During their meeting in Boise on Jan. 23, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission voted to increase the maximum number of wolf tags an individual can purchase to 15 hunting tags and 15 trapping tags for the 2020-21 season.
The changes to the allowable tag numbers for wolves applies statewide, simplifying the wolf hunting and trapping seasons and rules.
These changes are reflected in the Idaho Big Game 2020 Seasons and Rules brochure, which is available online now and will be available in print by May 1.
Hunting harvest rates on gray wolves are generally very low. In 2019, more than 45,000 wolf tags were sold in Idaho, and hunters harvested 188 wolves — a success rate of 0.4 percent.
Success rates tend to be slightly higher for trapping, and trappers harvested more wolves (200) than hunters did in 2019. There were only five people in Idaho in 2019 who harvested more than 10 wolves each, which included hunting and trapping.
Prior to the change, the statewide hunter harvest limit was five wolves per calendar year, and hunters could take an additional five wolves in the Panhandle, Clearwater, Upper Snake, and Salmon regions.
The statewide trapper harvest limit was also five wolves per trapping season, and an additional five wolves could be trapped in the Panhandle, Clearwater, Upper Snake, and Salmon regions.