Monthly Archives: August 2023

Doug Leier: Submit Wing Envelopes

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Hunters can help in the effort to manage upland game birds in North Dakota by collecting feathers from harvested birds and sending in wing envelopes.

Birds included in the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s upland game wing survey, which has been in practice for decades, are ring-necked pheasants, sharp-tailed grouse, Hungarian partridge, turkeys and ruffed grouse.

Collecting enough pheasant samples is typically never a problem, but securing enough sharptail and partridge feathers can be.

Game and Fish biologists will take as many sharptail and partridge feathers as they can get because the more collected, the better the data. Biologists can determine if birds are male or female, age ratios, survival, nesting success, hatch dates and overall production.

What biologists learn from samples is vital to helping manage North Dakota’s upland game birds.

Instructions for submitting wing data are printed on the envelope.

Hunters interested in receiving wing envelopes should visit the Game and Fish website, gf.nd.gov.

Doug Leier: New Upland Bird Hunting Course Available

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The North Dakota Game and Fish Department was recently a partner on a Multistate Conservation Grant project to create a comprehensive online course on how to hunt upland birds.

In this free course, five stories of different upland hunters and landscapes are featured, including North Dakota. It also covers the basics of equipment, technique, safety and more with companion video modules.

The course is available on the Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever website.

Doug Leier: Hunters Be Mindful of Farmers, Ranchers

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Hunters should be respectful and cautious as farmers and ranchers are busy with field work this time of year.

North Dakota Game and Fish Department officials said hunters should pull to the side of the road or find an approach when meeting combines, grain trucks or tractors pulling equipment.

In addition, hunters should avoid parking along roadways or field approaches where vehicles could block travel by farm machinery, leave gates as you found them, collect trash and empty shells, and not clean game in the road ditch or approach.

CWD Testing During Deer Bow, Elk, Moose Seasons

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With the deer bow, elk, and moose seasons opening soon, North Dakota Game and Fish Department officials remind hunters of the options for getting animals tested for chronic wasting disease.

Hunters can drop off heads at any of the following locations:

  • Bismarck – North Dakota Game and Fish Department wildlife health lab, 3001 East Main Ave.
  • Devils Lake – North Dakota Game and Fish Department district office, 7928 45th St NE.
  • Dickinson – North Dakota Game and Fish Department district office, 225 30th Ave SW.
  • Fargo – North Dakota Veterinary Diagnostic Lab, 4035 19th Ave N.
  • Grand Forks – Grand Forks County Sheriff, 5205 Gateway Dr.
  • Jamestown – North Dakota Game and Fish Department district office, 3320 E Lakeside Road.
  • Kenmare – Des Lacs National Wildlife Refuge, 42000 520th St NW.
  • Lonetree – North Dakota Game and Fish Department district office, 1851 23rd Ave NE (Available only during office hours, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday-Friday).
  • Lamoure – Community Volunteer EMS of Lamoure, 300 4th St SE.
  • Minot – State Fairgrounds, 2005 E Burdick Expy (map).
  • Napoleon – Transportation Department, 59 Broadway St.
  • Riverdale – North Dakota Game and Fish Department district office, 406 Dakota Ave.
  • Wahpeton – Transportation Department, 7930 180th Ave SE.
  • Williston – North Dakota Game and Fish Department district office, 5303 Front St W.

Self-sampling kits are also available to hunters who wish to have their animal tested but are unable to drop the head off at a collection site. The kits allow hunters to remove the lymph nodes and ship them to the Department’s wildlife health lab for testing. A sampling kit request form can be found on the Department’s website, gf.nd.gov.

Also note, whole carcasses of animals harvested in North Dakota can remain in the deer unit, or may now be transported anywhere in the state. However, carcass waste must be disposed of via landfill or waste management provider. This does not apply to heads dropped at CWD collection sites or lymph nodes submitted for CWD surveillance. Taxidermists and game processors can also accept intact carcasses of animals harvested within North Dakota but assume responsibility for disposal.

2023 North Dakota #Deer Archery Season Opens

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North Dakota’s deer bow season opens Sept. 1 at noon and continues through Jan. 7, 2024.

Bowhunters can buy a license online at the North Dakota Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov, or at vendors linked to the department’s online licensing system. 

Hunters should plan accordingly and allow for time to receive their tag in the mail, as the tag will arrive by postal mail and not over the counter while the customer waits. This applies while purchasing a bow license at a license vendor, or at the Game and Fish Department’s main office in Bismarck. The bow tag will be mailed the next business day after the license is purchased.

All archery hunters must have a bow tag in possession before hunting.

Hunters should refer to the 2023 deer hunting guide for season information and regulations. 

North Dakota 2023 Summer Duck Brood Numbers Jump Nearly 80%

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State Game and Fish Department migratory game bird biologists expect a fall flight of ducks similar to 1998, 2004 and 2020.

If those past seasons don’t ring a bell, the fall flight is anticipated to be about 23% above last year’s fall flight, based on observations from the annual mid-July duck production survey.

According to Mike Szymanski, migratory game bird management supervisor, the department’s 76th annual breeding duck survey conducted in May indicated the 2023 duck index was the 23rd highest on record, up 1.5% from 2022, and exceeded the 1948-2022 average index by 39%. 

