Six Wolf Hunts Closed, One More Near Limit

With a month left in Idaho's first regulated wolf hunting season, half the wolf zones are closed and another is one wolf shy of the harvest limit. As of Monday, March 1, hunters have taken 162 wolves, with 58 left to reach the statewide harvest limit. Wolf harvest is nearly at the limit of 16 in the Salmon Zone where hunters have taken 15, leaving one wolf left until the season closes in that zone. Six other zones already have closed. The wolf season closed February 1 in the Middle Fork zone, January 2 in the Southern Mountains zone, December 18 in the Palouse-Hells Canyon zone, on November 17 in the Dworshak-Elk City zone, on November 9 in the McCall-Weiser zone, and on November 2 in the Upper Snake zone. Elsewhere in the state wolf seasons remain open. Wolf hunters are reminded to check the harvest limit in the wolf hunting zones they intend to hunt. Idaho Department of Fish and Game set wolf harvest limits by 12 zones. The season closes in each zone when the limit for that zone is reached, when the statewide limit of 220 wolves is reached, or on March 31, whichever comes first. Hunters must have a valid 2010 Idaho hunting license and a 2010 wolf tag. To find out whether a zone is open, call 877-872-3190. The Fish and Game wolf harvest Web page is updated less frequently, but provides a zone map and other useful information: http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/hunt/wolf/quota.cfm. Wolf hunters are required by state law to report within 24 hours of harvesting a wolf and then must present the hide and skull to a Fish and Game conservation officer or regional office within five days. To report a wolf kill, call 877-872-3190 toll free.