Wolf hunters reminded to get new tags

Hunters who want to pursue wolves after December 31, are reminded they will need a 2010 wolf tag.

And all hunters need a 2010 Idaho hunting license to hunt in the New Year.

Wolf hunt rules allow a hunter to take only one wolf per calendar year. Hunters who shoot a wolf between January 1 and March 31, 2010, will not be able to hunt wolves again until 2011.

Wolf hunting seasons already have closed in four wolf management zones where harvest limits have been reached. The season closed December 18 in the Palouse-Hells Canyon zone, November 17 in the Dworshak-Elk City zone, November 9 in the McCall-Weiser zone, and November 2 in the Upper Snake zone.

Elsewhere in the state wolf seasons remain open. But two additional zones are nearing their harvest limits. In the Southern Mountains, with a limit of 10, nine have been killed, leaving one wolf, and in the Middle Fork zone, with a limit of 17, hunters have taken 15, leaving two more wolves until that zone closes.

Wolf hunters are reminded to check the harvest limit in the wolf hunting zones they intend to hunt. Idaho Department of Fish and Game set wolf harvest limits by 12 zones. The season closes in each zone when the limit for that zone is reached, or when the statewide limit of 220 wolves is reached, or on March 31, whichever comes first.

As of Wednesday, December 30, the statewide hunter harvest was at 136 wolves.

To find out whether a zone is open, call 877-872-3190. The Fish and Game wolf harvest Web page is updated less frequently, but provides a zone map and other useful information: http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/hunt/wolf/quota.cfm.

Wolf hunters are required by state law to report within 24 hours of harvesting a wolf and then must present the hide and skull to a Fish and Game conservation officer or regional office within five days.

To report a wolf kill, call 877-872-3190 toll free.

As a reminder to all hunters and anglers, they need a new, 2010 Idaho license to hunt or fish on January 1.