Trapping Laws in Louisiana: Licenses, Seasons, Trap Rules, and Penalties
October 18, 2026
Louisiana is one of the few states where a trapper can legally take a dozen different furbearers, from muskrat in the marsh to bobcat in the uplands. It also has a rule that surprises many people: even a raccoon hunter who sells a pelt needs a trapping license. Knowing the trapping laws in Louisiana before you set a single trap keeps your season productive and your record clean.
This article walks you through who can trap, which species are legal, what gear is allowed, and how pelts must be tagged and sold. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) publishes a new trapping pamphlet each season, so treat this as a working summary and confirm dates against the current regulations before you head out.
Is Trapping Legal in Louisiana
Yes. Trapping furbearers is legal in Louisiana, but only during an open season and only with the right license. The Wildlife and Fisheries Commission fixes the open season for nongame quadrupeds by parish or area, and it can extend, curtail, or prohibit trapping in any part of the state each year.
The state also treats trapping differently from hunting. All animals listed as furbearers may be taken only during the open trapping season and only by means of a trap or snare. Shooting a furbearer outside the rules for that species can put you on the wrong side of the law even if you hold a hunting license.
Landowners get some room to deal with damage. Owners and lessees of agricultural or forest land, or their agents, may kill nutria and beaver as pests without a license on that land, in residential areas, and along adjacent waterways, but a license is required during the open trapping season. If you are dealing with a problem animal at home rather than running a trapline, the West Baton Rouge Parish nuisance wildlife page points to the state rule that governs it.
Trapping License and Education Requirements in Louisiana
You need a trapping license before you set or run any trap for furbearers. LDWF requires a current trapping license to set or run traps of any type during the open season or to sell furbearer pelts or carcasses, and you must carry it while trapping or selling. That includes bobcat, raccoon, and opossum hunters who sell pelts or meat.
Age and residency change which license you buy. Anyone under 18 may trap with a Youth Hunting License, while trappers 18 and older need a Commercial Trapping License, which a Lifetime License does not cover. To buy at the resident rate, you must meet bona fide residency rules and show a Louisiana driver’s license valid for six months or more, or a Louisiana ID card.
Timing matters too. Annual trapping licenses go on sale June 1 each year, are valid from the date of purchase, and expire on June 30. You can buy online and receive an authorization number that lets you use the license immediately.
Pro Tip: Louisiana does not list mandatory trapper education as a license prerequisite in the sources reviewed here, but training is free. LDWF offers free Trapper Education workshops, and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies offers a free online Louisiana trapper course, according to the 2023-2024 LDWF hunting regulations.
If you also hunt, the hunting laws in Louisiana cover the basic hunting license and hunter education rules that sit alongside your trapping license.
Trapping Seasons and Legal Furbearer Species in Louisiana
The statewide open trapping season for nongame quadrupeds opens November 20 and closes March 31, and the department secretary can close, extend, delay, or reopen it when biologically justified. Because the secretary can adjust dates, check the current season pamphlet each year.
The legal list is specific. Louisiana classifies these animals as furbearers: beaver, bobcat, coyote, gray fox, mink, muskrat, nutria, opossum, river otter, red fox, raccoon, and skunk. Some of these have extra layers of rules, as the table below shows.
| Animal | Key Rule |
|---|---|
| Raccoon and opossum | Pelts and carcasses taken in open trapping season can be sold only with a trapping license in addition to a basic hunting license |
| Bobcat and river otter | Possession tags and export tags required for pelts |
| Foxes | Protected quadrupeds; may be taken only with traps by licensed trappers during trapping season |
| Nutria and beaver (nuisance) | Animals taken outside trapping season cannot be pelted or sold |
| Coyotes, armadillos, feral hogs | Classed as outlaw quadrupeds with their own trap rules |
The raccoon and opossum rule comes from state code that bars pelting during the closed season and bars selling skins or carcasses unless you hold a valid trapping license on top of your basic hunting license. On foxes, they may be taken only with traps by licensed trappers during trapping season, and the rest of the year only “chase” by licensed hunters is allowed.
Feral hogs have their own trap rules. Cage or corral traps for feral hogs require a basic hunting license and a top opening of at least 22 by 22 inches or 25 inches in diameter, while snares for hogs require a trapping license. The same guidance warns that snares are not recommended where bears live.
Legal Trap Types and Restrictions in Louisiana
The clearest gear rule is short. Traps with teeth are illegal. That means toothed jaw traps are out on WMAs and, per the LDWF pamphlet language, in general trapping.
Furbearers can be taken only with a trap or snare, so firearms and dogs are not legal methods for trapped species during trapping season, with exceptions for specific animals. Raccoon and opossum can be taken at night by licensed hunters using one or more dogs and one .22 rimfire rifle. That is hunting, not trapping, and it falls under hunting rules.
