Columnist Paul DelGiudice: Wildlife board’s changes leave hunters baffled

Paul DelGiudice

Thursday, Nov. 11, 1999 | 12:50 p.m.

Paula DelGiudice's outdoors column appears weekly. Reach her at PDelGiudice@compuserve.com

If hunters were confused by the bonus point system the way it was, then they will be downright baffled by the changes made in the system by the Board of Wildlife Commissioners on Saturday at their meeting here in Las Vegas.

Bonus points were once conferred to those hunters unsuccessful in the drawings for deer and other big game animals on a "hunt" basis.

If you applied for a rifle deer tag, for instance, and were unsuccessful, you were awarded a bonus point. In the second drawing, if you then applied for a leftover archery tag and were successful, you didn't forfeit your bonus point.

With action taken on Saturday, hunters who apply for any deer tag will awarded a bonus point if they are unsuccessful. If they turn around and apply for an unused archery tag and are successful, they'll forfeit the bonus tag.

The new regulation will allow hunters to apply for up to five hunter choices for deer, elk and antelope; three sub-species of bighorn sheep and wild turkey; and one hunter choice for mountain goats on an application. (Hunters can still draw only one tag per species, but can apply for a rifle tag in one area, for instance, and a muzzleloader tag as second choice.)

It will take a few years to sort out all the new conditions next spring during the next round of big game applications. Know in advance that the application will likely be different and will require some extra time and attention so as to reduce the number of potential errors.

The Board also concurred with NDOW recommendations and adopted the preferred alternative in its study Reptile Commercialization in Nevada. The preferred alternative proposes a comprehensive solution for meeting long-term management goals while allowing commercial collection of reptiles to continue.

The plan ramps up NDOW's internal processes for monitoring the commercial collection of reptiles and also re-evaluates the existing species allowed for commercial collection.

In addition the plan directs NDOW to facilitate a statewide program investigating all reptile (non-turtle) species and populations both in the Great Basin and Mojave desert regions of the state. Law enforcement efforts would be improved by providing training to personnel, increasing field contacts with collectors, and improving the reporting skills and compliance reports of collectors.

Also, the Commission adopted NDOW's Upland Game and Waterfowl Release Plan for the years 2000 and 2001, continued its review of NDOW's Conservation Education Program, heard committee reports and denied the appeal of Rainbow's End to the cancellation of its license authority.

* WAIT FOR DUCKS CONTINUES: A 13-year-old hunter harvested a hen surf scoter at Key Pittman Wildlife Management Area (WMA) providing the only highlight of an otherwise dismal waterfowl season, according to Bart Tanner manager at Key Pittman.

This was the first known instance of one of the ocean-faring ducks being taken at Key Pittman.

For the most part, very few ducks have been found at either Key Pittman or at nearby Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge.