The Division of Wildlife Resources stopped by Castle Country Radio to talk about the Wildlife Board, shed horn hunting and ice fishing.

“So the Wildlife Division we’re responsible for doing the biology and enforcing the regulations and law in terms of all wildlife management. But really wildlife belongs to the public and so we have many different public processes where people get to pitch in their ideas, thoughts, feelings and ultimately this goes up to the Wildlife Board in Salt Lake. It’s a committee put together, appointed by the Governor and they determine how the wildlife will be managed in Utah,” stated Conservation Outreach Manager, Aaron Bott. Individuals that are interested in becoming a part of the Wildlife Board can visit the DWR website to obtain an application.

Shed horn season is quickly approaching and in order to hunt for sheds individuals must take an educational course and obtain a certificate of completion. “We ask that public to be very courteous of these animals, especially at this time of year in late winter when they haven’t had a lot of nutrients, and they might be hungry, they’re skinny and we don’t want people to chase animals around, stock them waiting for those antlers to drop. So this course that we offer online, it’s free, basically is an educational course. So you go on, it’s a Q&A introduction, teaches you how to be a ethical when you go out shed hunting,” explained Bott. From Feb. 1 to April 15, you must have an antler-gathering certificate on your person while collecting shed antlers or horns. It’s important to remember that the certificate does not authorize you to trespass on closed areas or private lands to collect shed antlers or horns.

Many folks in the area are going ice fishing and report that things are going well. “We’ve had a lot of success down on the southern portion of the region on Recapture all the way up into Scofield. It’s been doing really well and people are having lots of fun getting out,” said Bott. To find out more about the latest news taking place at the DWR visit their website at https://wildlife.utah.gov/