For immediate release, June 15

Idaho resident hunters can apply for grizzly bear hunt June 15 through July 15

Fish and Game will accept controlled hunt applications for a 2018 grizzly bear tag June 15 through July 15. The drawing is limited to Idaho residents with a valid Idaho hunting license.

Hunters can apply at any Fish and Game license vendor, at Fish and Game regional offices, online at idfg.idaho.gov/buy-online<http://idfg.idaho.gov/buy-online>, or by mail. All mailed applications must be postmarked no later than July 15.

Applicants will pay a nonrefundable $16.75 application fee and must prepay the cost of the tag to apply, which is $199.75 for hunters not Price Locked (those who did not hold an Idaho hunting, fishing or trapping license in 2017) and $166.75 for hunters who are Price Locked. Tag fees will be refunded to unsuccessful applicants, but not the application fee or the cost of the license.

Resident hunters who applied for 2018 moose, bighorn sheep and mountain goat, as well as other big game tags, can apply for the 2018 grizzly bear tag.

The drawing is expected to occur in early August. The successful applicant will pick up the tag at the Idaho Falls Regional Office. Fish and Game staff will give the hunter training and information about grizzly bear identification before the hunt.

Cancellation Advisory: There is a chance this hunt may not occur due to pending litigation in federal court. If the hunt is canceled by court order prior to the drawing, applicants will not be refunded either the hunting license or application fees. The tag fee will be refunded to all applicants.

If the proposed hunt is stopped after the drawing results, the successful applicant will have the tag fee refunded, but not the hunting license or application fee.

The following rules also apply for the fall 2018 grizzly bear hunt:

• Season: Sept. 1 through Nov. 15, 2018

• Bag Limit: One grizzly bear, except, no female grizzly bear accompanied by young may be taken, and no young grizzly bear(s) accompanied by adult grizzly bear(s) may be taken.

• Dogs: Use of dogs to attract or pursue grizzly bears is prohibited.

• Bait: Hunting grizzly bears over bait is illegal.

• Electronic Calls: It is unlawful to use electronic calls to attract grizzly bears for the purpose of harvest.

Full story: https://idfg.idaho.gov/press/i...e-15-through-july-15

What a joke one tag.

Kissing the anti's but.

While screwing the hunters over.

they based it on bear numbers.
and it's available to anyone that applies, not an auction.

165$ for a Grizzly tag is pretty reasonable, especially if you consider I could draw that tag, pack the stuff I got in my truck, buy some food, drive up and get a grizzly for under 500$ and some effort on my part if I drew out.

I don't think you could do it for 500$ in Roosevelt's day.

quote:

Originally posted by Lamar:
they based it on bear numbers.
and it's available to anyone that applies, not an auction.

How did you come up with that one when there area plenty of bears in ID to warrant more than just one resident tag?!

Good news, it's a start. Hopefully the hunt goes through and the hunter is successful.

quote:

Originally posted by Topgun 30-06:
How did you come up with that one when there area plenty of bears in ID to warrant more than just one resident tag?!

How many are there in Idaho now?

actually quite a number of them.
but they are mostly pretty concentrated in one area near the Park.

Idaho will put small numbers like this on new tags and that gives them the opportunity to then change the numbers available or close a season.
they monitor things pretty closely, and are pretty quick to react to area changes.

for instance.
in my general area we have a youth only doe deer hunt that is on/off again and is subject to the fluctuations of the herds from year to year.
some areas have no rifle hunting for Elk until the numbers grow, then it's opened again for a season or two.

So is "quite a number" more or less than "plenty?"

Maybe we should get a few of the other estimates out of the way like a bunch, lots, a slew, quite a few, etc.

quote:

Originally posted by Outdoor Writer:
So is "quite a number" more or less than "plenty?"

Maybe we should get a few of the other estimates out of the way like a bunch, lots, a slew, quite a few, etc.

Please leave the pot stirring to CHC, LOL!

PS: Actually, I believe the count in ID is now at 184, as each had to check in with the DNR when they came out of hibernation this Spring!

Good for Idaho. I hope the hunt is a big boon for the conservation of wild places. Who ever wins the tag should invite the "media" to document the entire process and especially the science that informed Idaho's decision to have a season in the first place. This will not be an easy hunt.

Just a thought.

meh go to Island Park and turn right.
I don't doubt they all had to check in shortly after coming out of hibernation.
we have to report everything we as hunters do each year or they can withhold next years tag.
number of day's in the field and in which units, number of animals/birds taken, antler count, if you sighted any wolves, wolverines, etc..

on many lakes you fill out a report card of how many people fished, hours fished, how many fish you caught, what size they were, were you on a boat or fishing from shore.

they collect a lot of data here.

So to get some more info on this, I emailed one of my contacts at IDFG. Here's the exchange.

My questions:

1. What is the estimated population within Idaho borders, and where are the main concentrations?

2. Considering the above, are there any areas where the bears are located that are off-limits for the proposed single tag that will be doled out for the hunt?

These are the answers:

Number 2 is easier to answer than number one. We are limiting this hunt to a specific hunt area in eastern Idaho. You can see a map here: https://idfg.idaho.gov/sites/d...rizzly-bear-2018.pdf

Off limits areas include anyplace in Yellowstone National Park, Harriman State Park, and a small closure area that’s essentially a residential area.

My note: the map shows the hunt area as the eastern portion of hunt unit 61, part of 62 and all of 62A.

To answer your first, Idaho is managing the Greater Yellowstone population along with Wyoming and Montana, and in the Great Yellowstone Ecosystem “demographic monitoring area” (DMA) the 2017 estimate is 719 grizzlies. The tag allocation is based on amount of acreage in each state within the DMA, not on the percentage of the population that’s within Idaho. We don’t have a specific population estimate for Idaho because many of these bears are seasonally migratory and cross state boundaries. To further complicate things, we also have a separate population of grizzly bears in the Panhandle, which are also “within Idaho borders” but well outside the hunt area.

I bought a chance just to say I had, and will frame it for the wall. Good on IDFG!!!

Good luck, but I have a feeling there will be lots of legal hurdles before the hunt takes place.