North Dakota Game and Fish Department Director Terry Steinwand recently honored a number of employees with performance-based awards. Steinwand presented the following awards at the department’s annual staff meeting Dec. 8.
John Mazur, hunter education coordinator, Bismarck, received the Special Projects award, given to an individual who implemented a successful new project. Mazur was…
North Dakota Game and Fish Department law enforcement officers are searching for information related to the likely illegal possession and taking of a mule deer buck and an antlerless whitetail pictured recently on social media at a location that appears to be in or near the pipeline protest camp in southern Morton County.
Anyone with information should contact the Game and Fish…
North Dakota’s free ice fishing weekend is Dec. 31, 2016 and Jan. 1, 2017.
Resident anglers may fish that weekend without a license. All other ice fishing regulations apply.
Those interested in darkhouse spearfishing that weekend must register with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department prior to participating. Registration is available by visiting the Department’s website,…
North Dakota boat owners are reminded that 2017 is the first year of a new three-year registration period.
Boat registrations can be renewed online by clicking on “buy and apply” at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov. In addition, boat owners should receive their registration mailing in early January.
The price to register motorboats under 16 feet in…
The Coyote Catalog, a statewide effort designed to connect coyote hunters and trappers with landowners who are dealing with coyotes in their areas, is open for the winter.
A partnership between the North Dakota Department of Agriculture and the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, the Coyote Catalog can be a good way for hunters and trappers to locate new places to go, according to…
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s district 1 advisory board meeting in Watford City that was originally scheduled for Dec. 5 is now set for Monday, Dec. 19.
In addition, the district 3 advisory board meeting in Cando that was previously rescheduled for Thursday, Dec. 15 is now set for Tuesday, Dec. 20.
District 1 – Counties: Divide, McKenzie and Williams
Date:…
Fordville, Cando Game and Fish Advisory Meetings Postponed
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s advisory board meetings scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 6 in Cando and Fordville have been postponed until Dec. 14 and 20 due to forecasted inclement weather.
Meetings set for tonight in Dickinson and Watford City will go on as scheduled.
The meeting in…
To help North Dakota hunters prepare for hunting seasons in 2017, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department annually provides its best estimate for opening dates for the coming year.
Dates become official when approved by governor’s proclamation. Tentative opening dates for 2017 include:
Spring Turkey - April 8
Deer and Pronghorn Bow, Dove, Mountain Lion - September 1…
Winter anglers are reminded that any fish house left unoccupied on North Dakota waters must be made out of materials that will allow it to float.
A popular question this time of year is if campers qualify as legal fish houses. The answer is the same for any structure taken on the ice – if it’s left unattended, it must be able to float; if it’s not able to float, it must be removed when…
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s advisory board meetings scheduled for tonight and tomorrow in Berthold, Hankinson, Jamestown and Bismarck have been postponed two weeks due to inclement weather.
The meetings in Berthold and Hankinson are rescheduled for Monday, Dec. 12; and Bismarck and Jamestown are rescheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 13.
District 2 – Counties:…
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department is urging winter anglers and late-season hunters to use extreme caution when venturing out on ice until the state has experienced a prolonged period of subfreezing temperatures.
Heavy snow and wind accompanying a late November snowstorm over parts of the state are creating slush in many lakes, which is typically not as solid when it freezes,…
All individuals who participate in darkhouse spearfishing must first register online at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov, or through any Game and Fish Department office.
Two notable changes from last year related to spearing are that materials used to mark holes must be in possession of anglers and spearers as soon as a hole greater than 10 inches in…
Anglers fishing North Dakota waters this winter are reminded of new regulations implemented since last year.
The statewide possession limit for bluegill, yellow perch and white bass has been reduced from 80 to 40 each. Sweet Briar Dam and Braun Lake are now open to darkhouse spearfishing, while Larimore Dam and Wood Lake are closed to darkhouse spearers. Materials used to mark holes…North Dakota waterfowl hunters are reminded the statewide duck and white-fronted goose seasons close Dec. 4. However, duck hunting in the high plains unit reopens Dec. 10 and continues through Jan. 1, 2017.
In addition, the season for Canada geese closes Dec. 22, except for the Missouri River Zone, which closes Dec. 30. Light goose hunting closes statewide Jan. 1, 2017.
Archery…
North Dakota’s early mountain lion season in Zone 1 closed Sunday, Nov. 20, and the late season, when hunters can pursue lions with dogs, is now open.
During the early season, hunters took three cats from a harvest limit of eight. Under a new season structure this year, a conditional season could open five days after the late season closes, for hunters to pursue the additional five…
Most hunter education courses have wrapped up for 2016.
However, individuals or parents with children who will need to take a course in 2017 should monitor the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov, as classes that begin in January will be added to the Buy and Apply link as soon as times and locations are finalized.
After accessing the Buy and Apply link,…
Organizers planning fishing tournaments, including ice fishing contests this winter, are reminded to submit an application along with fishing tournament regulations to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department at least 30 days prior to the start of the event.
The 30-day advance notice allows for review by agency staff to ensure the proposed tournament will not have negative…
Outdoor enthusiasts are invited to attend a North Dakota Game and Fish Department fall advisory board meeting in their area.
These public meetings, held each spring and fall, provide citizens with an opportunity to discuss fish and wildlife issues and ask questions of their district advisors and agency personnel.
The governor appoints eight Game and Fish Department advisors,…
Fisheries crews have completed their annual salmon spawning operation on the Missouri River System after collecting roughly 2 million eggs.
Dave Fryda, North Dakota Game and Fish Department Missouri River System supervisor, said the salmon spawning season was extremely productive and crews easily collected enough eggs to stock the 400,000 smolts planned for Lake Sakakawea in 2017.…
Hunters are reminded that several North Dakota national wildlife refuges open to late-season upland game bird hunting the day after the deer gun season closes.
Arrowwood, Audubon, Des Lacs, J. Clark Salyer, Lake Alice, Lake Zahl, Long Lake, Lostwood, Tewaukon (pheasants only), and Upper Souris NWRs open Nov. 21.
However, portions of each refuge are closed to hunting. Hunters…
