Frequently Asked Questions
We get a lot of questions. We post here answers to questions we're being asked frequently. If you have a question not answered here, please contact us. Urgent questions should be directed to your nearest office. Some answers change over time; please take note of the "answered" date.
Displaying 3501 - 3525 of 3534 questionsA:
The federal framework allows only a certain number of days in duck season. By putting the two-day split in midweek, the Commission gained another weekend at the end of the season.answered 9/24/2000
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Duck and goose season both open October 7. Limits are the same as last year. The special youth season will be Sept. 23 and 24. A licensed hunter over 18 must accompany each kid, and the oldsters can't hunt, just help and teach. Getting the duck book printed is about the toughest deadline each year. The Commission has to set the seasons at the August meeting because the federal framework must be in place prior to setting seasons. Then staff has to typeset the book and get it to the printer. The printer's due date this year was August 25, the day the Commission met. Having missed that date, there is a delay in printing. It should be at license vendors by the last week of September.answered 9/14/2000
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You heard correct. The Commission passed the leftover tag rule after the book was printed, so the book is incorrect. You will be charged nonresident price for your nonresident deer or elk tag.answered 9/10/2000
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You sure do. The harvest information program permit is required for anyone who hunts waterfowl, snipe, sandhill cranes, or doves. It helps the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service keep track of populations and harvest throughout the range of these migratory birds.answered 9/4/2000
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For upland birds, you only need a hunting license, unless you hunt sage or sharptail grouse, which have a special $1.50 permit to gather information on hunter numbers and harvest. For waterfowl, you need a license, a federal duck stamp, and federal harvest information permit. The state upland and waterfowl permits have gone away, and those programs will be funded from the increase in hunting license fees approved by the 2000 Legislature.answered 8/27/2000
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Beginning this year, hunters out after sage grouse or sharp-tailed grouse need to have their license validated for those species. The $1.50 validation is not just another permit. Sharp-tailed grouse have been proposed for listing as an endangered species, and sage grouse numbers have declined and they could be considered for listing soon. The Fish and Game Commission adopted the permit requirement to allow Department biologists to get more detailed information on Idaho sage and sharp-tailed grouse hunting. The Department will contact hunters with the validation after the season to determine their harvest and where they hunted. Gathering this information is aimed at keeping these species off the endangered species list and available for hunting.answered 8/20/2000
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There are several reservoirs across the southern part of Idaho which have salvage orders now, and likely to be more due to the lack of rain. The most common salvage order lifts the bag, possession, and size limits, but other requirements, like tackle restrictions, remain. A salvage order is always directed at a specific body of water, and may liberalize tackle restrictions. If you have a question about a specific location, or want to know if there are any salvage orders effective in your area, call your regional Fish and Game office.answered 8/6/2000
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A. When you buy a deer tag or an elk tag, the license machine will print out a report form. Fill it out and mail it in within ten days of harvest only if you are successful. There is no supertag drawing with this hunting season and reporting method.answered 7/30/2000
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No, you can pick it up anytime up until the hunt closes, at any license vendor. It will cost $6.50 for the permit, plus the cost of the tag. If you already have a general-season tag, you will need to exchange it for the controlled hunt tag. For an exchange, you must go to (or mail your tag to) a Fish and Game office. There IS a deadline for this of August 29 or the general season opening. See pages six, seven and 15 of the 2000 big game rules.answered 7/23/2000
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A number of years ago, the department did publish such a book which was extremely popular with many anglers but irked a lot of others whose favorite secret trout lake was revealed. As backcountry use increased, the department decided for biological reasons that it was best to stop printing a guide that potentially could bring too much pressure on sensitive fishing resources. Many old-time Idaho anglers still have a copy in their fishing libraries-usually guarded tighter than the family silver-that they might let you see. Not much has changed in alpine fisheries over the years and the high country is still the right place to be this time of year.answered 7/6/2000
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You can shoot cans or other targets without a license. You actually need a license long before you shoot at an animal. If you are pursuing any animal with the intent of shooting it, you are hunting, and so need a license at that time.answered 6/29/2000
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No, you can plink cans, or shoot targets without a license. As soon as you shoot at an animal, you need a license.answered 6/22/2000
