Frequently Asked Questions

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Idaho's 10 year (2014-2024) elk management plan was developed with the help of hunters, landowners, elected officials, land managers and other interested Idahoans. The elk plan establishes specific management goals that Fish and Game -- working with elk hunters and other elk enthusiasts -- will achieve over the next ten years. The Department of Fish and Game will continue to manage elk using the zone management system. The zone system allows herd management based on local habitat, weather, and herd movements, while providing a variety of hunting opportunities. This is the reason every elk hunter must select a zone when hunting elk in Idaho. You can find more information about the Elk management plan at http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/public/wildlife/planElk.pdf.

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Sorry to get back to you so late. I just had a chance to check out Cartier Slough WMA this morning. I found more water in the big channels than there has been in the last few years. We do not have control of the water on the WMA. We do not have any water rights from the river to fill channels. I still don't know why it comes and goes like it does. When the river is higher, it subs up and fills some of the channels. It will be there one week and gone the next. I can't promise that the water there now will be there when waterfowl opens. Depends on the river level. Below are a couple pictures I took on the NE side this morning. Most of the larger outer channels have this much water. I took pictures of water in most of the channels, but the file would be too large to send. If you went in from Beaver Dick Park, you may have hit some of the inner channels that don't get much water. If you want to find some these channels, please contact me and I can show you around. Thanks, Paul Faulkner 390-0617

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Heavy rain in the Middle Fork and South Fork Boise River drainages washed large amounts of sediment into the rivers.  Both systems drain into Arrowrock Reservoir - which is drawn down and discharging the sediment-laden water into Lucky Peak Reservoir. Here's where it gets interesting.  In the summer the water in Lucky Peak Reservoir stratifies with the warm water on the top of the reservoir and colder water on the bottom.  The sediment layer from Arrowrock Reservoir is moving along the bottom of the reservoir, and because the Lucky Peak Dam discharge takes water from the bottom of the reservoir, it's picking up the sediment laden water and passing it down the Boise River. Within the next 6 - 8 weeks, we expect Lucky Peak Reservoir to "turn-over."  When this happens, all the different temperature layers of water in the reservoir will mix and water passing from Lucky Peak Dam into the Boise River should clear. I've been with IDFG for 30+ years and lived in Idaho for over 50 years.  This is the longest I can remember the Boise River running muddy in the middle of the summer.  

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The law changed in 2014 to allow 10-year olds to hunt for Big Game. Because of this, some of the older regulations may have that information incorrectly stating 12-year olds. Any big game hunter born after 1975 is required to take Hunter's Education. However, as a way to introduce the sport to people who have never hunted, the Hunting Passport has been introduced. The hunting passport allows a hunter to hunt for one calendar year without the requirement of hunter's education. However, because the intention of the passport is to introduce the hunter to a safe, ethical and responsible aspects of hunting, it requires the close supervision of a qualified adult mentor. Learn more about the hunter passport and hunter's education. 

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If I understand your question you are trying to retreive waterfowl with a net streched across a river stream.  Stretching a net across a waterway could present all types of problems for you and others.   Make sure you are contacting all private landowners prior to hunting to ensure you are not violating any trespass laws.  You also may want contact the county and local city authorities to make sure you are within all city and county ordinances.  Lastly you need to consider all the possible safety concerns to others using the waterway.  Stretching a net across a waterway could present a real hazard for others using that same waterway.  You would quite likely be libel for any incidents, damage or injuries caused to others or their equipment while using the same waterway.  In short I would recommend you consider a good bird dog for retrieval instead of the net.

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It's not always NOAA who determines if a fish caught in a fishery is listed under the Endangered Species Act. NOAA does assess the potenital impacts of proposed fisheries and determines what levels of takes in fisheries are allowable (do not cause further harm to the listed fish). Once an unmarked fish has been caught, it's typically up to the states and tribes and their sampling programs to determine if the fish was wild or hatchery. In Idaho (and the entire Snake River basin) all hatchery salmon and steelhead that are released are genetically marked, a program called Parental Based Tagging. The genetic identity of all the parent fish that produce the offspring each year is known so when those offspring return from the ocean as adult fish biologists can analyze a genetic sample from a fish and determine if the parents were a hatchery fish or a wild (typically listed) fish. It's very similar to human genetics testing. Idaho Fish and Game is using these genetic techniques to analyze steelhead caught in fisheries from the mouth of The Columbia River upstream to lower Granite Dam and steelhead and salmon caught in all Idaho sport fisheries. Native Americans are allowed to possess ESA-listed fish because their fisheries typically are non-selective, meaning the harvest techniques used are lethal to the fish thus they cannot sort through the catch and release some fish. However, their fisheries can only occur within the allowable impacts determined by NOAA - that is they can not exceed a certain level of impacts. Sport fisheries also result in some mortality of listed fish; not all fish that are released survival after release and there also are ESA limits on allowable mortality for sport fisheries.

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All conservation officers across the state have very large patrol areas.  They do the best they can to enforce fishing and hunting regulations.  The Department applies more enforcement to Henrys Lake than some other areas because the lake is managed as a trophy fishery.  Some conservation officers at Henrys Lake will not be in uniform nor in Department identified boats.  Other conservation officers will be in uniform.  On some weekends, several conservation officers may be working at the lake.  On other weekends, they may be working other areas.  All visitors to Henrys Lake can help monitor poaching and notify the Department when they see a violation.  There are several ways to report poaching.  A phone call to the poaching hotline is one option 1-800-632-5999.  Folks can also call the Fremont County Sheriff's office at 208-624-1538.  A third way to report poaching is via the Department's website at https://fishandgame.idaho.gov/feedback/getForm.cfm?getForm=3  Conservation Officers can do their job much more effectively when they receive information from the public.  If you would like to discuss further, please call Steve Schmidt, Regional Supervisor, Upper Snake Region 208-525-7290.  

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Yes, absolutely.   Just keep the weapons straight for appropriate method of take.

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You can only harvest 2 fish per day from Henrys Lake, period.  Once you reduce that second fish to your possession - you're done fishing at Henrys Lake until the next day.  Even if you eat those two fish, you've reached your daily bag limit of 2 fish and are done fishing. At no time can you possess more than the daily bag limit of fish from Henrys Lake.  It doesn't matter how many days you stay at Henrys Lake, you can only transport 2 fish from Henrys Lake to your place of permanent residence.

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It depends.  If you plan to hunt pheasants on one of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game's Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) where pheasants are stocked, you will need a WMA Upland Game/Pheasant Permit. These are $23.75 for residents and $51.75 for nonresidents.  Each Permit allows the take of six pheasants.  If you do not plan to hunt a WMA where pheasants are stocked, all you need is a Hunting License.  You can find more information on pheasant hunting on and off WMAs on pages 14-15 of the upland game regulations: http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/public/docs/rules/uplandBird.pdfand http:/....

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No, you can not use archery gear, spears or any other methods, other than hooks and line, to catch game fish - with a couple of odd-ball exceptions.  First, you can use up to 5 traps to catch crayfish and you can use a spear to take bullfrogs.  Yes, both crayfish and bullfrogs are considered "game" fish in Idaho code.