Taxidermy Laws in Mississippi: Permits, Species Rules, and Penalties Explained
October 8, 2026
Mounting your first buck for the wall feels like a harmless weekend hobby, but taxidermy laws in Mississippi treat unlicensed commercial work as a wildlife violation, not a craft project. Before you charge a customer to preserve a trophy, sell a finished mount, or accept a migratory bird for freezing and skinning, you need to know which permits apply and which species are off-limits entirely.
This guide breaks down Mississippi’s state permit system, the federal rules that override it for certain birds, the species you can and cannot legally mount, and what happens when a taxidermist skips the paperwork. Whether you are a hunter mounting your own deer or a business owner taking in customer work, the rules below determine whether your shop stays open or gets shut down.
Do You Need a Taxidermy License or Permit in Mississippi?
Yes. The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP) lists a dedicated Alligator Season Permits · Animal Control Permit · Homochitto Dog Permits · Light Goose Conservation Permit Application · Spring Turkey Season (Raccoon/Rabbit) Dog Permit – Contact: 601-432-2400 · Velvet Season Permit · Wild Turkey Season Permits · WMA Draw Permits · 678 Taxidermy Permit among its special permits, and this “678 Taxidermy Permit” is the credential anyone offering taxidermy services to the public must hold.
Effective February 20, 2025, special permits are processed exclusively by the Wildlife Bureau at MDWFP headquarters and must be completed online through the license sales portal. If you have questions about the process, the Wildlife Bureau Office Desk can be reached at 601-432-2199.
Historically, Mississippi has kept this permit inexpensive compared to other states. A 2018 occupational licensing review found Mississippi requires $12 in fees, no exams, no experience, and no education, giving it the lowest burden and lowest cost of the 28 states that license taxidermists. That pricing has since changed: the current Taxidermy Permit application on MDWFP’s licensing portal lists the permit as free for the 2026 license year.
Pro Tip: Because Mississippi requires no exam or apprenticeship, there is no reason to skip the permit application. A free credential is far cheaper than the fines and license revocation that come with getting caught without one.
Commercial Taxidermy vs Mounting Your Own Legally Taken Wildlife in Mississippi
The permit requirement targets people performing taxidermy for someone else, not hunters preserving their own harvest. Federal rules make this distinction explicit: a Federal Taxidermy permit is required to perform taxidermy services on migratory birds or their parts, nests, or eggs for someone other than yourself. Mississippi’s state permit system follows the same commercial-versus-personal logic, so mounting a deer you tagged and processed yourself generally falls outside the professional licensing requirement.
That said, the animal still has to be legally taken in the first place. If you hunted the specimen, your harvest needs to comply with Mississippi’s hunting laws, including season dates, bag limits, and tagging requirements. If you picked up a specimen off the roadway instead, you need to check Mississippi’s roadkill salvage rules before you skin it, because possessing wildlife you did not lawfully take or salvage can create legal exposure even if you never charge anyone a dime for the work.
The line between hobby and business blurs quickly once money changes hands. Accepting payment, advertising your services, or regularly mounting animals for friends in exchange for compensation pushes you into commercial territory, where the state permit and any applicable federal permit both apply.
What Species You Can and Cannot Mount in Mississippi (Game, Nongame, and Unprotected)
Not every animal that crosses a taxidermist’s bench is legal to possess, let alone mount. Mississippi’s most commonly mounted game species is the white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and only meat from cervids that has been completely deboned or bone-in quarters with no spinal column or head attached, hides with no head attached, finished taxidermy products, antlers with no tissue attached, and cleaned skulls or skull plates may be transported outside CWD Zones or into Mississippi from any other state or country. That single rule affects how a mounted deer head can legally move once it leaves the taxidermist’s shop.
Nongame native birds occupy a much more restrictive category. Protected nongame birds such as songbirds, hawks, and owls can be legally brought to a taxidermist by game wardens, Federal agents, or holders of appropriate State and Federal permits, but once mounted, these birds can be legally possessed only by public scientific and educational institutions or individuals or facilities that have a valid Special Purpose Possession Dead permit — personal possession of nongame birds is prohibited. That means even a licensed taxidermist generally cannot mount a hawk for a private customer to hang on the wall.
