Authority: IC 14-10-2-4; IC 14-22-2-6

Affected: IC 14-22-11-1; IC 14-22-11-10; IC 14-22-12-1

Sec. 18.2. (a) An individual may trap a river otter (Lontra canadensis) beginning November 15 and ending either:

1. (1) March 15 of the following calendar year; or
2. (2) the date on which the statewide quota set forth in subsection (f) is reached;

whichever is earlier. An individual who sets a trap for a river otter must be at least ten (10) years of age, unless the individual passed a state certified trapper education course.

(b) Except as provided under IC 14-22-11-1, an individual may not trap a river otter unless the individual possesses at least one (1) of the following Indiana trapping licenses:

1. (1) A resident yearly trapping license under IC 14-22-12-1(a)(4).
2. (2) A nonresident yearly trapping license under IC 14-22-12-1(a)(7).
3. (3) A resident youth consolidated hunting, trapping, and fishing license under IC 14-22-12-1(a)(24) or IC 14-22-11-10(b).
4. (4) A nonresident youth yearly trapping license under IC 14-22-12-1(a)(26).
5. (5) A lifetime basic trapping license under IC 14-22-12-7(a)(6) before its repeal.

(c) An individual may not take more than two (2) river otters in a river otter trapping season. An individual who sets a trap that captures a river otter shall count the river otter toward the bag limit for the river otter trapping season.

(d) An individual who traps a river otter alive and does not include it in the individual's bag limit shall release the river otter into the wild in the location where the river otter is captured immediately after discovering that a river otter is caught in the trap.

(e) An individual may trap a river otter in any county in the state.

(f) The statewide quota for trapping a river otter during a river otter trapping season is seven hundred fifty (750). The department shall track the statewide quota for river otters on the department's website.

(g) An individual shall not trap a river otter after the:

1. (1) individual's bag limit is reached; or
2. (2) river otter trapping season ends.

(h) An individual who takes a river otter shall report the take or ensure the take is reported by providing the information required by the department's electronic harvest reporting system not later than twenty-four (24) hours after taking the river otter. An individual reporting a take under this subsection shall provide true and accurate information to the department. An individual shall keep the confirmation number provided by the department's electronic harvest reporting system with the river otter until the river otter is checked in with a designated department employee or at an official river otter checking station.

(i) An individual who takes a river otter during the river otter trapping season shall retain possession of the river otter and ensure delivery of the skinned hide and carcass, including the head, of the river otter to a designated department employee or official river otter checking station not later than fifteen (15) days after the month the river otter is harvested. The department employee shall:

1. (1) issue a tag and attach it to each hide under 50 CFR 23.69; and
2. (2) retain possession of the skinned river otter carcass.

(j) A river otter, including the hide and any other part of the river otter, taken during the river otter trapping season may not be:

1. (1) sold;
2. (2) traded;
3. (3) bartered;
4. (4) gifted;
5. (5) transferred to a taxidermist or any other person; or
6. (6) shipped;

until the river otter is registered through the department's electronic registration system and issued a tag by a department employee under subsection (i).

(k) After registering the river otter and obtaining the tag from the department under this section, an individual who takes a river otter may:

1. (1) sell;
2. (2) trade;
3. (3) barter;
4. (4) ship; or
5. (5) otherwise transfer;

the hide of the river otter under this section and 50 CFR 23.69.

(l) An individual may possess the untanned hide of a river otter lawfully obtained at any time of the year.

(m) An individual may not possess a live river otter except as follows:

1. (1) With a wild animal rehabilitation permit under 312 IAC 9-10-9.
2. (2) With a scientific purposes license under 312 IAC 9-10-6.
3. (3) With a nuisance wild animal control permit under 312 IAC 9-10-11.
4. (4) With a registered or licensed educational or scientific institution with the United States Department of Agriculture under 9 CFR, Chapter 1, Subchapter A, Parts I through IV.
5. (5) With a breeder, dealer, or exhibitor license issued by the United States Department of Agriculture under 9 CFR, Chapter 1, Subchapter A, Parts I through IV.

(n) An individual may not sell a live river otter unless the individual has a breeder, dealer, or exhibitor license issued by the United States Department of Agriculture under 9 CFR, Chapter 1, Subchapter A, Parts I through IV.

(o) An individual who takes a river otter with a trap that captures and immediately kills the river otter:

1. (1) during the river otter trapping season after the individual's bag limit is met; or
2. (2) outside the river otter trapping season;

shall notify the department not later than forty-eight (48) hours after taking the river otter. The individual shall make arrangements to turn the river otter over to the department.

(Natural Resources Commission; 312 IAC 9-3-18.2; filed Jun 23, 2006, 2:24 p.m.: 20060719-IR-312050214FRA; readopted filed Nov 24, 2008, 11:08 a.m.: 20081210-IR-312080672RFA; filed Mar 12, 2010, 1:28 p.m.: 20100407-IR-312090479FRA; readopted filed May 20, 2014, 9:43 a.m.: 20140618-IR-312140017RFA; filed Feb 26, 2015, 2:01 p.m.: 20150325-IR-312140341FRA; filed Jun 21, 2018, 1:45 p.m.: 20180718-IR-312170436FRA; readopted filed Sep 18, 2019, 1:16 p.m.: 20191016-IR-312190325RFA; filed Oct 30, 2024, 10:39 a.m.: 20241127-IR-312240086FRA; readopted filed Mar 25, 2025, 9:50 a.m.: 20250423-IR-312240574RFA)