Commission Sets Bird Seasons, Adjusts Mountain Lion Season

Idaho bird hunters will get a liberal mourning dove season, more sandhill crane tags, and an early Canada goose season in southeastern Idaho this year. Hound hunters will also be allowed to use dogs to pursue mountain lions and black bears during November in some northern Idaho units. On Thursday July 30, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission approved the earliest and most liberal Mourning dove season allowed. The dove season will last 60 days, from September 1 through October 30. The daily bag limit will be 15 birds and the possession limit will be 45. To stay at or below the Pacific Flyway harvest allocation of 166 Sandhill cranes, the commission approved increasing tags numbers to 290. Since 2009, when tags were made available on a first-come first-served basis, the harvest per tag purchased has averaged 48 percent. The sandhill crane season will run September 1-15, with a daily and season limit of two birds. Tags go on sale August 1 at 10 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time and cost $15. Season information is available at Fish and Game offices and website at http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/public/hunt/rules/?getPage=67, and will be available at license vendors in the Southeast and Upper Snake regions by early to mid-August. An early Canada goose hunting season was also approved to address goose depredation issues in agricultural areas in Bear Lake, Caribou, and a portion of Bingham counties. The season will run September 1-15, with a daily bag limit of 5 and a possession limit of 15. Season information will be available at Fish and Game offices, website, and license vendors in the Southeast and Upper Snake regions by mid-August. The commission also reduced the number of days dogs are prohibited from pursuing mountain lions to October 10-31 in Units 4, 4A, 6, 7 and 9. This aligns the period when hounds can be used for pursuing mountain lions and black bears in these units during the fall seasons.