Montana’s Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission will meet Thursday, Nov. 13, at the FWP Headquarters building on 1420 East Sixth Ave., beginning at 9 a.m.
(Headlines - October 31, 2003)

Smith River rules will be discussed at three open houses scheduled in early November in Helena, Great Falls and White Sulphur Springs. The Smith River offers a popular 60-mile floating opportunity that requires private floaters to apply for a float permit each winter in advance of the floating season. The open houses are scheduled from 6:30 – 9 p.m. on: Nov.
(Headlines - October 31, 2003)

Beginning this season, nonresidents riding their snowmobiles in Montana will be required to pay a   $15 snowmobile use permit per machine to support the grooming of Montana snowmobile trails. “Nonresident permits are becoming the norm throughout the snow belt. The fee helps ensure that visiting snowmobilers share in the costs of grooming trails,” said Bob Walker, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks state trails program coordinator.
(Headlines - October 31, 2003)

Snowmobiles and avalanches don’t mix—that is lesson number one in the snowmobile safety instructor training session scheduled in Butte, Dec. 6-7.   Prospective snowmobile safety instructors can register by calling Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks at 406-444-7317. The training sessions will be held at the Holiday Inn Express beginning each day at 10 a.m. “This workshop prepares people to be qualified volunteer instructors,” said Ray Paige, FWP snowmobile safety coordinator.
(Headlines - October 31, 2003)

Watershed groups, anglers, landowners and others have worked together to ease the effects of drought on Montana’s fisheries, making a significant difference for water users and for Montana’s wild fish. For those interested in learning more about the state’s water resources, watersheds and local watershed management, the Montana Watershed Coordination Council is sponsoring a statewide Watershed Symposium Dec. 8-9 at the Holiday Inn in Great Falls.
(Headlines - October 31, 2003)

Hunters who have seen enough Madagascar hissing cockroaches and extreme makeovers on TV have a new place to go evenings—the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks hunting web pages. Go to www.fwp.state.mt.us and click on Hunting, http://www.fwp.state.mt.us/hunting/default.aspx   to enter a quiet backwater where hunters can read about this year’s hunting opportunities, how Montana’s elk, mule deer and antelope populations are doing and what the new regulations say.
(Headlines - October 31, 2003)

The hunting of all mountain lions in southwestern Montana hunting district 315, which includes portions of Meagher, Park and Sweet Grass counties, will close at one-half hour after sunset on Wednesday, October 29, 2003. The order halting the hunt came shortly after Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks officials received word that the pre-established harvest quota for lions in the district had been met.   The winter season will open on December 1, 2003.
(Hunting - October 27, 2003)

Montana’s online fishing and hunting licensing system is among the country’s best government services on the Internet, according to an international group that evaluates Web-based offerings.   Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks' online licensing service was singled out in the " Best of the Web" national competition for e-government excellence sponsored by the Washington, D.C. based Center for Digital Government.
(Headlines - October 23, 2003)

A printing error that allows 375 additional hunters an extra two weeks to hunt bull elk north of Yellowstone National Park will not be corrected, the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission decided last week. Montana's hunting regulations mistakenly show that 375 either-sex elk hunting tags were available through the state's annual hunting-license drawings for the southern half of hunting district 314, which borders the national park northwest of Gardiner.
(Hunting - October 22, 2003)

The public is invited to comment on a clarification to a section of the Smith River rules at three open houses scheduled in early November in Helena, Great Falls and White Sulphur Springs. The proposed clarification to the Smith River rule would provide for closer monitoring by FWP of floats landowners are allowed to take on the river within their private property boundary.
(Headlines - October 20, 2003)

The Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission recently adopted the tentative 2004-2007 fishing regulations with only a few changes to the tentative proposals. Those changes included: *  Owner identification on portable ice shelters will not be required, though identification is required on other less easily moved shelters for ice fishing.
(Fishing - October 17, 2003)

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks’ 2003-2007 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan is now available on the web and at more than 100 libraries across the state. The SCORP, which is required by the Land and Water Conservation Fund grant program, includes a system to score and rank future statewide LWCF grant applications. Since 1965, Montana has received over $32 million for outdoor recreational projects from the federal LWCF grant program.
(Parks - October 17, 2003)

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks officials are urging counties, cities and other organizations planning to apply for a Land & Water Conservation Fund grant to get started early.   The deadline for the popular federal funding program for outdoor recreation projects is Feb. 20, 2004. In previous years grant applications were due in July.
(Headlines - October 17, 2003)

The Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission is seeking public comment on a proposed clarification to a section of the Smith River rules.   The clarification would provide for closer monitoring by FWP of floats landowners are allowed to take on the river within their private property boundary. The monitoring would include improved landowner reporting, boat tags on all landowner craft and landowner-designated float- group leaders.
(Headlines - October 17, 2003)

