The number of pheasants taken last year in North Dakota was similar to 2014, according to statistics compiled by the State Game and Fish Department.
Last year, more than 85,000 hunters (up 9 percent) harvested nearly 590,000 roosters (up 0.4 percent). In 2014, 78,000 hunters took 587,000 roosters.
Counties with the highest percentage of pheasants taken by resident hunters in 2015 were Morton, 7.4 percent; Hettinger, 6.4; Grant, 5.8; Stark, 5.8; and McLean, 5.7.
Top counties for nonresident hunters were Hettinger, 20.3 percent; Bowman, 11.7; Divide, 6.8; Adams, 5.8; and Emmons, 5.1.
Annual pheasant season statistics are determined by a mail survey of resident and nonresident hunters.
Landowners Seek Doe Hunters
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department is currently working with landowners in 10 hunting units across the state who would like to host hunters with antlerless deer licenses in 2016.
Participating landowners are located in hunting units 2I, 2J2, 2K1, 2K2, 3A4, 3B3, 3D2, 3F1, 3F2 and 4E.
The program is not intended for buck hunters, but designed to direct hunters with antlerless licenses to specific areas to reduce deer populations.
Interested hunters can get their name on a list of possible participants by accessing the Game and Fish Department’s website at gf.nd.gov. Hunters who do not have internet access can call the department’s main office in Bismarck at 701-328-6300.
Hunters will provide their address, hunting unit(s) where they hold valid antlerless licenses, and if using rifle, muzzleloader or bow. From this list the department will select the number of hunters landowners have agreed to host. These hunters will be sent the landowner’s name, phone number and any information relating to the landowner’s specific situation.
Hunters must have a valid 2016 deer gun license – the Game and Fish Department does not provide a hunting license with this program.
Not everyone who signs up will end up with a new place to hunt, because not everyone’s schedule will match up with a landowner’s, and more people will likely put their name on the list than there are openings. Participating landowners currently have openings for about 110 doe hunters.
North Dakota’s 2016 regular deer gun season runs from Nov. 4-20. In addition, the archery season extends through Jan. 8, 2017; the youth season is Sept. 16-25; and muzzleloader runs from Nov. 25 – Dec. 11.
Deer Season for Young Hunters Opens Sept. 16
Friday, Sept. 16 at noon signals the start of a nine-and-a-half-day deer hunting season for youth ages 12-15.
Licensed residents ages 12 and 13, and 11-year-olds who turn age 12 in 2016, are allowed to hunt statewide, but only for antlerless white-tailed deer. Resident deer gun hunters age 14 or 15, and 13-year-olds who turn age 14 in 2016, with a “youth season” license, can hunt statewide for any deer, except antlerless mule deer in units 4A, 4B and 4C. In addition, a special license is required to hunt antlered mule deer in units 3B1, 3B2, 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E and 4F.
After opening day, hunting hours are one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset. Solid daylight fluorescent orange vests or coats, and hats are required for all young hunters and their adult mentors.
Each youth deer hunter must be under direct supervision of an adult while in the field.
In addition to the deer license, hunters must possess a general game and habitat license and hunting certificate.
The youth deer season closes Sunday, Sept. 25.
Game and Fish Allocates Eight Bighorn Sheep Licenses
The State Game and Fish Department is allocating eight bighorn sheep licenses for the 2016 hunting season, based on data collected from a recently completed summer population survey.
Two licenses are available in Unit B1, two in B3 and three in B4. In addition, one license as authorized under North Dakota Century Code was auctioned in March by the Midwest Chapter of the Wild Sheep Foundation, from which all proceeds are used to enhance bighorn sheep management in North Dakota.
Game and Fish Department wildlife chief Jeb Williams said the bighorn population hasn’t had any recent setbacks this summer from bacterial pneumonia, which prompted Game and Fish to close the hunting season in 2015.
“There are currently good numbers of mature rams on the landscape, and we are going to take advantage of providing as much hunter opportunity as possible with the situation that we have,” Williams said. “We feel good that we are able to provide this opportunity as impacts from the die-off have lessened substantially since 2014, but it is also very unpredictable.”
