Can you play the Coyote Challenge? Kill a coyote and enter Georgia’s contest

Kill a coyote and you could win a prize.

That’s according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, which this spring triggers its second annual “Coyote Challenge” for residents who kill a coyote and enter the contest.

Up to 10 entrees are allowed, or 10 coyote carcasses.

“Take a photo of the coyote with your phone. Email that photo to coyote.challenge@dnr.ga.gov,” says the DNR. “Photos should include the entire, intact carcass. You will receive an autoreply that will provide a link to the entry form. Be sure to fill out the form and include your email address.”

Like any contest, this one has rules to keep in mind, beyond the ability to recognize a coyote, and whether discharging a firearm is safe and legal at the time.

Coyotes have infiltrated Columbus neighborhoods where shooting them for sport would not be legal. The city hires trappers to catch and kill them.

The DNR Coyote Challenge rules say the coyotes must be killed in Georgia, and “road-kills, spoiled carcasses, coyotes that have been ear-notched, and live coyotes are not eligible. Metadata on all submissions will be analyzed to determine the date and location of the provided image.”

The contest runs March 1 through Aug. 31, with three drawings for a lifetime license, equal to $750 of credit for hunting and fishing licenses or “a prize of similar value.”

The spring and summer will be peak times to target the nuisance predators, said John Bowers, game management chief for the DNR’s Wildlife Resources Division.

“While many hunters, trappers and landowners already make use of the fact that coyotes can be taken year round, the Coyote Challenge emphasizes the utility of removing these non-native predators during the critical spring-summer period for landowners concerned about native wildlife,” he said.

This story was originally published February 21, 2018 at 3:12 PM with the headline "Can you play the Coyote Challenge? Kill a coyote and enter Georgia’s contest."