News Release Archives- October 2004

Some common questions are listed below. Hunters with further questions are encouraged to call the department at 701-328-6300, from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. weekdays.

What licenses do I need for deer gun season? A fishing, hunting, and furbearer certificate, the general game and habitat stamp or a sportsman's license, and the deer license. Gratis license holders need only the gratis license.

What are the season dates and shooting hours? Deer season statewide opens Nov. 5 at noon Central time (11 a.m. Mountain time) and runs through Nov. 21. Shooting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset, except opening day.

Can I use my first season license during the muzzle-loader season? No. The first season license may be used only for the regular deer gun season.

When can I use a second season license? Hunters can use additional doe licenses during the archery season with a bow; the deer gun season with a bow, rifle, or muzzle-loader; or during the muzzle-loader season with a muzzle-loader. These licenses must be used for antlerless deer only, and hunters must stay in the unit to which the license is assigned.

I can't find my deer license and tag. What should I do? Deer hunters in need of a replacement license can print out a duplicate (replacement) license application from the game and fish website, gf.nd.gov/, or can call 701-328-6300 to have an application mailed or faxed. County auditors also have copies of this form. The application must be completely filled out and notorized, and sent back in to the department with a fee. You may not hunt without the license and tag in your possession.

I shot a deer, but it is rotten. What can I do? You must take possession of the animal by tagging it. If the department gets a confiscated deer, we may be able to give it to you.

My son was unsuccessful in filling his mule deer buck tag in the youth season. Can he hunt the regular gun season? Yes. But he is restricted to the same unit as during the youth season.

What if I have an antlerless deer permit and I shoot a deer with two-inch spikes, but I could not see them when I shot? Game wardens have some leeway about what is an antlered deer. However, it is always a hunter's responsibility to fully identify your target before shooting.

Is camouflage blaze orange acceptable for the deer gun season? No. You must wear both a hat and outer garment above the waistline totaling at least 400 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange.

What should I do if I find a wounded deer? Contact a game warden. Do not shoot the deer unless you want to tag it, or are instructed by the warden to do so.

I hunt with a bow. When do I have to wear orange? During the regular deer gun season you must wear orange. During the muzzle-loader season, however, bowhunters do not need to wear orange.

Can I hunt road right of ways? Do not hunt on road right of ways unless you are certain they are open to public use. Most road right of ways are under control of the adjacent landowner and are closed to hunting when the adjacent land is posted closed to hunting.

Can I hunt on a section line if it is posted on both sides? No. If the land is posted on both sides, the section line is closed to hunting, but is still open for travel.

Can I retrieve a wounded deer from posted land? If the deer was shot on land where you had a legal right to be, you may retrieve it. However, you may not take any weapons with you. The department suggests contacting the landowner as a courtesy prior to entering.

What if the landowner says I cannot get the deer? Contact a game warden.

Can I transport someone else's deer? Yes, but you will need a permit from a game warden. The license holder, person transporting the animal, and the carcass must be presented to the game warden before the permit is issued.

Can I drive off a trail to retrieve a deer on a state wildlife management area? No. You may not drive off-trail on state wildlife management areas, national wildlife refuges, waterfowl production areas, or state school land. In addition, a travel policy confines most motorized vehicles (except snowmobiles) to existing roads and trails on all U.S. Forest Service public land in North Dakota, including the Little Missouri, Sheyenne and Cedar River national grassland.

What if I am going to take my deer head to a taxidermist and meat to a butcher shop? How do I keep the tag with it all? The tag should remain with the head and the carcass tag should remain with the meat.

May I carry a pistol when I am hunting with a deer rifle? Yes, but the handgun must meet minimum requirements listed in the deer hunting regulations to be legal for taking deer.

How do I carry a revolver in a vehicle when hunting? The cylinder of a revolver must be completely unloaded.

