South Dakota Spearfishing Rules Card

Legal status

Saltwater RestrictedFreshwater Permitted

South Dakota is a landlocked state with no saltwater, so there is no marine spearfishing; South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks (GFP) governs all freshwater spearing.

License

Required: South Dakota Fishing License (plus the habitat stamp for those 18+)

Resident: Resident annual fishing $31; resident 1-day fishing $10; resident senior (65+) annual fishing $17; resident senior combination $43. Residents age 18+ also need the $10 annual habitat stamp (not required for the 1-day license).

Non-resident: Nonresident annual fishing $80; nonresident 3-day (consecutive) $45; nonresident 1-day $26. Nonresidents age 18+ also need the $25 annual habitat stamp for annual/3-day licenses (not required for the 1-day license).

Gear rules

• Spearguns: Legal. GFP defines a 'speargun' as a muscle-loaded device propelling a spear attached to a line no more than 20 feet long.
• Pole spears: A hand/pole spear falls under the GFP definition of 'spear': a shaft with a sharp, barbed point or points propelled by muscle power -.
• On scuba: Underwater spearing (free-diving or SCUBA) is contemplated and legal: GFP requires a diver-down flag and 75-foot rules for anyone spearing.
• Speargun spears must be attached to a line no more than 20 feet long
• Spearing/bowfishing is allowed only from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset
• Speared/bowfished fish must meet the same length limits and count toward the same daily and possession limits as hook-and-line fishing
• Party-fishing provisions do NOT apply to a person using spearing or archery equipment

Do not spear

• Paddlefish may NOT be taken by spear/spear gun
• Muskellunge
• Sturgeon may NOT be speared
• Salmonids
• Walleye may NOT be speared from Horseshoe and Reetz Lakes
• Northern pike and catfish spearing is closed in muskie-managed lakes

Area restrictions

• Northern pike and all catfish: statewide, year-round, EXCEPT the muskie-managed lakes listed above
• Inland waters and the Missouri River: all game fish except paddlefish/muskie/sturgeon, May 1-March 31 (trout/salmon closed in the Black Hills.
• Lake Oahe (Oahe Dam upstream to the North Dakota state line): open May 1-March 31 (grouped under Missouri River Inland Waters in the 2026 handbook)
• South Dakota-Nebraska border waters (Missouri River from the Big Sioux confluence upstream to the state line where the river is entirely within SD.

Before you dive

• Never dive alone: one up, one down.
• Check current seasons and sizes the morning of the dive.
• Confirm with South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks (GFP): https://gfp.sd.gov