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Check Station Story #1: All hunters and
anglers are required to stop at check stations |
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October 6, 2015 |
Throughout the fall deer and elk seasons, Idaho
Fish and Game (IDFG) will be running check
stations to collect data on hunter and angler
success.
Idaho Code requires that "all sportsmen, with or
without game, must stop at Fish & Game check
stations." All those who are hunting or fishing
that day, as well as those returning from an
overnight hunting or fishing outing, are
required to stop if they encounter a check
station on their route of travel. This includes
people who are returning from hunting or fishing
in Idaho or another state.
At a check station, hunters and anglers are
asked a series of questions about how many
occupants of the vehicle were hunting or
fishing, which hunt unit they were in, and how
many animals of which species have been
harvested. You are required by law to produce
all fish or game in possession for inspection.
All of the questions take just a few minutes.
Often the coffee pot is on! Just ask the people
running the check stations if they have any hot
coffee. If so, it helps keep you awake on the
drive home.
Each year, a few sportsmen do not stop at check
stations because they were not successful on
that particular trip. They see the signs, but
think the requirement doesn't apply to them
because they don't have any fish or game with
them. However, information about a trip where
nothing was harvested is also recorded and
compared with data from prior seasons.
Citations can be issued to those who are headed
home from hunting or fishing and do not stop,
because check station data is only accurate and
meaningful when all hunters and anglers comply
with the requirement to stop. The check stations
serve as a helpful immediate measure of how the
season is going.
Final season success and harvest figures are
derived from hunter harvest reports, mandatory
checks (for bear, lion, moose, sheep, wolf,
goat), check station data and telephone surveys.
If you arrive at a check station with a species
for which a mandatory check is required, your
animal will be checked and necessary data will
be recorded. This can save you a trip to check
in your animal at a fish and game office at a
later date.
You may also complete your requirement to file a
harvest report if you have harvested a deer or
elk. You can also file your report while at a
check station if you are done hunting for the
season. Simply complete the form and drop it off
at the check station and you will be finished
with reporting your hunting results for that
species for the year.
The information you provide at a station is
important to successful management of the
wildlife resource we enjoy in Idaho. You can
also ask questions and get information about how
the seasons are progressing.
All hunters, both big game and small game are
encouraged to carefully review the hunting
regulations prior to heading into the field.
Nobody wants to violate a rule because they were
not aware of a recent change.
Sportsmen looking for answers to questions about
regulations or seasons can contact the IDFG
Panhandle Region Office at 208-769-1414. |
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