In the Press Release 03/01/10 issue:

GAME AND FISH COMMISSION TO MEET IN THERMOPOLIS MARCH 11
SPRING BLACK BEAR HUNTING AND BAITING DETAILS
AQUATIC INVASIVE SECIES SUMMIT TO BE HELD MARCH 16 IN CASPER
TURKEY DRAWING CONDUCTED
DIAMOND H RANCH CONSERVATION EASEMENT
G&F Calendar
ASK THE GAME & FISH

GAME AND FISH COMMISSION TO MEET IN THERMOPOLIS MARCH 11

CHEYENNE - The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission will meet March 11 in Thermopolis at the Days Inn Hot Springs Conference Center.  The public meeting will begin at approximately 9 a.m. following an executive session.

Agenda Items include a presentation by Horizon Wind on how the wind industry has dealt with wildlife issues and an overview of a wild turkey mortality study in the Black Hills.  Other agenda items include a presentation by the Wyoming Outfitters and Guides Association on the impact of wolf reintroduction on the ungulate populations in northwest Wyoming.  The commission will also be briefed on the situation with the elk herds in hunt areas 50, 51 and 52 in the Sunlight Basin area northwest of Cody.

In addition chief game warden Jay Lawson will give a presentation on the history of returning elk to the Bighorn Mountains in the early 1900's.

A complete agenda is available on the Game and Fish Web site http://gf.state.wy.us.  Persons who require auxiliary aids to attend should contact Wanda Pomeroy at (307) 777-4501.  An agenda is also available by contacting the Game and Fish at 307-777-4501.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department supports the Americans With Disabilities Act.  Every effort will be made for reasonable accommodations.
(Contact: Wanda Pomeroy (307) 777-4501)

-WGFD-

SPRING BLACK BEAR HUNTING AND BAITING DETAILS

JACKSON - Black bear hunters looking to use baits for the upcoming spring bear hunting seasons are advised that the period to renew a bear bait from the previous year runs from March 1 to March 20. This applies only to those hunters who had bait sites registered in the previous calendar year and wish to renew the same site. 

                 Following the preference period, registration of unclaimed bait sites will be accepted in person at any Wyoming Game and Fish Department regional office beginning at 8 a.m. April 1 on a first come, first served basis.

.                There will be no black bear bait site registrations during the period of March 21-March 31.  Hunters can renew their bait sites from last year by contacting their local Game and Fish regional offices by telephone, mail, fax, in person or by a representative.  Baits cannot be registered at the Cheyenne Headquarters Game and Fish Office. All registered bait sites are for the year and cannot be changed until the following year.

                 Hunters are reminded that they must have a 2010 black bear hunting license prior to registering a bait site.  No bear bait may be placed on state, federal or Game and Fish lands without first registering the bait site. Each bear hunter is allowed two bait sites but only one bait per section.  Baits cannot be placed more than seven days before opening day and must be removed within seven days after the close of the season.                                

   Also, each black bear hunt area has a female mortality quota that, when reached, closes the season for that area immediately.  Therefore, hunters are required to regularly check the black bear hotline at 1-800-264-1280 to make sure their hunt area hasn't closed.  When a black bear is harvested, hunters are required to retain the skull and pelt, with visible external evidence of sex, and present it to department personnel at the nearest Game and Fish office within three days (72 hours). 

   Black bear hunters are encouraged to brush up on their bear identification skills by taking a voluntary online bear identification test found on the Wyoming Game and Fish Web site at: http://gf.state.wy.us/BearExam/index.asp. Hunters may pick up current bear hunting regulations at any license selling location to review additional details about black bear baiting and hunting.  Hunters with questions can contact any Game and Fish regional office.
 (Contact: Mark Gocke (307) 777-2321)

-WGFD-

AQUATIC INVASIVE SECIES SUMMIT TO BE HELD MARCH 16 IN CASPER

CHEYENNE - Aquatic invasive species - zebra and quagga mussels and others - those exotic, ultra-prolific little clams, which have wreaked havoc with aquatic ecosystems and water treatment facilities in some other states, are the focus of a March 16 summit in Casper.