How do I carry a muzzle-loader in a vehicle when hunting? Remove the cap from a percussion gun or the powder from the flash pan of a flintlock.

Can I use a bow to fill my regular deer gun tag? Yes. You may use any legal weapon during the regular deer gun season.

Can I use a gun to fill my bow tag? No. Archery tags may be filled only with bow and arrow.

Can I carry both bow and gun afield during deer gun season if I have both licenses? Only if you are going to fill your gun tag. To fill your archery tag, you may not have a gun in your possession.

Are muzzle-loading handguns legal for deer hunting? Yes. They must be .50 caliber or larger.

Are the .22-250 and .243 legal for deer hunting? Yes. Center-fire rifles of .22 caliber or larger are legal.

My wife and I each have a gratis license for different pieces of land. Her land is located in a different unit across the highway from mine. Can we hunt each other's land? No. In order for you to hunt each other's land it must be located within the same hunting unit.

If I buy a tribal deer license am I entitled to take both the state and tribal limits? No. All state seasons and limits apply. For example, to take a deer on the reservation, you must first have drawn a North Dakota license. Then you may be required to purchase a tribal license if you are going to hunt on tribal lands. In any case, you may take only one deer.

Many tribes open their season at a different time than the state and offer different bag limits. If I buy a tribal license and have the appropriate state license, whose rules do I follow? In all instances, state regulations apply, unless you are a tribal member.

I plan on hunting within an Indian reservation only on lands owned in fee-title by a friend or relative. In addition to my state license, do I need a tribal license? No. The key is that you are hunting on non-tribal land owned in fee title by your friend or relative.

Immediately after an animal has been killed, the hunter must indicate the date of kill by cutting out the appropriate month and day from the tag provided with the license. The tag must be peeled off the license and attached to the base of the antler on bucks, or through a slit in the ear on does.

When the tag is removed from the antler or head for taxidermy work, the tag is to be fastened to the back of the mount and remain there.

Tags are not transferable, and a big game animal has to be properly tagged in order to possess or transport it. The tag has to remain with the antlers or head until Jan. 31 of each calendar year.

For those hunters who want to take the head to a taxidermist and the carcass or meat to a processor, the carcass tag goes to the processor. The tag must stay with the carcass until Jan. 31, or until the meat is consumed.

Observers, who accompanied pilots in fixed-wing planes, counted 2,178 mule deer during the October survey, which encompassed 21 study areas and 265 square miles in western North Dakota, according to Bruce Stillings, big game biologist, Dickinson.

The fawn-to-doe ratio was .88 fawns per doe, slightly below the long-term average, Stillings said. The buck-to-doe ratio was .46 bucks per doe, or slightly above 2003 and the long-term average.

"Over the last few years our surveys indicated an increasing population with stable recruitment," Stillings said. "We will evaluate the number of deer on the landscape in April, when we fly these same study areas, to obtain an index to the mule deer population."

CWD Surveillance Efforts Continue 102004
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department is establishing deer head collection sites during the 2004 deer gun season as part of its continuing effort to monitor the state's deer herd for chronic wasting disease.

Hunters are encouraged to stop at collection sites throughout opening weekend and provide the head from their deer. Heads will be removed on site, or hunters may drop off heads at one of these sites. Tags will remain on the ear or antler, and carcass tags will remain with the deer. Hunters will be given a temporary tag for transportation purposes.

Samples from hunter-harvested deer will be taken from animals this fall in 31 deer hunting units: 1, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2H, 2I, 2J1, 2J2, 2K1, 2K2, 2L, 3A1, 3A2, 3A3, 3A4, 3B1, 3B2, 3B3, 3C, 3D1, 3D2, 3E1, 3E2, 3F1, 3F2, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E and 4F.

