Yes, you can shoot coyotes in North Carolina. The state classifies them as a nongame species with no closed season and no bag limit, so on private land in most of the state you can take a coyote any day of the year, at any hour, with a valid hunting license.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote Five counties on the Albemarle Peninsula are the exception, and the reason matters: endangered red wolves live there, and the rules are built to keep hunters from killing one by mistake.
Where and When You Can Shoot
Outside the five restricted counties, the rules split by land type:
- On private land, coyotes may be taken day or night, year-round.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
- On public land without a special permit, hunting is limited to daylight, defined as one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
- Night hunting on public land is possible only through the NCWRC’s Permit Hunting Opportunities Program.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
Game lands add another layer. Outside the restricted counties, you can take coyotes on game lands during daylight while an open season for some game animal or bird is in effect, using weapons legal for that season.2eRegulations. General Game Lands Regulations – North Carolina You can’t drive to a game land in July with a rifle just to call coyotes. Something else has to be in season.
License You Need
Any valid North Carolina hunting license covers coyote hunting: the annual hunting license, comprehensive hunting license, sportsman license, and lifetime licenses all qualify. Landowners and certain family members hunting on their own property are exempt from the license requirement under N.C.G.S. 113-276.3North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Coyote Hunting and Depredation Permits That landowner exemption does not carry over into the five restricted counties, where everyone needs an additional coyote permit.
The Five-County Red Wolf Exception
Beaufort, Dare, Hyde, Tyrrell, and Washington counties overlap the only wild population of endangered red wolves in the world.4U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Red Wolf Recovery Program Red wolves and coyotes look alike, so the NCWRC tightens the rules in these counties sharply:
- On private land, you need a Coyote Hunting Permit or Coyote Depredation Permit, and hunting is limited to daylight hours. Night hunting with firearms is not allowed.3North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Coyote Hunting and Depredation Permits
- Public land coyote hunting is prohibited except on state-owned game lands through NCWRC’s special permit hunts.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
- Every coyote taken must be reported to the NCWRC within 24 hours, by phone at 919-707-0040 or online.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
- Competition coyote hunts on public lands in these counties are prohibited.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
The coyote permits are valid for one calendar year and renew annually, provided you’ve submitted your harvest reports from the prior year. If two or more red wolves are shot by permit-holding hunters on game lands within these five counties in a single calendar year, all special coyote hunts on those game lands are suspended the following year.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote
Identifying a Red Wolf Before You Pull the Trigger
Mistaking a red wolf for a coyote can cost you up to $50,000 and up to one year in federal prison under the Endangered Species Act.5U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Endangered Species Act – Section 11. Penalties and Enforcement A federal court injunction prohibits taking red wolves unless the specific animal poses a demonstrated threat to human safety, livestock, or pets.4U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Red Wolf Recovery Program
The physical differences:6eRegulations. Differences Between Wolves and Coyotes in North Carolina
- Red wolves run 4 to 5 feet nose to tail and weigh 40 to 80 pounds. Albemarle coyotes top out around 3 feet and 20 to 30 pounds.
- Red wolves have a wide head and broad muzzle. Coyotes have a narrow head and long, pointed muzzle.
- A red wolf’s ears look small for its head. A coyote’s look large.
- Red wolves have noticeably large feet. Coyote feet are slim and smaller.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service collars red wolves with bright orange collars, but fewer than half the wild wolves currently wear one.6eRegulations. Differences Between Wolves and Coyotes in North Carolina If you harvest any collared or ear-tagged canid, contact USFWS immediately at 252-475-8353.
Legal Methods and Equipment
Firearms, archery equipment, and dogs are all permitted for taking coyotes, and so are electronic calls and artificial lights.1Legal Information Institute. North Carolina Code 15A NCAC 10B .0219 – Coyote North Carolina sets no magazine capacity limit for rifles used on coyotes, and no federal cap applies to nongame hunting.
You cannot intentionally wound a coyote in a way that won’t cause its immediate death. The regulation requires animals be taken as quickly and humanely as the situation allows.7North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings. 15A NCAC 10B .0106 – Wildlife Depredation
Shooting a Coyote That’s Attacking Livestock or Pets
Landowners can take wildlife actively destroying their property at any time, with no permit or license required.8North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Wildlife Depredation A coyote in the act of attacking your livestock, poultry, or pets can be shot on the spot. During an open season for the species, any lawful method is fair game; outside an open season, you’re limited to firearms or archery.7North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings. 15A NCAC 10B .0106 – Wildlife Depredation Because coyotes have no closed season in most of North Carolina, that distinction mainly matters inside the five red wolf counties.
In Beaufort, Dare, Hyde, Tyrrell, and Washington counties, any coyote killed under depredation authority without a permit still has to be reported to the NCWRC within 24 hours.7North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings. 15A NCAC 10B .0106 – Wildlife Depredation
What to Do With the Carcass
If you shoot a coyote without a depredation permit, you have to dispose of the carcass in a safe and sanitary way on the property where it was killed. You cannot transport it off the property without a permit.8North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Wildlife Depredation With a depredation permit, follow the disposal instructions printed on the permit itself.
Hunter Orange, Trespass, and Local Discharge Rules
Coyote hunting itself doesn’t trigger North Carolina’s hunter orange requirement. Orange is required for deer firearms season, and for hunting bear, feral swine, rabbit, squirrel, grouse, pheasant, or quail with firearms.9eRegulations. North Carolina General Hunting Regulations If you’re on game lands during an overlapping deer firearms season, you’d need orange because the deer rule applies no matter what you’re actually hunting. Landowners on their own property are exempt from the orange requirement.
On private land other than your own, you need explicit permission from the landowner before you hunt. Going onto posted land without written permission to take wildlife is a Class 2 misdemeanor carrying a minimum $500 fine.10North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statutes 113-294 City and county ordinances can also restrict firearm discharge near homes, roads, or within town limits, so check locally before shooting anywhere near development.