Jeff Meyers, winner of one of the 9 Incentive Permits with his bull elk.

It Pays to Report Your Hunting Activity Early
George Tsukamoto, Staff Biologist

Prior to 2001 the number of hunters reporting harvest or responding to harvest surveys were generally below 50%. Results of the new hunter-reporting requirement for big game in 2001 showed a definite improvement with about 71% reporting by the established deadline date of January 31. However, there were still a large number of hunters who reported late or who attempted to purchase a new 2002 hunting license but could not until they filled out the hunting report according to the June 23, 2002 data.

Hunters reporting their activity for the 2002 fall hunting season showed a discouraging decline in reporting with about 66% by the January 31 deadline date. Jim Rieck, Game Harvest Data Manager stated, “Ideally, everyone would submit their hunter report and do it on time. The deadline is set so that the information can be made available to wildlife biologists, hunters and the Fish and Wildlife Commission for use in establishing the hunting seasons for the coming year." Hunter reports provide some of the most useful data for wildlife managers to evaluate game animal population status.

All deer, elk, black bear, and turkey tag holders, whether successful or not, must report their hunting season activity by January 31 following the fall hunting seasons. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is offering hunters a chance to win one of nine extra hunting tags, as a special incentive to hunters who file their hunting activity within 10 days of killing an animal and unsuccessful hunters who report by midnight January 10th. Hunters who comply will be entered into a special drawing for four (4) special elk permits and 5 statewide any deer special permits.

Jeffery Meyers of Ridgefield, Washington can attest that it pays to report hunting activity by January tenth. He was one of the lucky nine hunters who received an incentive tag as a reward for filing his hunter report on time. He said, “I have spent many years trying to draw special permit tags in Washington, as well as other states. To think I received this tag for a toll free five minute phone call. This is a remarkable program. Thanks for the opportunity and keep up the good work."

The 2003 hunting season will be the third year of the reporting requirement, a move intended to improve the state's harvest statistics. The agencies new license system makes reporting relatively painless for big-game hunters. They can file harvest reports by calling a toll-free automated message line, 1-877-945-3492 or via the Internet at http://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov. Hunters should have the Washington Interactive Licensing Database (WILD) number when reporting.

New for 2003 hunters will now receive a confirmation number for each hunter report they successfully complete. The confirmation number will be an 11-digit number that is unique for each report successfully submitted. The use of confirmation numbers is designed to provide absolute assurance to hunters that their hunter report has indeed been successfully completed.