Big game biologist Brett Wiedmann said license numbers are determined by assessing the age structure and total number of rams in the population. The July-August survey showed a minimum of 103 rams in the badlands, an increase of 18 percent from 2015.
“Overall, we are very encouraged by the results of the summer survey,” Wiedmann said. “In fact, the ram count was the highest on record.”
Wiedmann said the annual survey results for ewes and lambs would not be completed until next spring. Biologists count and classify all bighorn sheep in late summer, and then recount lambs the following March, as they approach one year of age, to determine recruitment.
Game and Fish announced in February that the status of the bighorn sheep hunting season would be determined after completion of the summer population survey. Now that the survey is complete and total licenses are determined for each unit, the bighorn lottery will run and successful applicants will be contacted to select a hunting unit by Sept. 6.
Prospective hunters were required to apply for a bighorn license earlier this year on the bighorn sheep, moose and elk application. A total of 10,380 people applied for a bighorn sheep license.
Fall Turkey Season Set
North Dakota’s fall turkey season is set with 3,510 licenses available to hunters,145 fewer than last year.
Prospective hunters, including gratis applicants, can apply online, or print out an application to mail, at the State Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov. Paper applications will be available at vendors Aug. 31. The deadline for applying is Sept. 7
In addition, applicants can apply by calling the department’s toll-free licensing line, 800-406-6409. A service fee is added for license applications made over the phone.
Only North Dakota residents are eligible to apply in the first lottery. Nonresidents can apply for fall turkey licenses that are still available following the first lottery.
Hunting units 21 (Hettinger and Adams counties) and 53 (Divide and Williams counties) will remain closed to fall turkey hunting in 2016 because of low turkey numbers.
The fall wild turkey season extends from Oct. 8 through Jan. 8, 2017.
PLOTS Guide Available Online
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s Private Land Open To Sportsmen Guide for 2016 is now available online at the Department’s website, gf.nd.gov. In addition, PLOTS Guides will be available at most vendors throughout the state in early September.
The guide will feature about 730,000 PLOTS acres. Because the guide is printed in mid-August, some PLOTS tracts highlighted in the guide may have been removed from the program since the time of printing. There will also be some PLOTS tracts where the habitat and condition of the tract will have changed significantly. Conversely, Game and Fish may have added new tracts to the program after the guide went to press.
To minimize possible confusion, Game and Fish will update PLOTS map sheets weekly on its website.
The PLOTS Guide features maps highlighting these walk-in areas, identified in the field by inverted triangular yellow signs, as well as other public lands.
The guides are free, and will be available at license vendors in the state; by walk-in at the Game and Fish Department’s Bismarck office; and at district offices in Riverdale, Harvey (Lonetree), Williston, Dickinson, Jamestown and Devils Lake.
The guides are not available to mail, so hunters will have to pick one up at a local vendor, or print individual maps from the website.
Hunters Asked to Submit Wing Envelopes
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department is once again asking grouse hunters for help with future bird management by simply collecting some feathers from harvested birds and sending in wing envelopes this fall.
Wing data allows biologists to monitor production, reconcile bird counts and get a better understanding of the harvest ratio of males to females, and juveniles to adults.
Instructions for submitting wing data are printed on the envelope.
Hunters interested in receiving wing envelopes should visit the Game and Fish website (gf.nd.gov) to order a supply of wing envelopes, or contact the department’s main office in Bismarck by phone (701-328-6300) or email (ndgf@nd.gov).
In addition, Game and Fish district offices have a supply of wing envelopes for distribution. District offices are located at Devils Lake, Jamestown, Riverdale, Dickinson, Williston and Lonetree Wildlife Management Area near Harvey.
Swan Hunt Lottery Held, Licenses Remain
North Dakota’s swan lottery has been held and more than 180 licenses remain. Only hunters who do not have a swan license for the 2016 season can apply, as regulations limit hunters to one license per year.