“After a very dry summer and fall last year, a snowy winter helped wetland conditions rebound nicely going into breeding season. However, precipitation has been spotty across the Prairie Pothole Region of the state since spring thaw, with the southern and central areas of the Missouri Coteau receiving more consistent rainfall,” Szymanski said. “Habitat conditions in uplands and wetlands were in good shape for a majority of the breeding season. A relatively strong number of ducks present in May helped to support breeding efforts that, despite a late thaw, were not delayed to a great degree.”

The number of broods observed during the department’s July brood survey was up 79% from 2022, and 88% above the 1965-2022 average index. The average brood size was 6.5 ducklings, down 10% from 2022.

While there remains a shortage of upland nesting habitat across the state, Szymanski said overwater nesting species such as canvasbacks, redheads and ring-necked ducks all set records for number of broods observed this year, along with ruddy ducks nearly breaking their previous record.

Game and Fish biologists will conduct a separate survey in mid-September to assess wetland conditions heading into the waterfowl hunting season.  

Chronic Wasting Disease Proclamation

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Big game hunters should note the 2023 chronic wasting disease proclamation for baiting and transportation requirements for deer, elk and moose as a precaution against the spread of chronic wasting disease.

Noteworthy items include:

  • Whole carcasses of animals harvested in North Dakota can remain in the deer unit, or may now be transported anywhere in the state. However, carcass waste must be disposed of via landfill or waste management provider. This does not apply to heads dropped at CWD collection sites or lymph nodes submitted for CWD surveillance. Taxidermists and game processors can also accept intact carcasses of animals harvested within North Dakota but assume responsibility for disposal.
  • A new management strategy that allows baiting restrictions to be removed in a unit if the number of adult deer equivalent to at least 10% of the gun licenses allocated in the unit are tested for CWD within a year, and all the results are negative. If the sampling goal is not met or CWD is confirmed in the unit, the baiting restriction will remain.
  • No new units have been added to the baiting restriction list for 2023-24. Due to the timing of finalizing the proclamation, a one-year pause was placed on adding new units. Units 2K1 and 3B2 are scheduled to be added to the restriction list in 2024 due to a positive CWD detection during the 2022 hunting season within 25 miles in an adjacent unit. They will not be added if the 10% goal is reached this year and all CWD test results are negative.
  • Hunters are prohibited from transporting into North Dakota the whole carcass or parts, except the lower-risk portions, of deer, elk, moose or other members of the cervid family harvested outside of North Dakota.

State Game and Fish Department officials will conduct surveillance of the state by region on a four-year rotation. This year, the CWD surveillance effort will consist of deer gun units in southeastern North Dakota. Outside of this area, hunters can still have their animal tested by taking it to a Game and Fish district office, any deer head collection site (primarily located in the surveillance area) or using a mail-in self-sampling kit. A unit outside the annual surveillance zone is still eligible to have a baiting restriction removed if the sampling goal is met, or can be added as a restricted unit if a positive is found.

Federal Duck Stamp Required

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A federal duck stamp is required for waterfowl hunters 16 and older beginning Sept. 1. Waterfowl includes ducks, geese, swans, mergansers and coots.

This year’s 2023-24 federal duck stamp is available for electronic purchase through the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov, or license vendors registered with the department’s licensing system. Physical stamps are not available at North Dakota license vendors but can still be purchased at many U.S. Postal Service offices.

The electronic stamp is a purchase item like any other hunting or fishing license. When the purchase is completed the electronic stamp is valid immediately. “Federal Duck Stamp” will be printed on the license certificate, along with an expiration date 45 days from the date of purchase. The physical stamp will be sent by postal mail.

The physical stamp is processed and sent by the official duck stamp vendor in Texas and should arrive to buyers well before the expiration date printed on the electronic license. The physical stamp must remain in possession of the hunter after the 45-day electronic stamp has expired. Individuals with questions regarding the status of their physical stamp can contact the federal duck stamp vendor customer service number at 800-852-4897.

The federal duck stamp has a fee of $25. An additional $2 fee is added to cover shipping and handling costs of the physical stamp. 

Doug Leier: PLOTS Guide Online

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The North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s Private Land Open To Sportsmen Guide for 2023 is now available online at the Game and Fish website, gf.nd.gov. In addition, the free printed PLOTS guides will be available in late August at most license vendors and other locations throughout the state.

The guide will feature about 800,000 PLOTS acres. Because the guide is printed in mid-August, some PLOTS tracts highlighted in the guide may have been removed from the program since the time of printing. There will also be some PLOTS tracts where the habitat and condition of the tract will have changed significantly. Conversely, Game and Fish may have added new tracts to the program after the guide went to press.

To minimize possible confusion, Game and Fish will update PLOTS map sheets weekly on its website.

The PLOTS guide features maps highlighting these walk-in areas, identified in the field by inverted triangular yellow signs, as well as other public lands.

The guides are not available by mail, so hunters will have to pick one up at a local vendor or Game and Fish offices, or print individual maps from the website.

Doug Leier: Swan Application Deadline

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The deadline to submit a swan application is Aug. 16.

Applicants must submit an online application through the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s website, gf.nd.gov. 

North Dakota residents and nonresidents are eligible to apply. The resident swan license is $10, while the nonresident fee is $30.