FACT BRIEF

Does Nevada permit coyote killing contests?

Thursday, November 11, 2021

By Lisa Freedland

Copy link

Copy featured image

YES

Despite pressure from state Democrats, Nevada still permits coyote hunting tournaments.

Last Friday, Nevada's Wildlife Commission board voted 5-4 not to adopt an amendment that would have ended the practice. The proposed ban applied only to contests that award prizes for the most kills; hunters could still trap and kill coyotes, which have no species protections and can be killed without licenses. Hunters make up 2.35% of Nevada residents, according to Nevada Wildlife Department director Tony Wasley.

Opponents of the ban claim the contests serve as free predator control that the state would otherwise have to pay for and protect wildlife, livestock, and pets from coyotes.

Proponents argue the contests are too sporadic to contribute to population control and that coyotes provide ecosystem services such as eating rodents.

Since 2014, eight states have banned coyote killing contests.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

Las Vegas Review-Journal Coyote killing contests still allowed in Nevada

AP News Nevada officials hit impasse over coyote killing contests

Nevada Current Hunters and ranchers prevail, preserve coyote killing contests

ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR

Gigafact

Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

FACT BRIEF BY

Latest fact briefs

About fact briefs published on Gigafact

Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.