Beginning Sept. 7, all remaining licenses will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis. Resident and nonresident hunters will be able to apply online, or print out an application to mail, at the State Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov. Hunters may also request an application by calling the department’s Bismarck office at 701-328-6300. The license fee is $10 for residents and $30 for nonresidents.
The statewide tundra swan hunting season is Oct. 1 – Jan. 1, 2017.
Deer Archery Season Opens Sept. 2
North Dakota’s deer archery season opens Friday, Sept. 2 at noon, and bowhunters are reminded that deer bow licenses and accompanying tags are only available through electronic purchase.
Bowhunters can buy a license online at the State Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov; by calling 800-406-6409; or at vendors linked to the Game and Fish Department’s online licensing system. Hunters who purchase bow licenses at an online vendor will receive a tag at time of purchase; otherwise, hunters who purchase their license over the phone or personal computer should allow for several days to receive their tag in the mail.
Bowhunters must follow all regulations of the managing agency when using tree stands on public hunting areas, including displaying the owner’s name, address and telephone number on tree stands left unattended on Game and Fish wildlife management areas.
In addition, hunting big game over bait is prohibited on both public and private land in deer unit 3C west of the Missouri River, and all of units 3E1, 3E2, 3F1 and 3F2.
The archery season is open through Jan. 8, 2017. Hunters should refer to the 2016 deer hunting guide for season information and regulations.
Agencies Prohibit Hunting over Bait
Hunters are reminded that hunting big game over bait is prohibited on all state owned or managed wildlife management areas, all U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service national wildlife refuges and waterfowl production areas, U.S. Forest Service national grasslands, and all North Dakota state school, state park and state forest service lands.
The governor’s proclamation relating to chronic wasting disease also includes a provision that prohibits hunting big game over bait on both public and private land in deer unit 3C west of the Missouri River, and all of units 3E1, 3E2, 3F1 and 3F2.
Hunting over bait is defined as the placement and/or use of baits for attracting big game and other wildlife to a specific location for the purpose of hunting. Bait, in this case, includes grain, seed, mineral, salt, fruit, vegetable nut, hay, any naturally derived scent or lure, or any other natural or manufactured food placed by an individual.
Bait does not include agricultural practices, gardens, wildlife food plots, agricultural crops, livestock feeds, fruit or vegetables in their natural location such as apples on or under an apple tree, or unharvested food or vegetables in a garden.
In addition, any firearms, equipment or accessories used by hunters on Private Land Open To Sportsmen acreage may not be left unattended without written permission of the property owner. This includes, but is not limited to, guns, blinds, stands, baits, scents and decoys. This means a hunter cannot place bait on PLOTS prior to or during the season and leave it there, unless permission has been granted by the landowner.
Pronghorn Lottery Held
North Dakota’s pronghorn lottery has been held and individual results are available online at the State Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov.
A total of 730 licenses were available in units 1A, 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A and 4C. More than 8,900 applications, including 256 gratis, were received. All licenses were issued.
Unsuccessful applicants who submitted their application online or through the department’s 800 licensing telephone number will receive a refund back to their credit card. Individuals who submitted paper applications will receive a refund check.
Dove Season Opens Sept. 1
North Dakota’s dove season opens statewide Sept. 1, and hunters are reminded to register with the Harvest Information Program prior to hunting.
The daily limit is 15 and possession limit is 45. Shooting hours are 30 minutes before sunrise to sunset. The season is open through Nov. 29.
All dove hunters must possess a fishing, hunting and furbearer certificate and a general game and habitat license, regardless of age. In addition, hunters ages 16 and older need a small game license.
Hunters who do not HIP certify when they buy a North Dakota license, can add it through the Game and Fish website at gf.nd.gov, or by calling 888-634-4798 and recording the HIP number on their printed license.
Those who registered to hunt the spring light goose or early Canada goose seasons in North Dakota do not have to register with HIP again, as it is required only once per year. However, hunters must HIP register in each state for which they are licensed before hunting migratory game birds.
North Dakota Game and Fish Department