The 1,100 volunteers who teach Hunter Education would like to remind all hunters of the four basic rules of gun safety. Always treat every gun as if it were loaded. Always point the muzzle of your gun in a safe direction. Always be sure of your target and beyond. Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire. Hunting can be a very safe activity.   It is up to each hunter to make responsible decisions to keep it that way.
(Hunting - October 17, 2003)

What’s up with bears this fall? It’s almost impossible to pick up a newspaper without seeing a picture of a bear that has gotten into trouble trying to find food. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks bear specialists say this fall’s bear encounters are due to a drought year that hammered wild bear foods like huckleberries and chokecherries and the "human factor.
(Headlines - October 17, 2003)

The numbers are staggering. Nearly 40,000 Montanans took part in or assisted in teaching an educational fishing event this year and about 10,000 individuals graduated from a hunter education or bowhunter education course in 2003, according to statistics tracked by Montana, Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Another 300 youngsters took a voluntary trapper education course.
(Headlines - October 17, 2003)

There are about 18,000 miles of prairie streams in Montana but few state fisheries biologists could say for certain what’s in them. The contents of these 4,200 warm water prairie streams were only an educated guess until this summer when Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks fisheries crews began to survey these waters. FWP randomly selected 305 sites in 240 drainages in the Great Falls, Billings, Glasgow and Miles City areas this summer.
(Headlines - October 17, 2003)

There are about 18,000 miles of prairie streams in Montana but few state fisheries biologists couldn’t say for certain what’s in them. The contents of these 4,200 warm water prairie streams were only an educated guess until this summer when Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks fisheries crews began to survey these waters. FWP randomly selected 305 sites in 240 drainages in the Great Falls, Billings, Glasgow and Miles City areas this summer.
(Comprehensive Fish & Wildlife Conservation Strategy (CFWCS) - October 17, 2003)

By order of the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission, hunting district 501-20, which includes portions of Carbon, Park and Stillwater counties, will be closed to all hunting of bighorn sheep, effective one-half hour after sunset on Thursday, October 16, 2003.   The order halting the hunt came after the pre-established harvest quota for the district had been met.
(Hunting - October 14, 2003)

From their antlers to their bugle, their ivories to their size, elk capture a hunter’s imagination in a way no other species does.   Then there is the way a bull simply vaporizes at the edge of a meadow.   In the past few years, there have been more elk “vaporizing” than harvested. Why? Without cold temperatures and snow to move elk to lower elevations so hunters can track them, the hunting has been tough.
(Headlines - October 10, 2003)

If it has to do with river recreation it is probably in a 33-page report, available for public comment through Nov. 28, that was prepared by the Montana River Recreation Advisory Council. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks appointed the council a year ago to study river-related issues and make recommendations FWP can use in drafting a river recreation management policy.
(Headlines - October 10, 2003)

How many times have you heard a non-hunter refer to antlers as horns? Next time, think of it as an opportunity to share some of what you know and love about hunting and the species you hunt. Here is a quick checklist to help increase a non-hunter’s appreciation for one of the differences among big game species.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Montanans who plan to travel out-of-state to hunt big game are urged to follow a few common sense steps if they bring wild meat back from a state known to have CWD in wild animals.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Effective this year, a Montana resident 12-17 years of age who applies for a hunting license for the first time ever is entitled to receive a youth combination sports license free of charge.   The youth combination sports license includes: a conservation license, a fishing license, an upland game bird license, elk license and a deer license. The youth combination sports license is available only at FWP regional offices and the Helena FWP headquarters office.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

For the 2003 hunting season, hunters in Montana will have access to over 8.5 million acres of land statewide through the Block Management Program administered by Montana Fish, Widlife & Parks.  The program assists landowners in managing hunting activities and provides hunters with free public hunting access to private and isolated public land.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Hunters interested in learning more about the lands enrolled in FWP's Block Management Program may contact the regional FWP office in the area where they plan to hunt, or check the “Hunting” pages on the FWP web site at www.fwp.state.mt.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Montana hunters can now turn to FWP online at fwp.state.mt.us under Hunting to plan big game hunting trips, check hunting regulations and learn more about big game species and related issues.    Also,   three innovative training opportunities are available under the heading “Hunter Education:” a Bear Identification Program , a Mountain Lion Aging presentation, and an Advanced Hunter Education presentation.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

