With today's ever spreading use of drones I had the thought how nice it would be to fly one up a couple hundred feet and get a panoramic view around to see if there were elk or deer in the fields behind our stand locations. Ethically this may not "fly", but what about legally?
If you can't use the same time you are hunting what would the written law on it be as far as a timeline, or is there precedent yet in Idaho?
Answer:
This issue is addressed by state law in Idaho Code 36-1101 http://legislature.idaho.gov/idstat/Title36/T36CH11SECT36-1101.htm.
Idaho Code 36-1101(3) addresses communication of information to persons on the ground, making it unlawful to make use aircraft in any manner to spot or locate game animals, game birds, or furbearing animals from the air and communicate the location of those animals by any signals whatsoever (including radio, visual, or other means) to any person on the ground.
This statute prohibits the use of drones in the manner and for the purpose you described.
Further, Idaho Code 36-1101(5) prohibits the use of aircraft as an aid to hunting big game, making it unlawful to make use of any aircraft to locate any big game animal for the purpose of hunting those animals during the same calendar day those animals were located from the air.
This is certainly becoming a hot topic as drones, or "Unmanned Aerial Systems," are becoming more readily available and affordable for consumer use. There will undoubtedly be further evaluation and scrutiny of both ethical and definition of legal use of these aircraft in the future.
Answered on:
Thursday, October 29, 2015 - 6:00 PM MDT