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Crawfish or crayfish or crawdads are found throughout Idaho. We have identified at least 4 species of the Genus Pacifastacus that are found from small higher elevation streams to lowland lakes and the Snake River as it flows out of Idaho. If you want to catch crayfish legally in Idaho, you need a valid fishing license, or be young enough not to require one. They are typically caught in a minnow or crayfish trap that is baited with some food for them to eat. Horses don't fit well into the traps, so chicken gizzards or fish parts are commonly used as bait. All traps must have a tag bearing the owner's name and address. It is legal to fish with up to 5 traps no larger than 18" x 12" x 12" (see page 7 of the 2000-2001 fishing rules for more information).Crayfish are found in the Boise area rivers. Places that have abundant crayfish (the Snake River and impoundments from Idaho Falls to Hells Canyon) also have commercial fishing allowed after the purchase of the appropriate fishing license. The crayfish market is very poor, however, and only one person has purchased a commercial license this year. C.J. Strike and Hells Canyon reservoirs have been the most popular places over the last 10 years to catch crayfish.answered 6/15/2000
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All resident deer and elk tags go on sale July 25, except elk tags in the Middle Fork, Selway and Lolo zones. They will be available August 1. Because there is a limited number of these elk tags, they will be sold on a first come-first served basis. They are expected to sell fast. To make it fair in both Idaho time zones, they will go on sale at 10:00 a.m. in the Mountain Time Zone and 9:00 a.m. in the Pacific Zone.answered 6/8/2000
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Brook trout are an introduced species that is very prolific and competes with native trout for food and habitat. Reducing the competition is the objective of this limit. Actually, the rule is "ten in addition to the trout limit" so if your first six trout were brook trout, you could be going home with 16 of them altogether.answered 6/1/2000
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Yes, as long as it has no barbs, or the barbs have been bent completely closed.answered 5/25/2000
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Yes. As soon as she completes Hunter's Education, a license can be issued so she can apply for controlled hunts. The license will specify that it is valid only on and after her birthday.answered 5/18/2000
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Fish and Game needs some information in an effort to improve the catchable rainbow trout we plant in some Idaho waters. If the tag has "$$ 10 $$" on it, you're and instant $10 winner. Otherwise, turning in the tag information places you in a drawing for $50. It is cheaper (and more fun) to reward anglers for turning in tags than to gather this information some other way. If you caught a trout with a tag, send your name, address, phone number, date and location fish was caught and the flattened tag (or just the number, if you want to keep the tag) to IDFG Fisheries Research, P.O. Box 428, Jerome, ID 83338.answered 5/11/2000
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We have to have the Social Security number because it is an Idaho law. Idaho Code, Section 73-122 states "the social security number of an applicant shall be recorded on any application for a professional, occupational, and recreational license." This law has been in effect for several years and has been unpopular with many Fish and Game license buyers. At least one Idaho legislator has vowed to try to exempt Fish and Game licenses from the law in a coming session of the legislature, something you might want to watch for and support.answered 5/4/2000
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New laws do generally go into effect July 1, but in the case of these license and fee changes, the effective date is indeed May 1. Lawmakers understood that the financial crisis at Fish and Game needed urgent remedy and agreed on a May 1 effective date. If you buy before May 1, you may save significant money on this year's licenses and tags. A lifetime license is a particularly attractive deal before May 1.answered 4/27/2000
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The next sign up for the Boise and surrounding areas will be July 12, 2000 at the Southwest Region Office, 3101 South Powerline Rd. in Nampa, and July 13, 2000 at the Hunter Education Center, 109 W 44th Street, in Garden City. Students can sign up between noon and 8:00 PM on those days. All classes offered at the April registration have been filled.For other registration dates and times contact your local regional officeanswered 4/20/2000
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The easiest way is to call a taxidermist. If you're looking for an organic method, there's a critter called dermistic beetles that will clean them up. If you rely on ants, beetles, or other insects be sure it is in a wire cage of some kind to foil the bigger animals. Cooking may be the most common method. Remove what you can first. Hold the water temperature below a boil so you don't yellow the bone or loosen the teeth. Cook and scrape. Cook and scrape.answered 4/13/2000
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Yes. With every big game animal except mountain lions, you are required to bring out the meat. This is addressed under "Waste of game" on page 11 of the 1999 big game rules and on page 10 of the 2000 big game rules.answered 4/6/2000
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No. Residents or nonresidents must have a hunting license to hunt anywhere in Idaho, even if it is in a depredation hunt, landowner appreciation hunt, or landowner permission hunt. If you are hunting something that requires a tag, you must have that, also.answered 3/23/2000
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Look on the Fish and Game website at http://www.state.id.us/fishgame/askfish.htm#cts.answered 3/16/2000