U.S. Armed Forces on active duty stationed in Ohio, but NOT on leave or furlough, are required to purchase a resident Ohio hunting license and other applicable permits before hunting deer, turkey, or hunting and trapping furbearers, and an Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp for hunting waterfowl.
Residency status for hunting coyotes in Ohio.
An Ohio resident is a person who has resided in the state of Ohio for the past six consecutive months. All others are considered nonresidents and must purchase a nonresident license.
HUNTING LICENSES
Ohio’s hunting license year begins March 1 and ends the last day of February. All costs include a writing fee. All sales are final. No refunds.
All hunters, regardless of age, must carry a valid hunting license to hunt or trap game in Ohio. Hunting deer, turkey, waterfowl, or hunting or trapping of furbearers requires the hunter to possess an additional game-specific permit.
Licenses and permits purchased at retail outlets or at home will be printed on plain white paper. The paper may be trimmed and folded down. It is highly recommended to protect your licenses and permits from the elements. Customers must be present to purchase a license or permit.
LICENSE REQUIREMENTS
A permanent customer identification number will be assigned to all applicants for hunting or fishing licenses.
Every customer who applies for a license or permit is required to provide their Social Security Number (SSN). Federal Statute 42 requires the SSN of any individual to whom the state issues a recreational hunting or fishing license. Applicants who do not have an active SSN must affirm their status at the time of application. Applicants must also declare their residency and provide their full name, date of birth, gender, mailing address, height, weight, hair color, and eye color. Once provided and recorded in the licensing system, applicants will only be required to update their information on file if it changes.
PURCHASE A HUNTING LICENSE
Visit an authorized agent, the HuntFish OH mobile app, or wildohio.gov to purchase a license or permit. Authorized agents are located in every county in Ohio. Visit wildohio.gov or call 1-800-WILDLIFE (1-800-945- 3543) to find an agent.
ELECTRONIC LICENSES
Licenses and permits may also be purchased on a mobile device or through the Division of Wildlife’s mobile application, HuntFish, OH. Hunters must carry their licenses and permits at all times while hunting and must present their license upon request. Licenses and permits may be displayed on a mobile device.
DUPLICATE LICENSES & PERMITS
Lost, stolen, or destroyed licenses and permits may be re-issued at any license sales location or at wildohio.gov. Reprints are free at wildohio.gov and cost $4 to a licensed agent.
Hunt coyotes in Ohio.
A) No person shall hunt or trap upon any lands, pond, lake, or private waters of another, except water claimed by riparian right of ownership in adjacent lands, or shoot, shoot at, catch, kill, injure, or pursue a wild bird, wild waterfowl, or wild animal thereon without obtaining written permission from the owner or the owner’s authorized agent.
(B) Except as otherwise provided in this division, the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant of any lands, pond, lake, or private waters upon which a person violates division (A) of this section is not liable in damages to any person in a civil action for injury, death, or loss to person or property that arises during or incidental to the violation. For the purposes of this division, a finding that a person violated division (A) of this section is not dependent upon the person being charged with or convicted of a violation of division (A) of this section. This division does not apply to civil claims based upon alleged willful or wanton misconduct or intentionally tortious conduct of the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant. This division does not create a new cause of action or a substantive legal right against the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant and does not affect any immunities from civil liability or defenses established by another section of the Revised Code or available at common law, to which the owner, lessee, renter, or occupant may be entitled under the circumstances not covered by this section.
(C) A person who obtains the permission required under division (A) of this section shall carry it with the person at all times during which the person is engaged in an activity for which the permission is required and shall exhibit it upon request of a wildlife officer, constable, sheriff, deputy sheriff, police officer, other law enforcement officer, or the owner of the lands, pond, lake, or private waters on which the person is hunting or trapping or the owner’s authorized agent.