Antelope unit 38A, South Dakota: licenses, harvest and hunting land
GFP's firearm antelope unit 38A is Hyde, Hand, Buffalo. For 2026 GFP lists 5 resident buck licenses and 1 nonresident license here. In 2025, by GFP's projection, hunters took 2 antelope in unit 38A, and 14 residents and 3 nonresidents named it as their first choice in the first drawing.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest and first-choice applicants: GFP harvest projections, 2020 to 2025. Licenses and seasons: GFP 2026 application. Land: GFP map layers.
| GFP's description | Hyde, Hand, Buffalo |
|---|---|
| Counties | Hyde, Buffalo, Hand |
| Season | Firearm antelope, October 3-18, 2026 |
| Licenses, 2026 | 5 resident, 1 nonresident |
| Antelope taken, 2025 | 2 (GFP projection) |
| First-choice resident applicants, 2025 | 14 |
| First draw, 2026 | June 16 to July 7, 2026 |
How many antelope licenses does unit 38A have in 2026?
5 resident and 1 nonresident licenses, by GFP's 2026 application.
| Type | What the license allows | Resident | Nonresident |
|---|---|---|---|
| 42 | one buck antelope | 5 | 1 |
Source: GFP 2026 firearm antelope application.
How many antelope are taken in unit 38A?
GFP projects 2 antelope were taken in unit 38A in 2025, from 5 licenses sold. That is 71% fewer than in 2020. The most in these years was 10 in 2022, the fewest 2 in 2025. GFP puts hunter success at 33%.
| Year | Antelope taken | Licenses sold | First-choice resident applicants | First-choice nonresident applicants | Tag success | Satisfaction (1 to 7) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 3 | 33% | 4 |
| 2024 | 2 | 5 | 25 | 6 | 33% | 5 |
| 2023 | 2 | 10 | 35 | 2 | 17% | 5 |
| 2022 | 10 | 10 | 37 | 3 | 100% | 5 |
| 2021 | 6 | 11 | 51 | 7 | 50% | 4 |
| 2020 | 7 | 11 | 53 | 2 | 60% | 5.13 |
Sources: GFP, 2025 Firearm Antelope harvest report; GFP, 2024 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2025-07); GFP, 2023 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2024-04); GFP, 2022 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2023-05); GFP, 2021 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2022-08); GFP, 2020 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2021-12). GFP rounds each column of its projection.
Each license type in 2025
Type 42 had 14 first-choice resident applicants for 5 resident licenses.
| Type | License | Resident first-choice applicants | Resident licenses available | Resident licenses sold | Nonresident first-choice applicants | Nonresident licenses available | Hunter success | Antelope taken |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 42 | one buck antelope | 14 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 33% | 2 |
Licenses sold can include later drawings and leftovers.
When is antelope season in unit 38A in 2026?
October 3-18, 2026; the first draw closed July 7, 2026 (GFP 2026 firearm antelope application). Every season's dates are on the South Dakota page.
What public land is in the counties of unit 38A?
For the whole counties, as GFP publishes no unit lines:
| County | Walk-In and CREP acres | Game production area acres | School and public land acres | Federal land acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyde County | 3,784 | 1,612 | 21,919 | 3,228 |
| Buffalo County | 9,637 | 290 | 0 | 5,080 |
| Hand County | 4,335 | 4,947 | 8,107 | 4,028 |
Game production areas in these counties: Hawkins GPA (1,280 acres, Hand), Collins GPA (1,120 acres, Hand), Lake Louise GPA (989 acres, Hand), Rice Lake GPA (876 acres, Hyde), Rezac Lake GPA (571 acres, Hyde), Curtis GPA (481 acres, Hand), Lechtenberg GPA (320 acres, Hand) and Pease GPA (290 acres, Buffalo).
Questions hunters ask
How many antelope licenses are there in unit 38A for 2026?
GFP's 2026 application lists 5 resident and 1 nonresident "one buck antelope" licenses (type 42) for unit 38A.
How many antelope are taken in unit 38A?
GFP projects 2 antelope were taken in unit 38A in 2025. In 2020 the figure was 7. The projection comes from GFP's survey of license holders.
How many people apply for antelope unit 38A?
In 2025, 14 residents and 3 nonresidents named unit 38A as their first choice in GFP's first drawing, for 5 resident licenses and 1 nonresident license.
What county is antelope unit 38A in?
GFP describes unit 38A as "Hyde, Hand, Buffalo", in Hyde, Buffalo and Hand counties. GFP's interactive hunting unit map shows the exact line.
Get a South Dakota hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for South Dakota are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, South Dakota included.
Where these numbers come from
- Harvest, licenses sold and first-choice applicants: GFP, 2025 Firearm Antelope harvest report; GFP, 2024 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2025-07); GFP, 2023 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2024-04); GFP, 2022 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2023-05); GFP, 2021 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2022-08); GFP, 2020 Annual Report, Big Game Harvest Projections (Game Report 2021-12).
- 2026 licenses, seasons and draws: GFP 2026 firearm antelope application.
- Land: GFP public hunting atlas layers (Walk-In Areas, CREP, school and public land, federal land) and GFP Managed Lands. County lines: U.S. Census Bureau 2024.
FilledTag is not part of South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks. Numbers are copied from GFP or measured from the maps it publishes; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.