                All interested individuals and groups are invited to the free event being co-sponsored by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources at the Ramada Plaza Riverside Hotel and Convention Center. The summit will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The summit's discussions and presentations will focus on zebra and quagga mussels, AIS plans in other western states, costs, prevention strategies, difficulties encountered by power companies and plans to prevent their spread to Wyoming. Experts from Colorado and Utah, where the organisms have been found, will give presentations in addition to Wyoming authorities. 

"Once established, removal of these aquatic invaders is nearly impossible and control is very expensive," said Rob Gipson, summit coordinator for the Game and Fish. "This summit brings together the best information on AIS in the region with the goal of keeping the pests out of Wyoming."

Pre-registration is urged to help ensure adequate space for the event. To pre-register or if you would like a complete agenda, please call (307) 777-4569 or email judie.petersen@wgf.state.wy.us

AIS information can also be found on the Game and Fish Web site at http://gf.state.wy.us/fish/AIS. In addition to other useful Web site links, view the "Don't Move a Mussel" video.

Zebra and quagga mussels are native to the Black Sea region of western Asia and are believed to have reached North America through the ballast tanks of ships.
(Contact Rob Gipson (307) 777-4569)

-WGFD-

TURKEY DRAWING CONDUCTED

CHEYENNE - The drawing for spring wild turkey licenses has been completed.  Results of the drawing are now available on the Game and Fish Web site http://gf.state.wy.us. 

There are leftover licenses for the following areas and license types:

                                                Area                 Type        Quota Remaining

                                                   1                       3                   2,117

                                                                 4                       2                        13

                                                   8                       1                         4

                                                   9                       3                       78

-WGFD-

DIAMOND H RANCH CONSERVATION EASEMENT

KEMMERER - The Wyoming Game and Fish Department, working cooperatively with many partners, has secured a 2,400-acre conservation easement with the Diamond H Ranch in western Wyoming.            

                A conservation easement is a voluntary, legally binding agreement that limits certain types of uses or prevents development from taking place on a piece of property, generally in perpetuity, now and in the future, while protecting the property's ecological and open-space values.

                WGFD habitat biologist Ron Lockwood says discussions with the Diamond H Ranch have been ongoing since 2008 and the resulting conservation easement will protect multiple wildlife habitats and benefit many species of wildlife. 

                "The Diamond H has important conservation values with unique topographic formations and open scenic vistas of great importance to the local ranching community and to the public," Lockwood said. "These lands are classified as crucial winter range and yearlong range for elk, deer, Shiras moose, sage grouse and pronghorn antelope. Additionally, documented movement of pronghorn antelope through this area to summer ranges to the north has identified this as an important migration corridor."

 Also present are black bears, mountain lions, blue and ruffed grouse.  The area also supports numerous species of nongame birds and mammals, including Species of Greatest Conservation Need, which were also identified in the WGFD's Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy for Wyoming in 2005 (the CWCS was recently renamed Wyoming's "State Wildlife Action Plan").

"The property also holds several permanent streams that support resilient populations of various fish species and native invertebrates," Lockwood said. "Riparian areas associated with LaBarge Creek and Coal Creek provide habitat for numerous fish and amphibian species including brook trout, mountain whitefish, Colorado River cutthroat trout and Snake River cutthroat. Currently, lands directly adjacent to these properties are being sub-divided, so the potential for sub-division of these lands is high. This conservation easement will secure long-term protection of these habitats from sub-division and will ensure a viable livestock operation and wildlife habitat in the future."   

                Diamond H Ranch is owned by Myles, Corby, Michael and Rachel McGinnis. The commercial Hereford cattle ranch dates back to 1886 and includes 7,200 deeded acres and 110,000 acres of leases on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and National Forest lands.