Game and fish personnel will operate collection sites Nov. 5 from 3-8 p.m., Nov. 6 from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m., and Nov. 7 from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. in:

* Belfield - Tesoro truck stop (only Nov. 6-7)
* Bottineau - Cenex C-Store
* Cavalier - Farmers Union
* Devils Lake - Ed's Bait Shop
* Elgin - Al's Body Shop
* Kenmare - Cenex C-Store
* Linton - Bosch's Meat Market
* Martin - Martin Bar
* Rhame - Cenex C-Store
* Rugby - Cenex C-Store
* Stanley - Cenex C-Store
* Steele - Coffee Cup
* Watford City - Lund Oil/One Stop

Through December, heads can also be dropped off at game and fish offices in Williston, Dickinson, Bismarck, Riverdale, Devils Lake, Harvey (Lonetree) and Jamestown; and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service offices in Coleharbor (Audubon NWR), Devils Lake, Moffit (Long Lake NWR), Upham (J. Clark Salyer NWR), Kenmare (Des Lacs NWR), Kulm and Berthold (Upper Souris NWR).

Also, meat processors participating in surveillance efforts are:

* Bismarck - West Dakota Meats
* Bowdon - Bowdon Locker and Grocery
* Cando - K and E Meats
* Carson - Double R Meats
* Garrison - Garrison Custom Meats
* Glen Ullin - Kuntz's Butcher Shop
* Hazen - Hazen Meats
* Hettinger - Dakota Packaging Co.
* Karlsruhe - Leier's Processing
* Kulm - People's Meat Market
* Langdon - Hickory Hut
* McClusky - Stein Butcher Shop
* Minot - S and K Processing
* Mohall - Engebretson Processing
* Parshall - Myers Meats
* Turtle Lake - Ken's Jack and Jill
* Wildrose - Wildrose Grocery

To date, CWD has not been diagnosed in wild or farmed deer or elk in North Dakota. Test results for CWD on more than 1,600 wild deer and 29 elk harvested during the 2003 hunting season were negative. During the 2002 hunting season, samples were taken from 470 deer and 25 elk - all tested negative for CWD.

Chronic wasting disease affects the nervous system of white-tailed deer, mule deer and elk and is fatal. Scientists have found no evidence that CWD can be transmitted naturally to humans or livestock.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service implemented a conservative approach on both species due to their low population levels. Until Nov. 2, the daily limit for pintails and canvasbacks is one each.

October, November and December are peak months for deer-vehicle accidents because of increased deer activity during breeding season, young-of-the-year deer are dispersing from their home ranges, and movements from fall cover to wintering cover.

"Drivers are reminded that vigilance is the best defense," Jensen said. "Most deer-vehicle collisions occur during the dawn and dusk hours when deer are most active."

Many collisions in late fall happen during morning and evening hours when motorists are driving to and from work. Twenty-two percent of deer-vehicle accidents occur between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m., while 13 percent fall between 5:30 and 7:30 a.m. An estimated 88 percent occur when it's dark or light is limited.

Deer-vehicle collisions have increased gradually over the past decade. Approximately 42 percent of annual deer-vehicle collisions occur during October, November and December, with 20 percent occurring from Oct. 25 - Nov. 25.

Deer-vehicle accidents are at times unavoidable. However, a few precautions can minimize injury or property damage in a deer-vehicle crash.

* Always wear a seat belt.

* Don't swerve or take the ditch to avoid hitting a deer. Try to brake as much as possible and stay on the roadway. Don't lose control of the vehicle or slam into something else to miss the deer. Your risk for injury is reduced by hitting the deer.

* When you see one deer cross the road, look for a second or third deer to follow.

* If you spot deer ahead, slow down immediately and honk your horn.

* Pay attention on roadways posted with Deer Crossing Area caution signs. They are there for good reason.

* No published research supports the effectiveness of deer whistles on vehicles. Deer can't hear ultrasonic frequencies.

(Source: American Family Insurance.)

More than 200 swan licenses are available to hunters as a first license only. Hunters who do not have a license can download and print an application for mailing at the department's website. Otherwise, interested hunters can request an application by calling the department's Bismarck office at 701-328-6300.

