October in Alaska: young coyotes are on the move

Coyote Season in Alaska: Mating, Pups and Pet Safety

Q: When is coyote mating season in Alaska?

Coyotes in Alaska mate from January to March. Alaska Fish and Game puts it this way: “Coyotes breed between January and March.” It is the loudest stretch of the coyote year: pairs court and mark their ground, and coyotes travel farther and show up more often by day.

Q: Is it legal to hunt coyotes in Alaska?

Yes. Under the 2026 to 2027 rules from Alaska Fish and Game, coyote hunting is open all year in most of Alaska, with no bag limit there; the exception is two coyotes, Sept 1 to Apr 30, in Units 1 to 5, 18 and 22. You need a hunting license (or a trapping license, following the trapping seasons and methods).

Q: What do I do if a coyote follows me?

Do not run. Wild Aware Utah puts it this way: “Do not run or turn your back on a coyote that has approached you. Face the coyote, shout at it, be as big and loud as possible, wave your arms and back away slowly.”

Q: Who do I call about a coyote in Alaska?

Report it online: ADF&G Report Wildlife Encounters.

Q: When is coyote trapping season in Alaska?

Coyote trapping in Alaska has 9 seasons under the 2026 to 2027 rules from Alaska Fish and Game: Units 1 to 5, November 1, 2026 to April 30, 2027; Units 6, 7, and 15, November 10, 2026 to March 31, 2027, and 7 more by unit or area.

In Alaska, coyotes mate from January to March, according to Alaska Fish and Game; coyote hunting is open all year in most units.

October in Alaska: Dispersal

Months per Alaska Fish and Game

The young of the year leave home to find their own ground, crossing roads and turning up in neighborhoods new to them.

For pets: Young coyotes new to a place are still learning what to avoid: keep cats indoors and walk dogs on a short leash at dawn and dusk.

In Alaska, the young of the year leave home from August to November, according to Alaska Fish and Game.

Next comes mating season, from January.

Family units may begin to break up as early as August, although is not unusual for them to remain together into November or even later.

Alaska Fish and Game, read October 13, 2026. Read it at the source

JanMating
FebMating
MarMating
AprPups
MayPups
JunPups
JulFamily
AugDispersal
SepDispersal
OctDispersalNow
NovDispersal
DecDispersal

Mating season: January to March, per Alaska Fish and Game
Pup season: April to June, from the national calendar
Family season: July, from the national calendar
Dispersal: August to November, per Alaska Fish and Game

Pets and yards

How to keep pets safe from coyotes in Alaska

REMEMBER: a wild animal's best chance for survival is to be left in the wild. It is illegal for you to feed or handle wildlife.

Alaska Fish and Game, read October 13, 2026. Read it at the source

What most state agencies advise

Secure garbage and compost, advised in 35 states

Contain garbage in a closed receptacle.

Iowa DNR. Read it at the source

Feed pets indoors, advised in 31 states

Do not feed pets outside.

NYS DEC in New York. Read it at the source

Walk dogs on a leash, advised in 28 states

Walk your dog on a leash when outdoors.

ODFW in Oregon. Read it at the source

If a coyote comes close

Moving toward the coyote while waving your arms or clapping.

CT DEEP in Connecticut. Read it at the source

If a coyote follows you

Any wild animal that is aggressive or approaches humans or that has been seen hanging around a campground or neighborhood.

Alaska Fish and Game, read October 13, 2026. Read it at the source

More on living with coyotes in Alaska: Alaska Fish and Game.

Four young coyote pups outside a den dug into a dirt bank, one standing at the entrance looking out — Four pups outside their den in the bank above Big Dry Creek at Metzger Farm Open Space, Colorado, in mid May. Photo: Jim Kennedy. “Four Coyote Pups by Den in Metzger Farm Open Space, Colorado (17614272575)”, nature80020, CC BY 2.0

Whom to call

Who to call about a coyote in Alaska

For a coyote that is bold around people, pets or homes in Alaska:

ADF&G Report Wildlife Encounters

Report it online

Hunting and trapping

Coyote hunting and trapping in Alaska

Hunting: All year in most units2026 to 2027 rules
Bag limit: No limit in most units; two coyotes, Sept 1 to Apr 30, in Units 1 to 5, 18 and 22
License: A hunting license (or a trapping license, following the trapping seasons and methods)
Night hunting: With limits
Trapping: 9 seasons2026 to 2027 rules
Units 1 to 5: Nov 1 to Apr 30
Units 6, 7, and 15: Nov 10 to Mar 31
Unit 14C: Nov 10 to Feb 28
Units 9 to 11, 13, 14A, 14B, 16, and 17: Nov 10 to Mar 31
Units 12 and 20E: Oct 15 to Apr 30
Units 19, 20 (except 20E), 21, 24, and 25: Nov 1 to Mar 31
Units 26B and 26C: Nov 1 to Apr 15
Unit 18: Nov 10 to Mar 31
Units 22, 23, and 26A: Nov 1 to Apr 15

Coyotes are managed as a furbearer in Alaska, and may also be taken with a hunting license.

Alaska Fish and Game, read October 13, 2026. Read it at the source

Read the rules at the source: hunting season and night hunting.

Read from each source on October 13, 2026. Methods, night rules and public land rules can change by unit, so read Alaska Fish and Game’s page before you go out. Every state’s coyote seasons.

Sightings

When people report coyotes in Alaska

177 research grade records from Alaska, every year from 2016 to 2025 combined, by the month they were made. Most are logged in February. A record is a person’s photograph confirmed by others, so the bars count sightings rather than coyotes.

Reading the last thirty days of reports from iNaturalist.

Alaska coyote questions

When is coyote mating season in Alaska?

Is it legal to hunt coyotes in Alaska?

What do I do if a coyote follows me?

Who do I call about a coyote in Alaska?

When is coyote trapping season in Alaska?

Coyote season in other states

Small game season in AlaskaPheasant, quail, grouse, rabbit and squirrel season dates Hunting license in AlaskaWhat a license costs, plus the tag Deer season in AlaskaArchery, firearms, muzzleloader and youth deer dates Attic wildlife in AlaskaWhen you may evict animals from an attic Bear hibernation in AlaskaWhen bears den and wake, and when to take feeders down

A coyote standing among sagebrush and grass coated white with hoar frost, looking toward the camera — A coyote hunting meadow voles in hoar frost on Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, Wyoming, at the end of December. Photo: Tom Koerner, USFWS. “Coyote in hoar frost on Seedskadee NWR (13234615673)”, USFWS Mountain-Prairie, Public domain

Every fact links to the page it was read from, each read October 13, 2026. Mating, pup and dispersal months are the agency’s own where it prints them; the national calendar fills the rest. Sighting counts are iNaturalist research grade records, which count sightings, not coyotes. Coyote season across the country.