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News Releases

North Dakota Game and Fish Department

North Dakota Game and Fish Department

News Releases

PLOTS Guide Online

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s Private Land Open To Sportsmen Guide for 2022 is now available online at the Game and Fish website, gf.nd.gov. In addition, the free printed PLOTS guides will be available in late August at most license vendors and other locations throughout the state.

The guide will feature about 800,000 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 not available to mail, so hunters will have to pick one up at a local vendor or Game and Fish offices, or print individual maps from the website.

Swan Application Deadline Aug. 17

The deadline to submit a swan application is Aug. 17.

Applicants must submit an online application through the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov.

North Dakota residents and nonresidents are eligible to apply. The resident swan license is $10, while the nonresident fee is $30.

Equipment Registration Number Used for Identification

Hunters, trappers and anglers are reminded that an equipment registration number, or the individual’s name, address and telephone number, must be displayed on all equipment requiring identification.

In addition, written permission is required from the owner of the property, or an individual authorized by the owner, for an individual to install camera/video equipment on private property, and the equipment must be identified.

While on state wildlife management areas, identification is required on items such as ground blinds, tree stands, cameras and traps.

Identification must be attached to cable devices set on either private or public land, and on fish houses left unattended on the ice.

Owners can generate an equipment registration number by visiting Buy and Apply at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov. One registration number will be issued that can be used on all equipment requiring identification.

The equipment registration number does not expire.

Concurrent Season Deer Licenses Available Aug. 17

Hunters can purchase additional, concurrent season deer licenses Aug. 17 at 8 a.m. Central time on the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov. There is no limit on the number of concurrent season licenses a hunter can purchase.

Concurrent season licenses can be used during the archery season with a bow; deer gun season with a bow, rifle or muzzleloader; or during the muzzleloader season with a muzzleloader. However, youth under 14 (at the end of the calendar year) will be issued a concurrent season license for archery only.

Hunters with concurrent season licenses are restricted to the type of antlerless deer printed on the license and must stay in the unit in which the license is assigned.

Pronghorn Lottery Held

North Dakota’s pronghorn lottery has been held and all 1,965 licenses were issued.

In total, 16,499 applications were received, including 818 gratis applications.

Individual results are available online at North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov.

HIP Registration Required for Migratory Bird Hunters

Migratory bird hunters of all ages need to register with the Harvest Information Program prior to hunting ducks, geese, swans, mergansers, coots, cranes, snipe, doves and woodcock. Hunters must register in each state for which they are licensed to hunt.

Hunters can HIP certify when purchasing a license by visiting the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov.

Those who registered to hunt during the spring light goose conservation order in North Dakota do not have to register with HIP again, as it is required only once per year.

HIP registration is a cooperative program designed to determine a sample of hunters to measure the harvest of migratory birds for management purposes.

Meetings Set to Discuss Chronic Wasting Disease

North Dakota Game and Fish Department officials will host three public meetings this month to discuss chronic wasting disease in North Dakota.

“Chronic wasting disease presents serious concerns for the long-term health of our big game populations,” said Casey Anderson, wildlife division chief. “While the status of this disease has changed considerably in North Dakota over the past two decades, we’ve also learned a lot.”

Since last year, an intradepartmental CWD Task Force has been conducting a situational analysis of the issue, culminating in an updated plan for how it intends to manage the disease in North Dakota.

The meetings will include a formal presentation on history, current status and the future of CWD in North Dakota, after which Department staff will be available to visit individually with people who have questions and/or comments.

All meetings begin at 7 p.m. local time. Dates and locations are:

 

Aug. 22 – Fargo

3803 13th Ave. S.

Holiday Inn

 

Aug. 24 – Dickinson

532 15th St. W.

Grand Dakota Lodge

 

Aug. 29 – Minot

1505 N. Broadway

Grand Hotel

Anglers Should Keep Fish Caught in Deep Water

North Dakota Game and Fish Department fisheries personnel encourage anglers to keep fish caught from depths of more than 25 feet, rather than practice catch-and-release.