FWP's new Automated Licensing System issued more than 1.3 million licenses to hunters and anglers in 2002.   During the peak license sales period through Oct. 26, when the general deer and elk hunting season opens, FWP advises license buyers to purchase licenses early and to allow extra time. “FWP’s Automated Licensing System has been online for one year,” said Ron Aasheim, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Conservation Education administrator.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks bear biologists say hunters need to take steps to bearproof their hunt this year by thinking ahead about what they will do if they see a bear. The likelihood a hunter will encounter a bear is real and it may increase when a game animal is shot. Last year, deer and elk hunters reported seven different encounters with grizzly bears in the western part of the state alone.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Although hunting is not a “team sport,” sportsmanship and ethics are as important as they are in any sport.   If hunters keep a few simple thoughts in mind, they can hunt safely and set a good example for young hunters.   *  Follow the rules of safe gun handling. *  Be proficient in the use of your equipment. *  Know and obey laws and regulations. *  Develop hunting skills and knowledge. *  Develop a personal code of conduct.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Reporting violations observed in the field immediately is part of ethical hunting.   Montana’s 1-800-T-I-P-M-O-N-T (1-800-847-6668) call-in line is open 24 hours a day.   Callers can remain anonymous and may receive a cash award for their tip.   This past hunting season TIP-MONT received a record number of calls with useful information enabling FWP enforcement to better enforce Montana’s game laws and provide follow up on U.S. Forest Service violations.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Hunters heading out for Montana's upcoming deer and elk general season should be aware the law requires that the proof of the species and sex of all harvested big game animals remain attached to the carcass. Hunters must harvest only the species and sex of big game animal that they hold a valid tag to harvest. This regulated harvest helps set the ratio of male to female animals in a population, which then increases or decreases the population over time.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

It's time for all hunters who haven't already asked permission from private landowners to hunt to do so as soon as possible.   Montana law requires hunters to obtain permission for all hunting on private land.   No matter whether pursuing upland game birds, coyotes, gopher or any other wildlife, hunters must have permission from the landowner before hunting on private property.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

Officials at checking stations gather information needed to manage the state's wildlife resources. When hunters stop at checking stations, they may be asked a variety of questions including how many deer, elk or antelope they saw and in which drainages or general locations their hunting took place. Hunters should remember that state law requires them to stop at all game checking stations on their routes of travel to and from hunting areas.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

CWD is not known to be transmissible to humans or to cause disease in humans, however recent media stories have increased speculation and questions about hunting in "CWD states," that is, states where Chronic Wasting Disease has been found among wild deer or elk.   Montana is not a "CWD state," because CWD has not been found in the wild. In 1996, FWP established the first wild deer and elk surveys for CWD in Montana and to date 2,700 animals have been tested and all were found negative.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

When planning a hunting trip, it is important for hunters to be mindful of the regulations associated with using State School Trust Land. Just a few tips: *You need a license:   If you’re12 years of age or older, you must possess a State Land Recreational Use License to recreate on State School Trust Lands (more commonly referred to as state land).   These licenses are available from any FWP license agent.
(Hunting - October 10, 2003)

The hunting of all black bears in Bear Management Unit 520, in portions of Park, Sweet Grass, Stillwater and Carbon counties, will close one-half hour after sunset on Thursday, October 9, 2003.   Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks officials said the harvest quota was reached.
(Hunting - October 08, 2003)

By order of the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Commission, hunting district 500-20, which includes portions of Park and Sweet Grass counties, will be closed to all hunting of bighorn sheep, effective one-half hour after sunset on Wednesday, October 8, 2003.
(Hunting - October 06, 2003)

     The 1,100 volunteers who teach Hunter Education would like to remind all hunters of the four basic rules of gun safety. Always treat every gun as if it were loaded. Always point the muzzle of your gun in a safe direction. Always be sure of your target and beyond. Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire. Hunting can be a very safe activity.   It is up to each hunter to make responsible decisions to keep it that way.
(Hunting - October 03, 2003)

A complete guide to traveling off road with an OHV in Montana is available free from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. The “Off Road Montana Guide” includes a summary of OHV laws and regulations and tips for responsible off-highway vehicle recreation. Other content includes a summary of OHV fees, decals and registrations; tips on safety and ethics; a section on OHV’s and hunting; and an overview of grant programs available for OHV Trails.
(Hunting - October 03, 2003)

TIP-MONT, the “crime stopper” program managed by Montana, Fish, Wildlife & Parks, offers substantial rewards to callers who report valuable information on natural resource crimes.   If the information leads to an arrest, a call to 1-800-TIP-MONT (1-800-847-6668) may lead to a cash reward of up to $1,000. TIP-MONT relies on hunters, landowners, and citizens to report crimes they observe involving wildlife or fish, private land, and violations in State Parks and on U.S.
(Hunting - October 03, 2003)

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking trail recreationists to serve on the State Trails Advisory Committee.   “We are seeking five new committee members with broad recreational trail background to help preserve the balance and range of perspectives represented by this group,” said Bob Walker, FWP Trails Program Coordinator.
(Headlines - October 03, 2003)

Managing Montana’s big game populations is year-long work for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks biologists, but hunters play an important role when they participate in the annual hunter harvest survey. The hunter harvest survey is a tradition for many Montana hunters, who look forward to that friendly call from the FWP surveyor at the end of the season.   Harvest surveys have been conducted in Montana since 1943.
(Hunting - October 03, 2003)