Latest news with #WashingtonDepartmentofFish&Wildlife
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Yum! You can now take some roadkill home to eat in southwest WA
(Photo by) Good news for people who enjoy deer, elk and saving money: The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife will allow people to take home and eat deer killed in motor vehicle crashes in Clark, Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties. The rule change went into effect May 17 and was announced Monday. The move does not apply to federally protected Columbian white-tailed deer. Instead, it allows salvage of elk and black-tailed deer in the three counties with a Fish & Wildlife-issued roadkill salvage permit. 'We carefully reviewed available data and determined the risk of mistakenly salvaging Columbian white-tailed deer is low,' Kyle Garrison, the department's ungulate section manager, said in the announcement. It's still illegal to salvage, handle or possess Columbian white-tailed deer in Washington. Fish & Wildlife asks salvagers to report when the remains of that species are found. While eating roadkill can be dangerous, salvagers west of the Cascades have not had to worry about chronic wasting disease in dead animals. 'We have not had any cases of chronic wasting disease in southwest Washington,' said Britton Ransford, Fish & Wildlife's spokesman for the region. The department stressed that salvaging deer and elk is allowed only for animals killed in motor vehicle crashes. It also said anyone who takes possession of a carcass is required to obtain a free roadkill salvage permit within 24 hours. Printable permits are available online or at the department's regional offices.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Waters south of Tacoma Narrows Bridge now closed to salmon fishing. Here's why
Salmon fishing will be banned temporarily in southern Puget Sound starting Thursday as the state waits for the federal government to complete its review of Puget Sound salmon fisheries under the Endangered Species Act, according to the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. The closure area, Marina Area 13, includes 'all waters south of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge,' a department release said. The department website says that area is protected from the weather, enabling small boats to fish there; it also has places where people can fish from the shore or from piers. Public piers on the water include Allyn Pier at Allyn Waterfront Park in Mason County, Clyde Davidson Pier in Steilacoom and Fox Island Fishing Pier, per the website. Normally, Marine Area 13 is the only area in the state where people can fish for salmon year-round and use a two-pole endorsement, which is a license for anglers to use two fishing rods at a time, according to the website. 'Pre-existing federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) coverage for the effects of Puget Sound salmon fisheries expires on May 15, 2025,' and ongoing reviews for the 2025-2026 period are unlikely to be completed by then, the release says. Chinook salmon listed under the Endangered Species Act are known to pass through Marine Area 13 salmon fisheries in May, according to the release. The ban will remain in effect until further notice, but it should be lifted soon pending the completion of the federal review process 'within the next several days,' the release says. For more information, call the fish program at 360-902-2700. Anglers also are encouraged to sign up for Fishing Rule Change email notifications, check for emergency rules on the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website and consult the 2024-2025 Washington Sport Fishing Rules pamphlet for fishing rules, the release says.
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Yahoo
Brave rodent ‘boops' prowling coyote — then dashes, Washington video shows
A small rodent bravely approached a prowling coyote, tapped it and darted off before becoming a snack, a Washington video shows. 'Would you 'boop' a coyote? This rodent did and got away with it,' the Washington State Department of Transportation said in an April 10 post on X, formerly known as Twitter. The video was recorded April 5 near the Snoqualmie Pass off Interstate 90. A coyote is seen hunting for rodents as they move quickly on the ground near a fallen tree, video shows. Then one courageous rodent approaches the coyote from behind and gives it a 'boop' on the tail before running off. 'However you are spending #NationalWildlifeWeek, we hope you are celebrating small victories too,' transportation officials said in the post. Coyotes can be found in forested areas and cities in Washington as they are 'intelligent and adaptable animals,' according to the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. Snoqualmie Pass is about a 55-mile drive southeast from Seattle. Source of 'spine-tingling' sounds in the night identified in Virginia. See the video Odd long-snouted creature attacks hiker, rips off windshield wiper, Arizona cops say Coyote bites child's hand after encounter at Washington school bus stop, officials say
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Yahoo
2 recent coyote attacks in Bellevue, WA area
