Important Dates, Requirements For This Season’s Hunters
Sonora, CA — State wildlife officials are reminding hunters of some important dates, including an impending deadline for deer tag purchasers to report their results.
Successful or not, every purchaser of one or more deer tags must report their harvest — even if they did not hunt. For those who were successful the report must be made within 30 days of harvesting a deer, or by Jan. 31, whichever date is first. Unsuccessful hunters and those who did not hunt must report “no harvest” or “did not hunt” by the same date.
Harvest reports can be submitted by mail to the address printed on the tag. Harvest reports may also be submitted online to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) by clicking here. Tag holders who did not report will be charged a non-reporting fee of $21.60, which is added to license purchases beginning with the 2017-2018 season.
The CDFW Deer Management Program’s Zone D5 contains Amador and Calaveras and portions of Alpine, El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tuolumne counties. For regional information and assistance contact the CDWF North Central Region Office (Region 2) in Rancho Cordova at 916 358-2900. Zone D6 covers portions of Alpine, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Stanislaus and Tuolumne counties. For matters and queries pertaining to this area contact the Central Regional Office (Region 4) in Fresno at 559 243-4005.
Other Seasonal News For Hunters
The 2017 general bear hunting season, which opened concurrently with deer season in most deer hunting zones is set to close Dec. 31 — or if the take hits 1,700 bears before then. At this point, it seems unlikely since, as of Dec. 21, the harvest stood at 1,305. The limit per hunter is one adult male bear — or a female without cubs — per hunting license year (July 1-June 30).
Open since the second Saturday in September, tree squirrel hunting season lasts through Jan. 28 with a daily bag limit of four and possession limit of four. Rabbit and varying (snowshoe) hare hunting, open since July 1, also ends Jan. 28 with a daily bag limit of five and possession limit of ten. Hunting season with falconry for the latter opens Jan. 29 and runs through March 18. Jackrabbit hunting is open year round with no daily or possession limits. For hunting license and tag info click here.
Too, duck and scaup season for Tuolumne and Calaveras counties remains open through Jan. 28. For more details on waterfowl hunting, click here.