Dave Fryda, Missouri River System supervisor, said given the exceptional Lake Sakakawea walleye fishing this summer, enticing many anglers to the big lake, it’s important to know that fish reeled in from deep waters will likely die if released.

“When the bite first started, anglers were catching fish in shallow water,” Fryda said. “As the summer progressed, fish move into deeper water and are now being caught at depths where barotrauma is a concern.”

Change in water pressure will cause the swim bladder to expand, which means fish can no longer control balance. In addition, other internal injuries are likely, such as ruptured blood vessels or damaged internal organs. Because of these other internal injuries, biologists discourage fizzing, the practice of deflating the swim bladder.

Barotrauma injury can happen in any deep water body, but it is especially noteworthy for this time of year in Lake Sakakawea.

Prior to fishing at least 25 feet deep, anglers should make the decision to keep what they catch prior to fishing and honor that commitment.

Early Canada Goose Dates Announced

North Dakota’s early Canada goose season dates are set, with bag limits and licensing requirements the same as last year.

Opening day is Aug. 15 in all three zones. Closing dates are Sept. 7 in the Missouri River zone, Sept. 15 in the western zone and Sept. 22 in the eastern zone.

Early Canada goose limits are 15 daily and 45 in possession.

Limits and shooting hours are different from the regular season, while the zone boundaries remain the same. Shooting hours for early Canada goose are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset daily.

Residents need a $5 early Canada goose license and a general game and habitat license. Also, residents 16 and older need a small game license. Nonresidents need only a $50 early Canada goose license, and the license is valid statewide without counting against the 14-day regular season license. Licenses can be purchased online by visiting the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov.

Harvest Information Program certification is required and beginning Sept. 1 a federal duck stamp for hunters 16 and older is needed. Those who HIP registered to hunt the spring light goose conservation order in North Dakota do not have to register with HIP again, as it is required in each state only once per year.

Waterfowl rest areas, closed to hunting during the regular season, are open during the early season. Most land in these rest areas is private, so hunters may need permission to access them.

Hunting of Canada geese in August and early September is intended to reduce local Canada goose numbers, which remain high. Game and Fish is attempting to provide additional hunting opportunities to increase pressure on locally breeding Canada geese.

Small Game, Waterfowl, Furbearer Regulations Set

North Dakota’s 2022 small game, waterfowl and furbearer regulations are set, and most season structures are similar to last year.

Noteworthy items include:

  • Opening day for ducks, geese, coots and mergansers for North Dakota residents is Sept. 24. Nonresidents may begin hunting waterfowl in North Dakota Oct. 1.
  • The prairie chicken and sage grouse seasons remain closed due to low populations.
  • Pre-charged pneumatic air guns are legal for taking weasel, mink, muskrat and mountain lion.
  • Reporting harvest of bobcats, mountain lions, fishers and river otters can now be done online by visiting My Account at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov.

Hunters and trappers can find the North Dakota 2022-23 Hunting and Trapping Guide, which includes upland game, migratory game bird and furbearer/trapping regulations and other information, on the Game and Fish website. Printed guides will be available at vendor locations in mid-August.

For a complete listing of opening and closing dates, and daily and possession limits, refer to the table on pages 4-5 of the guide.

Pronghorn Applications Due Aug. 3

The deadline to apply for the 2022 pronghorn hunting season is Aug. 3.

Applicants can apply online by visiting the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov.

The pronghorn license fee is $30 for 16 and older, and $10 for under 16. Applicants must be at least 12 years of age on or before Dec. 31.

Only North Dakota residents are eligible to apply.

Swan Hunt Applications

Hunters applying for a 2022 swan license can submit an online application through the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov.

North Dakota residents and nonresidents are eligible to apply. The resident swan license is $10, while the nonresident fee is $30. The deadline to apply is Aug. 17.

The statewide tundra swan hunting season opens Oct. 1. A total of 2,200 licenses are available. Successful applicants will receive a tag to take one swan during the season. Since swans are classified as waterfowl, nonresidents may hunt them only during the period their nonresident waterfowl license is valid.

All swan hunters, regardless of age, are required to have a general game and habitat license when applying. In addition, nonresidents must have a waterfowl license, and residents 16 and older need a small game or combination license.