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12-10-2009, 06:01 PM
SRD meets with public for input
Posted By Chris Eakin
Posted 23 hours ago
Alberta Sustainable Resources Fish and Wildlife held their annual meeting to get public input on local game conditions and/or problems and present ideas from head office in Edmonton.
Local Fish and Wildlife officer Pennoyer and area wildlife biologist Dave Moyles presented proposals for the 2010 hunting season and found that not all ideas were met with enthusiasm.
The most controversial for local hunters was the idea of having a general season for three-point elk in Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) 525 instead of issuing license tags by a draw.
The general season would mean that anyone who wanted a license could walk in and buy one for the Wildlife Management Unit.
Opposition was based on the fear of the area being flooded by hunters looking for trophy elk and perhaps ruining the hunt for locals.
Another program that according to Moyles has very strong government support for provincewide application for antlerless elk, is to have three separate seasons, Sept. 17-Oct. 31, Nov. 1- Dec. 20 and Dec. 21 - Jan. 31.
Moyles explained that the idea is to spread the hunting pressure on the elk and harvest more of the "producers" and thus have better control of the elk population. He added that the Dec. 21-Jan. 31 season is when there would be maximum depredation by elk on farm hay supplies, so keeping up the hunting pressure would help to reduce the depredation.
Moyles further explained that previously, the elk have been in four or five large groups of what might be termed "novice elk" -- relatively easy to hunt, but have now broken up into smaller groups and spread the depredation problem over a wider area. The proposed changes to seasons was a direct response to that development. Moyles said game management is as much art as it is science and there is no one right answer so it is likely they will be fine-tuning the proposal and numbers as they get more information.
There was also a proposal to limit bear-baiting for black bears to south of Highway 64 and Highway 685. Moyles explained that there have been grizzly bears sighted in the area north and they do not want grizzlies to become habituated to human food, although someone did comment that beavers make the best bait.
Moyles and Pennoyer said that from what they have seen, people use a wide variety of items for bait including popcorn and cookies. One hunter/outfitter present protested the ban on baiting north of the highways as it considerably limited areas that could be used for baiting.
Other proposals seemed to be based on simplifying things by making hunting seasons the same in all WMUs for all game birds and making daily limits and possession limits the same for as many as possible.
For example, for many birds, the daily limit is five while for other birds the limit is lower and the maximum possession limit is either two times or three times the daily limit. One change proposed is to make the possession limit three times the daily limit for all birds.
Asked if there are any birds he might be concerned about the increased total limit affecting, Moyles responded that there is some concern among biologists for the sharp-tailed grouse. He explained that their population is much less than it used to be and the concern is that people might have the perception that because the bag limit has been raised, that they don't have to worry about the birds (from a species survival point of view).
The bird season was to be changed to Sept. 15 to Nov. 30 for all WMUs, which according to Moyles would affect hunters in northern areas the most as their season usually starts Sept. 1 and so would cost them two weeks of hunting. BZTHEE
Although there was no objection from most to raising the limit on birds, the general comment by hunters at the meeting in regard to season dates was, "If it isn't broke, why try and fix it." Moyles said that a Grimshaw hunter quite simply said the proposal was "rubbish."
Moyles and Pennoyer will pass comments from locals back to Edmonton where the ideas came from. Moyles later said that the Dunvegan Fish and Game Association and other local hunters have been strong supporters of SRD programs, so when they talk "I take what they say very seriously."
Posted By Chris Eakin
Posted 23 hours ago
Alberta Sustainable Resources Fish and Wildlife held their annual meeting to get public input on local game conditions and/or problems and present ideas from head office in Edmonton.
Local Fish and Wildlife officer Pennoyer and area wildlife biologist Dave Moyles presented proposals for the 2010 hunting season and found that not all ideas were met with enthusiasm.
The most controversial for local hunters was the idea of having a general season for three-point elk in Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) 525 instead of issuing license tags by a draw.
The general season would mean that anyone who wanted a license could walk in and buy one for the Wildlife Management Unit.
Opposition was based on the fear of the area being flooded by hunters looking for trophy elk and perhaps ruining the hunt for locals.
Another program that according to Moyles has very strong government support for provincewide application for antlerless elk, is to have three separate seasons, Sept. 17-Oct. 31, Nov. 1- Dec. 20 and Dec. 21 - Jan. 31.
Moyles explained that the idea is to spread the hunting pressure on the elk and harvest more of the "producers" and thus have better control of the elk population. He added that the Dec. 21-Jan. 31 season is when there would be maximum depredation by elk on farm hay supplies, so keeping up the hunting pressure would help to reduce the depredation.
Moyles further explained that previously, the elk have been in four or five large groups of what might be termed "novice elk" -- relatively easy to hunt, but have now broken up into smaller groups and spread the depredation problem over a wider area. The proposed changes to seasons was a direct response to that development. Moyles said game management is as much art as it is science and there is no one right answer so it is likely they will be fine-tuning the proposal and numbers as they get more information.
There was also a proposal to limit bear-baiting for black bears to south of Highway 64 and Highway 685. Moyles explained that there have been grizzly bears sighted in the area north and they do not want grizzlies to become habituated to human food, although someone did comment that beavers make the best bait.
Moyles and Pennoyer said that from what they have seen, people use a wide variety of items for bait including popcorn and cookies. One hunter/outfitter present protested the ban on baiting north of the highways as it considerably limited areas that could be used for baiting.
Other proposals seemed to be based on simplifying things by making hunting seasons the same in all WMUs for all game birds and making daily limits and possession limits the same for as many as possible.
For example, for many birds, the daily limit is five while for other birds the limit is lower and the maximum possession limit is either two times or three times the daily limit. One change proposed is to make the possession limit three times the daily limit for all birds.
Asked if there are any birds he might be concerned about the increased total limit affecting, Moyles responded that there is some concern among biologists for the sharp-tailed grouse. He explained that their population is much less than it used to be and the concern is that people might have the perception that because the bag limit has been raised, that they don't have to worry about the birds (from a species survival point of view).
The bird season was to be changed to Sept. 15 to Nov. 30 for all WMUs, which according to Moyles would affect hunters in northern areas the most as their season usually starts Sept. 1 and so would cost them two weeks of hunting. BZTHEE
Although there was no objection from most to raising the limit on birds, the general comment by hunters at the meeting in regard to season dates was, "If it isn't broke, why try and fix it." Moyles said that a Grimshaw hunter quite simply said the proposal was "rubbish."
Moyles and Pennoyer will pass comments from locals back to Edmonton where the ideas came from. Moyles later said that the Dunvegan Fish and Game Association and other local hunters have been strong supporters of SRD programs, so when they talk "I take what they say very seriously."