Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Commentary: Big game deadline Monday

THIS IS GOING to be an expensive week.

First, I sent off a check to the IRS to cover my income taxes. Then, I sent off a second check to pay for 1996's estimated taxes, because I ended up paying taxes in 1995.

Now that that business is taken care of and while my pen is still poised, I'm about to fill out my application for this year's big game hunts. I've got until next Monday to get my application into the hands of the Hunt Application Office in Fallon or, poof, there go my chances of hunting big game this year.

This year there's an interesting new wrinkle in the application hunt process. It's the new Partnership in Wildlife (PIW) program being implemented by the Nevada Division of Wildlife.

It's an interesting concept: If you decide to participate, you indicate so on your application. Participation means that if you didn't draw a tag and you've marked that you want to participate in PIW, you're eligible for a second drawing of a limited number of tags for certain species.

If you choose to participate, you agree to donate your deer license fee and half of other big game tag fees to NDOW for a special fund. The interest from the fund will be used to benefit game species.

The neat thing about this opportunity to hunt is that, armed with your special tag, you can hunt during any legal season in any open unit with your choice of weapons.

You could start in any spot in the state in August -- with your deer tag for instance -- and hunt with a bow, through muzzleloader season and into rifle season, at least until you get your buck.

The drawback is that if you still don't draw, you don't get a refund.

NDOW officials are expecting about 10 percent of hunters to leave their money in the pool. However, with about a week to go in the process -- and many applications came in during the last week -- responses from resident deer hunters were a little higher than that while responses from nonresident deer hunters were a little lower.

This year, NDOW is recommending the Board of Wildlife Commissioners adopt quotas of 22 resident deer tags, three nonresident deer tags, five resident antelope tags, three resident desert bighorn tags, three resident elk tags, one resident Rocky Mountain goat tag and one California bighorn tag.

The Commission will meet May 3-4 in Las Vegas to consider quotas for all of this year's big game hunts.

Notes

* ADVISORY BOARD TO MEET: The Clark County Advisory Board to Manage Wildlife will meet at 7 p.m. Monday at the Henderson City Council Chambers, 240 Water Street, to consider hunting quota recommendations for deer and other big game animals.

* WETLANDS FUTURE DISCUSSION: The future of wetlands on state-owned wildlife management areas will be discussed at 7 p.m. Thursday at the NDOW Region III headquarters, 4747 West Vegas Drive. NDOW is developing a wetlands conservation plan for select management areas.

* RED ROCK HIKES: "Plant Ecology of Pine Creek Canyon" is the featured topic of the hike-of-the-week at Red Rock. The moderate 2 1/2-mile hike will emphasize early spring wild flowers, soils, weather and wildlife. For more information or to make reservations, call the Red Rock Visitor Center at 363-1921.

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