Nutria and beaver get special treatment. Water set traps and firearms may be used to remove beaver, and nutria may be removed by any means. Nutria taken recreationally are a separate category: they may not be pelted or sold.
Important Note: The season-opening rule limits when traps can be set. No one may set a trap capable of taking nongame quadrupeds more than one day before the open trapping season, or leave one set after the closing day. Staging traps early is a common way for new trappers to get cited.
Trap Check Requirements in Louisiana
Louisiana requires daily checks. All traps must be run daily, and every trap must be removed from the trapping grounds on the last day of the open season. The LDWF pamphlet repeats the point for public land: all traps must be run daily.
Daily checks protect animals and your license. If you catch something you did not intend to, release it promptly where the law allows. LDWF warns that bait for coyotes or hogs can attract bears, and asks you to call 800-442-2511 right away if you catch one.
Live animals you keep are also time-limited. Licensed trappers may hold live nongame quadrupeds, except alligators, during the open season if legally trapped, and they must be released or pelted by the last day of the season.
Where You Can and Can’t Trap in Louisiana
Private land is the simplest option, since you need the landowner’s permission and the right license. Public land has more layers. Trapping on a WMA requires a self-clearing permit and a WMA Access Permit. Other special trapping exceptions are listed under each WMA’s season schedule.
Safety rules apply during deer season. Traps with teeth are illegal on WMAs, and hunter orange or blaze pink is required while a deer firearms season is in progress. Raccoon and opossum limits also vary by area, since there is no bag limit during open trapping season except on certain WMAs as listed.
Federal and refuge land can follow different rules. For example, the bobcat rules apply to private land, state WMAs, Kisatchie National Forest, and certain Corps of Engineers tracts, but not to state wildlife refuges or other federal refuges. Always ask the managing agency before you set anything on public ground.
Your trapline may cross paths with other animal-law issues. The feral cat laws in Louisiana are worth reading if a live trap could catch a community cat, and the livestock fence laws in Louisiana matter when you cross pasture to reach water.
Tagging, Reporting and Selling Pelts in Louisiana
Selling is where trapping paperwork gets strict. No one may sell pelts or carcasses of furbearers without a current trapping license. Timing also matters, because pelting during the closed season is not allowed without department authorization, and selling nongame quadruped carcasses in the closed season is prohibited.
Bobcat and river otter carry the heaviest tagging load. The trapper fills out a blue tag for river otter or a red tag for bobcat when the pelt is sold, listing name, license number, parish caught in, and date trapped. Dealers cannot buy these pelts without that possession tag.
- Complete the possession tag at the time of sale, with your name, license number, parish, and trap date.
- The dealer submits the possession tag to LDWF in exchange for an export tag.
- The export tag must be attached before the pelt leaves the state, since no bobcat or river otter pelt may be shipped from Louisiana without one.
Shipping other raw furs needs paperwork as well. No fur trapper or fur dealer may transport or ship raw furs out of state without first getting an official out-of-state shipping tag from the department. Buyers have their own license too: a fur buyer may ship raw fur out of state only to a licensed non-resident fur dealer.
Moving live or dead animals can also trigger other rules, so see the transporting livestock laws in Louisiana if you haul animals alongside your fur.
Penalties for Trapping Violations in Louisiana
Louisiana ranks wildlife offenses by class, and the trap-setting statute is explicit. Violating R.S. 56:260, which covers setting and running traps, is a class four violation. That covers setting traps too early, leaving them past the closing date, or skipping daily runs.
Other trapping violations can also be charged under the state wildlife code. Falsifying paperwork is singled out: it is illegal to falsify possession tags or attach Louisiana export tags to out-of-state bobcat and river otter pelts. Selling without a license, pelting out of season, and hunting from a boat or motor vehicle are all prohibited activities in LDWF’s published rules.
The specific fine and jail ranges for each class change with legislative updates, and the sources reviewed here do not state current figures. Check the Louisiana Revised Statutes, Title 56, or ask an LDWF enforcement agent before relying on a number. Related offenses, like those covered in the roadkill laws in Louisiana, can add separate exposure if you take or keep wildlife unlawfully.
Key Insight: Most citations come from three avoidable errors: no trapping license, traps set outside the November 20 to March 31 window, and missed daily checks. Fix those and you remove most of your legal risk.
Before opening day, buy your license, confirm the season dates in the current LDWF trapping pamphlet, and plan how you will run your line every day. Keep your tags and records organized so a sale or an export goes smoothly. When a rule is unclear, call LDWF rather than guess.