Unprotected and invasive species sit at the opposite end of the spectrum. English sparrows (Passer domesticus), common starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), and feral pigeons or rock doves (Columba livia) are not native to the United States and are not protected by Federal law, so they can typically be mounted and possessed without special permits. Furbearers like coyotes fall into a similarly permissive category when taken under Mississippi’s coyote hunting laws, and legally harvested fish taken under Mississippi’s spearfishing regulations can also be mounted without the added federal layer that applies to birds.
| Species Category | Mounting Status | Key Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Game species (deer, turkey, waterfowl) | Mountable with proper tags | Legal harvest, proper tagging, CWD transport rules for deer |
| Unprotected/invasive species (starlings, sparrows, pigeons, coyotes) | Mountable | Generally no special federal permit needed |
| Native nongame birds (songbirds, hawks, owls) | Mounting restricted | Only public institutions or Special Purpose Possession Dead permit holders may keep the finished mount |
| Migratory game birds (ducks, geese) | Mountable for others only with federal permit | Federal Taxidermy Permit and tagging under 50 CFR 20.36 |
Federal Overlay You Still Must Follow: Migratory Bird Taxidermy Permits (MBTA)
Mississippi’s state permit is not the only paperwork a taxidermist needs. A Federal Taxidermy permit is required to perform taxidermy services on migratory birds or their parts, nests, or eggs for someone other than yourself, and this permit authorizes you to receive and temporarily possess legally acquired, properly tagged migratory birds for mounting or other preparation.
Applicants face a straightforward but strict process. You must apply as an individual and be at least 18 years old to hold a federal taxidermy permit. Once you receive a bird for mounting, you can receive and mount migratory game birds taken and possessed in accordance with applicable Federal and State hunting regulations, and all such birds must be properly tagged as required by 50 CFR 20.36 — the tag may be removed during taxidermy operations but must be retained and reattached after mounting, remaining attached until the specimen is delivered to the owner.
Crucially, the federal permit does not stand alone. Your permit is not valid unless you also are in compliance with State requirements, meaning that if your State requires a permit to perform taxidermy on migratory game birds, you must hold a valid State permit for your Federal permit to be valid. Since Mississippi does require its own taxidermy permit, both credentials have to be active at the same time. Applications route through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Division of Migratory Bird Management, and processing typically takes 60 to 90 days, so apply well before you plan to accept your first duck or goose for mounting.
Endangered, Threatened, and CITES Specimens in Mississippi
Federally protected species carry the strictest possession rules of any category a taxidermist will encounter. Endangered and threatened species listed under the federal Endangered Species Act cannot be taken, possessed, or mounted without a federal permit, and species covered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) face additional restrictions on any interstate or international movement of the finished mount, feathers, hide, or other parts.
The nongame bird restriction covered earlier applies here as well: once mounted, protected birds can be legally possessed only by public scientific and educational institutions or facilities holding a valid Special Purpose Possession Dead permit. If a customer brings in a specimen you suspect is federally listed, mounting it for private display is not an option regardless of how the animal died.
Mississippi also routes certain specimen requests through its state museum system rather than MDWFP alone. Collecting Permits for the museum are handled at 601-576-6060, which is the number to call if you are working with a scientific or educational institution on a specimen that may carry endangered or threatened status.
Important Note: MDWFP’s public permit pages do not itemize every state- or federally-listed species restriction for taxidermy purposes. Before accepting any specimen you cannot positively identify as unprotected, verify its status directly with USFWS or the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science rather than assuming it is legal to mount.
Recordkeeping, Tagging, and Inspection Rules for Taxidermists in Mississippi
Holding a permit comes with ongoing compliance duties, not just a one-time application. Under the federal taxidermy permit, accepting the permit authorizes an agent of the Service to enter your premises at any reasonable hour to inspect the wildlife you hold, along with your books and records. Any change in circumstances matters too: address or location changes must be reported to your Regional Migratory Bird Permit Office in writing within 10 days so your permit can be amended.
Bird tags carry their own chain-of-custody rule, discussed above under the federal permit section, and taxidermists who remove a tag during mounting must reattach it before the bird leaves the shop.
Mississippi layers an additional recordkeeping requirement onto deer taxidermy because of chronic wasting disease (CWD) monitoring. The process works in three steps:
- A hunter must obtain a CWD sample number from a participating taxidermist before transporting a deer head outside an MDWFP-defined CWD Management Zone.
