CONSERVATION STAMP. Each sportsman licensed to hunt or fish in Wyoming, except Pioneer license holders, those who purchase resident or nonresident daily fishing licenses, resident or nonresident daily game bird/small game licenses, special limited fishing permits for hospitalized veterans, residents of state institutions and court-placed children, must purchase a single conservation stamp for $10, which will be valid for one calendar year. The stamp must be signed in ink and in immediate possession while engaged in the act of hunting or fishing. A lifetime conservation stamp may be purchased for $150 from the Cheyenne office of the department beginning July 1, 1997.

     Conservation stamps may be purchased from Game and Fish Department offices and license-selling agencies throughout the state.

AGE RESTRICTIONS. The minimum age to take any big or trophy game animal is 12 years.

ARCHERY HUNTING. No person shall hunt big or trophy game with bow and arrow or crossbow during a special archery hunting season without first obtaining an archery license and the appropriate hunting license. Archers must abide by the regulations established for the special archery season and the regular hunting season. Archery equipment and legal firearms as deemed by law may be used to hunt game during all hunting seasons except where Commission regulations specify otherwise. During special archery seasons and in archery only areas it is unlawful for an archer to have a firearm in possession while hunting.

     No special archery license is required for hunting game birds or small game with archery equipment; however, archers must first obtain the proper hunting license for the species to be hunted.

CHECK STATIONS. Every hunter or fisherman entering or leaving areas for which check stations have been established shall stop and report at the check station if the check station is on the hunter's or fisherman's route to and from the hunting or fishing area.

CLOTHING REQUIREMENTS. All big or trophy game hunters, except licensed archery hunters during the special archery seasons, and licensed archery hunters hunting in limited quota archery only or limited quota archery or legal muzzleloading firearm seasons, must wear in a visible manner, a hat, shirt, jacket, coat, vest or sweater of a fluorescent orange color.

     The wearing of fluorescent orange clothing while hunting small game and game birds is recommended as a safety measure and is required when hunting pheasants on department wildlife habitat management areas.

CONFISCATION. Wildlife taken unlawfully may be seized and may be permanently confiscated.

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS.  To qualify for a resident game and fish license, a person shall be domiciled and physically reside in Wyoming for one (1) full year immediately preceding the date the person applies for the license.  Additionally, the person must not claim residency elsewhere for any purpose during the previous year.  Each person must establish their residency independently.  A person is considered "domiciled" if he/she physically resides in Wyoming, intends on making Wyoming his/her permanent home, is not residing in Wyoming for a special or temporary purpose, has abandoned domicile in all other states and has physically resided in Wyoming for one (1) year immediately preceding the date of application.  Neither ownership of property nor a Wyoming mailing address is sufficient evidence of domicile.  Domicile is established and maintained by the total intent and actions of a person.

   Residence may be maintained when a person is absent from Wyoming for a temporary or special purpose such as for employment, education and travel as long as that absence is of a short determinant period of time.

   A resident is also any active member, the spouse or minor child of any active member of the Armed Forces of the United States who has been stationed in Wyoming for ninety (90) days so long as the member remains stationed in Wyoming.  A Wyoming resident who enters the military from Wyoming maintains resident status if he/she declares Wyoming as his/her home of record, maintains Wyoming voting registration, is on active duty and does not claim residency elsewhere.  Military personnel who establish residency by being domiciled in Wyoming for one year then change their home of record to Wyoming retain residency as long as they make no claim of residency for any purpose in any other state except military hunting or fishing privileges that might be allowed in that state.

   Active duty military applicants must complete the proof of Residency Statement (Item 5) on the reverse side of the application for themselves, spouse and minor children.

DUPLICATE LICENSES. Duplicate licenses are available only at the Cheyenne office and regional offices of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department or from district game wardens.

HUNTER SAFETY REQUIREMENTS. No person born on or after January 1, 1966, may apply for and receive any Wyoming hunting license, nor take any wildlife by the use of firearms on land other than that of his/her own family, unless the person possesses and can exhibit a hunter safety certificate.

IT IS ILLEGAL TO:
 - shoot or attempt to kill any wildlife from, upon, along or across any public road or highway. This includes any roadway that is publicly maintained or privately maintained but open to public vehicle traffic.The area between the fences on a fenced public road or highway or the road surface, borrow pits and shoulders of unfenced public roads or highways shall be considered the public road or highway. Unmaintained two-track trails on public lands are not public roads.

- take any game animal, game bird or game fish for another person.

- sell or barter, or obtain by sale or barter, edible portions of any game animal, game bird or game fish.

- use dogs to hunt, run or harass any big game animal, trophy game animal, protected animal or furbearing animal, as provided by Title 23, Wyoming Statutes. Wyoming statute allows the use of dogs to hunt mountain lions and bobcats.

- use any motor vehicle, aircraft or over-the-snow vehicle to pursue any wildlife, except predatory animals.

- shoot any wildlife, except predatory animals, from a vehicle.

