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Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking public comment on tentative bison and furbearer seasons and quotas and the proposed wolf quotas adopted by the FWP Commission at its June 12 meeting.
BISON FWP Commissioners tentatively approved a 2008 bison season identical to the 2007 season structure except there would be one season-long hunter list for cow/calf licenses in each of the two hunting districts, 385 and 395. An educational DVD would replace the hunter orientation test.
As in 2007, in hunting district 385, in the Gardiner area north of Yellowstone National Park, there would be 18 either-sex bison-hunting licenses, and 26 either-sex licenses would be issued in bison hunting district 395, the West Yellowstone area. Another 100 cow/calf licenses may become available if significant numbers of bison migrate into Montana. The season would run from Nov. 15 to Feb. 15, in four different hunting periods.
FURBEARER The Commission approved tentative 2008 and 2009 furbearer seasons, quotas and general regulation changes, including a statewide reduction in the wolverine quota from 10 to nine.
Bobcat quotas in FWP Region 6 would increase from 100 to 125 and in FWP Region 7 from 700 to 800.
In the general furbearer regulations:
- · The distance that ground sets would need to be set back from trailheads on public lands would increase from 300 to 1,000 feet.
- · proposed wording would add that the reporting of incidental captures is necessary for information gathering on accidental dog captures, and
- · U.S. Forest Service recreation areas near Missoula would be closed to furbearer trapping.
For portions of trapping districts one and two that overlap core lynx habitat, the FWP Commissioners proposed restrictions to help prevent accidental capture of lynx.
WOLVES The proposed statewide quota for Montana's anticipated wolf season is 75 wolves, including a: total quota of 38 in Northern Montana's wolf management unit 1, with a subquota of two wolves in the North Fork Flathead subunit; total quota of 22 wolves in Western Montana's wolf management unit 2, and total quota of 15 in Southwestern Montana's wolf management unit 3.
For details on these tentative seasons and quotas, go to the FWP web site at fwp.mt.gov on the Hunting page and click on the red links.
July 18 is the deadline to comment in writing or electronically. Comments may be mailed to: FWP—Wildlife Division, Attn: Public Comment, P.O. Box 200701, Helena, MT. 59620-0701. Or, to comment on the FWP web site go to the Hunting page and click on the red links provided. For further assistance, call: 406-444-2612.
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