- That sample number must accompany the deer head during transport and be available for inspection by law enforcement upon request.
- The deer head must be delivered to the participating taxidermist within 5 days of receiving the sample number.
Common Mistake: Taxidermists who skip logging CWD sample numbers, or who let a migratory bird tag fall off before delivery, risk violating both state and federal permit conditions at once — even when the underlying harvest was completely legal.
Unclaimed Mounts: Can a Taxidermist Sell Abandoned Work in Mississippi?
Customers occasionally never come back for a finished mount, leaving taxidermists holding inventory they cannot legally cash in the way other abandoned-property businesses can. According to accounts shared among Mississippi hunters, taxidermists in the state generally cannot sell deer heads, mounts, antlers, or any parts of game animals, even if the original customer walked away and never paid the balance. Selling legally harvested furbearer species is treated differently and is generally permitted, but game animals remain off-limits for resale.
A real enforcement example illustrates the risk. One Mississippi taxidermist and his son sold a customer’s unclaimed deer head along with a mounted bobcat that had a fox squirrel — killed by a vehicle — in its mouth, and they were caught in a sting operation. The case shows that even a sympathetic motive, like recovering unpaid mounting fees, does not create a legal exception for selling game animal parts.
Many working taxidermists have adapted by changing their business practices upfront rather than gambling on a resale later. Charging a deposit at drop-off protects against unpaid balances without requiring the shop to sell anything it legally cannot.
Important Note: State statutes do not spell out a clear procedure for disposing of abandoned mounts. Before selling, destroying, or repurposing any unclaimed work, contact MDWFP Law Enforcement directly to confirm your options.
Penalties for Unlicensed Taxidermy or Illegal Possession in Mississippi
Mississippi enforces wildlife possession and sale violations aggressively, and taxidermists are not exempt just because the illegal item passed through their shop rather than their gun. In the sting case referenced above, the taxidermist and his son paid the same fine as a spotlighter would — over $2,000 apiece — and lost their hunting licenses for a year.
That penalty structure reflects MDWFP’s broader regulatory authority over the state’s wildlife resources. The agency issues hunting and fishing licenses, advises on habitat protection, and sponsors public education programs, and its conservation officers have the authority to cite, fine, and suspend licenses for violations tied to illegal wildlife possession or sale — including specimens accepted for taxidermy without verifying their legal origin.
Key Insight: Accepting an illegally taken animal for mounting can expose the taxidermist to the same charges as the person who poached it. Always ask for proof of legal harvest — a tag, permit, or hunting license number — before taking in a specimen you did not personally verify.
Where to Apply and Who to Call in Mississippi (Wildlife Agency + USFWS)
Two separate agencies handle Mississippi taxidermy paperwork, and you may need to deal with both depending on what species you plan to mount.
- MDWFP Wildlife Bureau: Apply for the state Taxidermy Permit through the online licensing portal, where the Taxidermy Permit application for the 2026 license year is listed as free. The Taxidermist Application is also part of a broader list of wildlife permits the Bureau processes alongside commercial quail breeder and shooting preserve applications.
- Phone contact: Taxidermy Permits are handled by MDWFP at 601-432-2199.
- Mailing/headquarters address: MDWFP is headquartered at 1505 Eastover Drive, Jackson, MS 39211.
- USFWS Migratory Bird Permits: Contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Division of Migratory Bird Management to apply for the federal Taxidermy Permit (Form 3-200-8) if you plan to accept migratory birds from customers.
Gather your identification and any prior hunting license numbers before you start either application, since both agencies ask for identifying information tied to your legal hunting history. If you plan to work with cervid heads, confirm with your local participating taxidermist whether your county falls inside a CWD Management Zone, since that status changes the recordkeeping steps outlined earlier in this guide.
Important Note: This article summarizes publicly available Mississippi and federal wildlife regulations for general informational purposes and is not legal advice. Regulations and permit fees change; confirm current requirements with MDWFP or a licensed attorney before starting commercial taxidermy work.
Getting both the state permit and, if needed, the federal migratory bird permit in place before you accept your first paying customer keeps your business on the right side of Mississippi’s wildlife laws. Skipping either one trades a modest amount of paperwork for a real risk of fines, license revocation, and seized specimens.