- take and leave, abandon or allow any game bird, game fish or game animal, or edible portions, to intentionally or needlessly go to waste. Meat from trophy game animals may be abandoned.

- leave a big game animal or game bird at a meat processing plant for more than 45 days.

- It is a violation of federal law to transport illegally taken wildlife across state lines.

LEGAL FIREARMS
Wyoming has no restrictive laws concerning firearms which may be legally possessed. They may be carried uncased in vehicles although safety dictates that all firearms in a vehicle should be unloaded with action open. 

ARCHERY. Longbows to be used for antelope, bighorn sheep, black bear, deer, mountain goat or mountain lions must have at least 40 lbs. draw weight or be able to shoot a 400 grain arrow at least 160 yards. For elk or moose, the longbow must have at least 50 lbs. draw weight or be able to shoot a 500 grain arrow at least 160 yards. Crossbows must have at least 90 lbs. draw weight, a minimum draw length of 14 inches from front of bow to back of string in the cocked position, a positive safety mechanism, and must be cocked by hand without leverage-gaining devices. The Commission, by regulation, may authorize a physically handicapped person to use a leverage-gaining device for cocking a crossbow. Crossbow bolts must be at least 16 inches. The broadhead of arrows or bolts shall be sharp steel with a minimum cutting width of one inch.

BIG AND TROPHY GAME. Legal firearms for BIG or TROPHY GAME must have a barrel bore diameter of at least 23/100 of an inch and be chambered to fire a centerfire cartridge not less than two inches overall length including a soft or expanding point bullet seated to a normal depth; or a muzzleloading rifle which has a barrel bore diameter of at least 40/100 of an inch and a charge of at least 50 grains of black powder or equivalent (Pyrodex), or a muzzle-loading specialty single shot handgun which has a barrel length of not less than ten (10) inches, a bore diameter of at least 45/100 of an inch and which propels a projectile of two hundred forty (240) grains at not less than five hundred (500) foot pounds at one hundred (100) yards.

     In addition, a hunter may use any other cartridge fired from a firearm that has a barrel bore diameter of at least thirty-five hundredths (.35) of an inch and the cartridge generally delivers at least five hundred (500) ft-pounds of impact at one hundred (100) yards and cartridges used are loaded with a lead, soft, or expanding point bullet.

LIMITED QUOTA LICENSE HOLDERS. Hunters who obtain limited quota licenses are confined to hunting in the area for which they have a limited quota license unless information in the hunting regulations specifically allows the use of such licenses in other areas.

PERMISSION TO HUNT, FISH OR TRAP. The resident's or nonresident's license must bear the signature of the landowner, lessee, or agent of the owner on whose private property he/she is hunting, fishing or trapping, or legitimate proof of evidence that permission to hunt, fish or trap has been granted. Remember, hunting, fishing or trapping is a privilege and not a right. Respect the rights of landowners. Obtain permission before entering private property.

RIGHT TO SEARCH. Any authorized officer may search, without warrant, any camp, camp outfit, pack, pack outfit, pack animal, motor vehicle, boat, wagon or trailer for any wildlife which he/she has probable cause to believe was taken or is possessed unlawfully.

SHIPPING GAME ANIMALS OUT OF STATE. All game animals that are harvested by either a resident or nonresident and are to be shipped or transported across the state line must be accompanied by the licensee in possession of the proper coupon. In the event that the licensee cannot accompany the game animal across the state line, an interstate game tag affidavit must be filled out and a game tag issued prior to shipment or transportation. No more than 25 pounds of game meat from each animal hunted by a resident may be shipped or transported from the

state unless accompanied by the resident licensee. All meat shipped or transported by other than the licensee must be accompanied by a Wyoming interstate game tag.

SHIPPING GAME ANIMALS WITHIN WYOMING. No person shall ship, transport or receive for shipment or transportation within Wyoming, any game animal, game bird or any part thereof unless tagged with a Wyoming interstate game tag, or unless transportation is by a person in possession of a proper license.

TAKE. "Take" means hunt, pursue, catch, capture, shoot, fish, seine, trap, kill or possess.

USE OF ARTIFICIAL LIGHT. It  is illegal to take any wildlife with the aid of or by using an artificial light or lighting device except that predators may be taken with the aid of an artificial light or lighting device by:

- a public officer authorized to control predators;

- a landowner, resident manager or person with the landowner's or a resident manager's written permission, on land under the landowner's control for the protection of his/her property;

- it is prima facie evidence of a violation if a person uses artificial light in any area which may be inhabited by wildlife while having in his/her possession and control any device for taking wildlife.

- Hunting of raccoon is permitted with the aid of a hand light providing the hunter is accompanied by a raccoon hunting dog. If hunting on private lands, written permission of the landowner or his/her agent is required.

VEHICLE. Sportsmen are advised that many areas of national forest, national resource, and other public lands are subject to travel and vehicle use limitations for resource protection. Maps and additional information on these limitations are available at U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and other agency offices near these public lands.