The statewide tundra swan hunting season opened Oct. 2 and continues through Dec. 12. North Dakota residents and nonresidents are eligible to purchase a license. The fee is $5 for residents and $25 for nonresidents.

Hunting migratory game birds without HIP certification is a violation, said Robert Timian, chief of enforcement for the State Game and Fish Department. "Our wardens have issued a few citations to waterfowl hunters this fall for not being HIP registered," he said.

HIP certification is required for all migratory bird hunters, regardless of age, before hunting ducks, geese, swans, mergansers, coots, cranes, snipe, doves or woodcock.

Hunter compliance is essential in order to obtain reliable national and regional estimates of annual harvest of all migratory game bird species. These estimates provide information biologists need to make sound decisions concerning hunting seasons, bag limits and population management.

Hunters who purchase a license through the department's Bismarck office, website (gf.nd.gov/), or instant licensing telephone number (800-406-6409) can easily get HIP certified.

Otherwise, hunters must call 888-634-4798 and record the HIP number on their fishing, hunting and furbearer certificate.

Hunters are reminded to HIP register in each state before hunting migratory game birds.

"Due to the low water levels in Lake Sakakawea this year, the traditional locations in Rodeo (Scoria) Bay are not suitable for the spawning ladder use," Lee said.

Plans are to start the operation of the ladder Oct. 5, with it being in place for most, if not all, of October. "Anglers will still have room to launch boats," Lee added. "However, the area near the spawning ladder will be closed to fishing."

Because of the small size of the bay where the ladder is set up, anglers may find crowded conditions at times. The department is asking that anglers be considerate of others so this bay can remain open to fishing.

The spawning ladder is a 60 foot long, four foot diameter culvert containing a series of baffles. The baffles create pools (steps) where salmon stage or rest as they swim to the top of the ladder. The ladder is set up perpendicular to the shoreline and is typically supplied with water 24 hours a day while the salmon are spawning. The spawning ladder simulates a flowing stream thereby attracting spawning fish.

Chinook salmon begin their spawning run in early October. Since salmon cannot naturally reproduce in the lake, game and fish and Garrison Dam National Fish Hatchery personnel collect and fertilize eggs and transport them to the hatchery.

Once the eggs hatch, young salmon spend several months in the hatchery before they are stocked in Lake Sakakawea in the spring.

That's a question that Carrie Whitney, North Dakota Game and Fish Department licensing supervisor, would like to ask every deer hunter in the state. By answering the question now, it would sure cut down on the number of panicked, last minute requests for duplicate licenses on Nov. 5, the day deer season opens.

"Every year we get calls from hunters at the last minute, including the morning of opening day, who are in distress because they can't find their license," Whitney said, "and if it happens at that point, it's difficult to try to get a replacement license as quickly as one would like."

That is just one reason why hunters should look for their deer license now. Another one is to check it for accuracy.

"It is not only a misplaced license that can cause for a delay," Whitney said. "Sometimes the information on the license isn't what the hunter thought it should be. Hunters need to double-check the license now to make sure the unit, species and deer sex doesn't lead to any surprises."

Deer hunters in need of a replacement license can print out a duplicate (replacement) license application from the game and fish website, gf.nd.gov/, or can call 701-328-6300 to have an application mailed or faxed.

The form must be completely filled out and notorized, and sent back in to the department with a fee. "We will process the application the day it is received at the office," Whitney said, "and the license will be mailed out the next day."

To order, send $3 for each, plus $1 postage, to: Calendar, North Dakota Game and Fish Department, 100 N. Bismarck Expressway, Bismarck, ND 58501-5095. Be sure to include a three-line return address with your order, or the post office may not deliver our return mailing.

The calendar is the North Dakota OUTDOORS magazine's December issue, so current subscribers will automatically receive it in the mail.