Part 3: Depredation hunts: Idaho Fish and Game's most misunderstood hunts

Most hunters think of Idaho deer and elk hunts occurring in the fall when they get to pursue their favorite quarry across Idaho’s vast backcountry and additional hunting access provided on private lands ranging from corporate timberlands to rural farms and ranches. 

Many of the traditional, general and controlled hunts fall hunts are influenced by depredation problems and geared toward reducing landowner conflicts and providing additional public hunting opportunities. There are other hunts that often cause confusion, such as "depredation hunts," which are strategic hunts solely intended to reduce damage to private lands caused by big game animals. 

Fish and Game manages for healthy and abundant big game herds, but those animals don’t recognize property boundaries, and many of Idaho’s big game herds spend at least part of their year on private lands. Those visits often occur during seasonal migrations, or in winter when forage on public land is covered with snow. 

Idahoans value wildlife, and that includes landowners who appreciate and accept elk and deer on their property, often even when they cause some inconveniences and damage to their crops. But when those animals cause unacceptable damage, Fish and Game uses a variety of tools to reduce, or eliminate, conflicts. 

Fish and Game tries to maintain support for big game on private lands in many ways, including using nonlethal techniques, which you can read about here.

Fish and Game also uses strategic hunts to prevent or reduce big game damage to private lands. These hunting methods can include Landowner Permission Hunts, Depredation Hunts, and kill permits issued directly to the landowner. Each is a little different, but all are intended to reduce damages and maintain support for abundant big game herds. The meat is always utilized from these hunts, either by the hunter, landowner, or it is professionally processed and donated to food banks. 

What are Landowner Permission Hunts? 

Landowner Permission Hunts, or LPH hunts, are a form of depredation hunt that is used primarily on private lands with chronic depredations and during times of year when the animals are likely to be causing damage. That’s why some hunts run before or after traditional fall hunts. Simply put, you can’t hunt the animals that are causing problems if they’re not there, so these hunts take place when the animals are likely to be in the act of depredating agriculture. 

How are LPH tags distributed? 

Vouchers are distributed to landowners on an as-needed basis when an active depredation event has been verified by Fish and Game staff. In some cases, a portion of the vouchers are distributed proactively to landowners with chronic depredation issues. The remaining vouchers are provided to landowners in response to verified depredations. 

Who decides who gets a LPH tag voucher? 

That’s up to the discretion of the landowner who is having the depredation, and any hunter who is eligible to possess an Idaho hunting license (resident or nonresident) for the current calendar year can participate if approved by the landowner. 

How many LPH tags are available each year? 

That depends. The numbers listed in the LPH brochure represent the maximum number of tags allowed. If depredations are low, the number of tags available will be lower because the intent of the hunt is to manage the depredation, not provide maximum hunting opportunity. 

Can an LPH tag be used outside of private property? 

Sometimes. Each hunt has a legal boundary, and some hunt areas are restricted to private land. Hunters may hunt anywhere within the legal hunt area boundaries assuming they have permission on private land. 

If it’s to stop depredations on private land, why aren’t LPH hunts restricted to private land? 

Animals may come onto private lands to feed at night (outside of legal hunting hours), then return to public land, or other private lands, during the day. Because the goal is to eliminate or reduce wildlife depredations, hunters may need to access those animals on public land. 

Where can I find out more about LPH hunts? 

Each year, Fish and Game has a supplemental Season and Rules booklet outlining LPH hunts on their website (see link to LPH brochure above). 

How do Depredation Hunts differ from LPH hunts? 

Depredation hunts are initiated in response to active depredation when it's happening. Typically, they’re in reponse to short-term, or new, situations caused by relatively few animals. They are held on short notice, usually involve relatively small areas, and typically, landowners can distribute half the tags and Fish and Game distributes the rest based on a list of hunters who earlier applied to participate. These strategic hunts can often remove specific animals causing problems, or drive the rest of the herd away from the private land.  

Hunters apply for these hunts between May and June each year not knowing when, or if, a depredation hunt will be needed, or if they will be called to participate. Essentially, they are “on call” if a problem arises. Most regions issue only a handful of depredation permits each year.

What are kill permits?

Sometimes organizing a depredation hunt is infeasible due to timing and/or logistics, and the Fish and Game Director has the option of issuing “kill permits” directly to a landowner. As implied, these are not hunting tags in a traditional sense, they are permits to allow the landowner, or their designee, to kill a specific number and species of animal on their property that are causing damage. These may be used if individual animals, or small herds, are consistently causing problems, and removing an individual, or a few, animals can help solve the problem. 

If depredation problems persist, a landowner can file a claim for depredation reimbursement, which you can read about in Part 4. 

What are agency-led removals?

These are rare, but needed when specific depredation problems can’t be effectively resolved by other types of hunts. An example might be where animals have a safe haven where a nearby landowner allows no hunting, and elk use that property as refuge during the day and then feed on neighboring properties at night. Because public hunting after hours is illegal and comes with a variety of public safety concerns, trained Fish and Game staff, or agents from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services, can quickly and safely remove offending animals.