Elk Hunting Faces More Regulation

Among Northwest elk hunting states, Washington was ahead of its time.

Facing a serious decline in the number of bull elk in the Blue Mountains, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission adopted a controversial choose-your-weapons policy for elk hunting in 1984.

The concept was to spread hunting pressure. Before buying a tag, hunters had to designate whether they would hunt with modern rifle, bow or muzzleloader, each of which had a different season.

In 1989, the commission enacted another restriction allowing Blue Mountains elk hunters to kill only spike bulls. That strategy was expanded to the Yakima and Colockum areas this fall, after surveys indicated teetering bull-cow ratios in those once-hallowed elk hunting areas.

Such sacrilege could never happen in Idaho, some said.

There’s no comparing Idaho to Washington, the state that’s jamming people into every nook and cranny west of the Cascades; the state that’s gobbling 30,000 acres of wildlife habitat a year.

But it IS happening in Idaho, and also in Oregon and areas of Montana.

God gave us only so much land. And, as Will Rogers put it, they ain’t making it anymore.

Every year, more and more hunters crowd into less and less productive elk range. Something has to give.

The elk. Or the hunters.

Biologists in Idaho’s Clearwater Region have seen the day of reckoning on its way for several years. The ratio of bulls to cows has declined 24 percent in the past five years. In some areas, there are only 11 bulls to every 100 cows.

Ratios of at least 15-to-100 are necessary in front-country units to assure that all the cows are bred each fall, said George Pauley, Idaho Fish and Game Department biologist.

The department hired an independent firm to select a citizen advisory committee last June to examine elk hunting issues in the Clearwater. After studying the biological, social and economic issues, the group issued a number of proposals in late November.

“The primary problem, probably the most controversial, was the recommendations for general bull elk seasons,” Pauley said.

The committee recommended that sportsmen must choose their unit, hunt and weapon when purchasing a tag. Only hunters who draw tags in lotteries would be allowed to shoot branch-antlered bulls.

The proposals call for some spike-only general rifle seasons.

The committee proposed allocating outfitters the same number of tags that they’ve been receiving.

At public meetings, many hunters construed that as favoritism to the outfitting industry while general hunters had to make sacrifices.

Washington hunters were way ahead of Idaho in this arena, too. When it comes down to the last few pieces of pie, the inclination is to point fingers and call the other guy the pig.

The biggest loser in the proposals would be non-outfitted non-resident hunters. They would be prohibited from hunting elk in the Clearwater Region.

Last year, there were 5,000 out-of-state elk hunters in the Clearwater Region. About 3,600 were on their own while the rest were with outfitters.

Eliminating 3,600 non-residents presumably could have a big impact on businesses in Orofino, Kamiah, Kooskia, Grangeville, Elk City.

What can you say? Something’s got to give, right?

The low ratio of bulls could possibly be a natural fluctuation, Pauley said. At the least, hunting restrictions would speed the recovery. But it’s also possible that restrictions are needed to simply hold the line on bull counts.

Not-so-coincidentally, perhaps, Oregon has just adopted the toughest elk hunting regulations in decades to stop the decline of breeding-age bulls.

“The public wanted to avoid a drawing for bull permits at all costs,” said Randy Henry, Oregon Fish and Wildlife Department spokesman in Portland. “So we went with spikeonly regulations virtually everywhere in the state for 1996.”

Idaho’s citizen advisory committee currently is poring over about 1,600 comments made by mail or at recent public meetings. The group will revise and issue formal proposals for comment in mid-January.

Meanwhile, hunters should learn the lesson: Never say it can’t happen here.

, DataTimes MEMO: You can contact Rich Landers by voice mail at 459-5577, extension 5508.