The Brief WDFW reports two coyote attacks in the Bellevue area. There were documented injuries from bites. BELLEVUE, Wash. - Washington wildlife officials are keeping an eye on coyote attacks after receiving a couple reports of injuries in Bellevue. Timeline Right now, it is presumed to be the same coyote initiating the attacks. On one occasion, a man was in his Factoria garage around 10 a.m. when one came in and bit him in the leg on Mar. 7. Another incident happened in the Norwood Village neighborhood of Bellevue on Mar. 6 around 5:15 a.m. A woman reports sitting on her back patio when a coyote came up behind her and bit her leg. In both cases, the victims went to the hospital for treatment of their minor injuries. WDFW responded to both locations to try and track down and find the coyote, but were not able to locate the animal. What's next Now, officers are putting up signage warning the public to be on the lookout. More information on coyotes in Washington, including tips for avoiding conflicts, is available on this webpage: Coyote | Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. The Source Information for this article comes from the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. Fire destroys, damages multiple Cybertrucks in Seattle lot Family wants justice years after Graham, WA man's death Bryan Kohberger defense ramps up legal maneuvers in bid to keep Idaho murders suspect off death row Major TSA change to shorten airport security wait times, DHS says: What to know Seattle Seahawks trade DK Metcalf to Pittsburgh Steelers To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter. Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national coverage, plus 24/7 streaming coverage from across the nation.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House lawmakers greenlight two more wolf management bills
A gray wolf. (Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife) The Montana House advanced two more bills this week aimed at reducing the state's wolf population, which is three times higher than the benchmark of sustainability identified in the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks management plan. Rep. Paul Fielder, R-Thompson Falls, carried both bills, which he described as adding 'more tools in the toolbox' of management, by increasing opportunities to hunt gray wolves. House Bill 258 would extend the wolf hunting season to align with the existing end of the spring black bear hunting season. Currently, the general wolf season runs from mid-September to mid-March, while the spring black bear season ends May 31 or mid-June, per FWP's discretion. 'There's a whole variety of tools that can be used, and this is another tool we're trying to bring, to extend the wolf hunting season,' Fielder told members of the House during the Feb. 24 floor session. The bill passed along partisan lines, with an amendment brought by a freshman Democratic legislator from outside Yellowstone National Park. Rep. Scott Rosenzweig, D-Bozeman, asked the body to support a 'bipartisan in spirit' amendment to create a 15-mile buffer zone around Yellowstone and Glacier national parks. The buffer regions would have a two-wolf quota and a bag limit of one wolf, and count illegally harvested wolves toward the quota. 'The livelihood of the national park's gateway communities is tied to nature tourism. This is especially relevant in the face of the current turmoil from national politics,' Rosenzweig said. He listed off the hundreds of millions in tourism dollars funneled into communities near both parks, adding that 'A lot of that comes from people who want to see wildlife, and one of the most sought after animals is wolves.' Fielder called it a friendly amendment, saying he was surprised when the representative from across the aisle approached him asking for support. He said the buffer zones would serve to prevent large depredation of the Park's wolf packs without fully extending the protections. 'You've gotta condition wildlife so they know the boundaries of where they can go,' Fielder said. 'It's a constant reminder every year to some of those wolves that you're getting out of the park now, you're not in a protected area any more.' The amendment had 70 representatives support it, though one Democrat, Rep. Jamie Isaly, D-Livingston, called it a 'good amendment to another bad wolf bill.' Fielder's other proposed piece of legislation, House Bill 259, would allow the use of infrared scopes and thermal imagery scopes while hunting on private lands at night, and amended language in Montana code to require the commission to take stronger management action. 'You know the wolf population was controlled originally by poison. We don't want to do that. That's a bad pathway to go, it affects many other critters. You can use sportsmen —licensed hunters, licensed trappers — that are regulated by laws, or you can use the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.' As a government agency, Fielder said the latter option wasn't always the best choice, and so Montana continued opting to empower local hunters to manage wolves. Rep. Jill Cohenour, D-Helena, pushed back at the notion that the Legislature should insert itself in a species management decision. 'This is a continuation of going after the commission's ability to be able to manage these wolves according to the local input form the folks that are on the ground and the information that they get from biologists,' she said. 'I am disappointed in the fact that people are bringing all of those things to this legislature rather than putting this amount of energy towards the Commission to get them to listen to the folks on the ground.' The bill passed second reading on Monday 54-45. Both of Fielder's bills will head to the Senate. Montana is home to roughly 1,100 resident wolves, despite a law passed by the 2021 legislature requiring FWP to reduce the number of wolves to a 'sustainable level,' which FWP has estimated around 450. Currently, another bill, House Bill 176, is moving through the Senate and would let the state Fish and Wildlife Commission allow unlimited hunting when the wolf population is more than 550 animals. While the bill originally required unlimited hunting, an amendment in the House softened the language to merely 'allow' for such a decision. House Bill 176 was heard in the Senate Fish and Game Committee last week, but the committee had not taken action as of Wednesday morning.