The McGinnis's were recipients of the WGFD 2009 Landowner of the Year Award for the Green River Region. Corby McGinnis serves as the chairperson for the Southwest Sage Grouse Working Group.

                WGFD Lands Resource Biologist Kerry Olson negotiates and works with Wyoming landowners on conservation easements and says the completion of the Diamond H Ranch conservation easement was a department priority.

                "From a wildlife perspective, when we evaluated easements and projects to benefit Wyoming wildlife, this conservation easement ranked very high in both state and regional priorities," Olson said.  "There are many partners who made funding this easement possible. I am pleased to be part of such an important conservation effort."

Involved groups include the Jonah Interagency Reclamation and Mitigation Office, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, The Conservation Fund, Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust Fund, Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative, Wyoming Game and Fish Department Habitat Trust Fund, Wyoming Governor's Big Game License Coalition and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

                Game and Fish Services Division Chief John Kennedy says conservation easements are an agency priority.

                "The Department continues to pursue conservation easements as one of our highest acquisition priorities because they are truly win-win partnerships between the Department and private landowners for conserving wildlife habitat and sustaining agriculture," Kennedy said. 

                  According to Lockwood, the McGinnis's have a full understanding that conserving and enhancing all habitats benefit not only wildlife, but their ranching operation as well.  Lockwood said they have worked very hard to make progressive changes in livestock management of local BLM and U.S. Forest Service allotments. The Diamond H Ranch Conservation Easement contains agricultural, ecological, scenic, wildlife and open space values of importance to Lincoln County, Sublette County and the State of Wyoming.

                  "Although public access was not included in the conservation easement (which is generally the case for these types of easements), hunting and fishing on the Diamond H is allowed with landowner permission," Lockwood said. "The McGinnis's not only hunt and fish, they also support and provide hunting and fishing opportunities on their lands, especially encouraging youth hunting. They are committed to making this conservation easement a reality to ensure both agriculture and wildlife remains on the landscape of southwest Wyoming forever."
(Contact: Lucy Diggins (307) 875-3223)

-WGFD-

G&F Calendar

March 1 - Landowner coupon deadline
March 1 - Application deadline for wild bison priority listing
March 1 - Resident/ nonresident application deadline for moose, bighorn sheep and mt. goat licenses
March 1 - Season closes for cottontail rabbit; snowshoe hare; red, gray and fox squirrels
March 3 - Staying Safe in Bear, Lion and Wolf Country, Sheridan College, 6 p.m.
March 11 - Wyoming Game and Fish Commission meeting, Thermopolis
March 15 - Nonresident application deadline for deer and antelope licenses
March 16 - Aquatic Invasive Species Summit, Casper, Ramada Plaza Hotel, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
March 16 - Staying Safe in Bear, Lion and Wolf Country, Pinedale Public Library, 6:30 p.m.
March 18 - Staying Safe in Bear, Lion and Wolf Country, Jackson, Snow King Resort, 6:30 p.m.
March 18 - Staying Safe in Bear, Lion and Wolf Country, WGFD Green River Office, 6 p.m.
March 23 - Staying Safe in Bear, Lion and Wolf Country, Clark, Community Hall, 6:30 p.m.
March 24 - Staying Safe in Bear, Lion and Wolf Country, Powell, NCW Fagerberg Hall, 7 p.m.

-WGFD-

ASK THE GAME & FISH

Q.  I have an out-of-state friend who put in for an elk license but didn't draw.  Is there any way he can still get an elk license this year?

A.  Very likely.  It all depends on the type of elk license and area.  Following the resident drawing around the end of June there are always some areas with leftover licenses.  Many of the leftover licenses are for antlerless elk but there are always a handful of areas that have licenses to hunt bulls. Areas with available licenses will be announced by the end of June.    The licenses will then be available via online purchase at , automated license agents and Game and Fish regional offices

-WGFD-