Gifts for outdoor enthusiasts offer months of enjoyment

OLYMPIA - Gift shopping for a fish or wildlife enthusiast? The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) offers a variety of items for outdoor buffs on any gift list.

Shoppers can purchase recreational licenses and permits online, by telephone or at independent license vendors statewide. Applications for wildlife-themed license plates also are available online.

An annual resident adult freshwater fishing license is $26; a saltwater fishing license is $24.20; a shellfish/seaweed license is $14; and a combination fishing license is $48.20.

Resident hunting licenses vary with package options, ranging from a small-game license at $38 to a deer/elk/cougar/bear combination license for $81.20. Transaction and dealer fees are included in the price.

Fishing and hunting license fees include vehicle-use permits for access to 800,000 acres of wildlife lands in 32 wildlife areas and more than 600 water-access sites throughout Washington. Vehicle-use permits for access to these areas also can be purchased separately from recreational licenses for $14.

All annual licenses and permits are valid from April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2011.

WDFW licenses and permits can be purchased on a secure Internet site at https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/, or by calling 1-866-246-9453. Recreational licenses and permits also can be bought at hundreds of license vendors throughout the state. Vendor locations are listed at http://wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/vendors/vendors. Shoppers will need the license holder's WILD identification number, name and date of birth to purchase a fishing or hunting license.

Applications for wildlife-related license plate backgrounds or personalized plates for motor vehicles also are on-line at http://wdfw.wa.gov/license_plates/. License plate background options include images of a bald eagle, killer whale, elk, mule deer or black bear. The wildlife-themed license plates cost $40.

Personalized license plate inscriptions, with a choice of up to seven letters or numbers not already in use, can be purchased for $49.75. A personalized license plate combined with any of Washington's themed backgrounds is available for $89.75. These prices are in addition to standard vehicle-licensing fees. Proceeds from personalized and wildlife-themed license plates go to endangered-species recovery, habitat restoration and wildlife-management and protection programs.

Other WDFW products for holiday gift-giving include:

• Tickets for WDFW's quarterly drawings for a lifetime of hunting and fishing privileges. Tickets are $7.05 for state residents and $13.59 for non-residents and are valid for all drawings within 365 days of purchase. For ordering information, see https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/

• Backyard Wildlife Sanctuary information on landscaping, supplemental feeding, nest boxes and other ways of creating year-round habitat for birds and other wildlife. The information packet costs $5. For ordering information, see http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/backyard/
• WDFW wildlife books—"Living with Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest," a 392-page guide to living and dealing with a variety of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, and "Landscaping for Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest," a 320-page guide including specialty gardens for butterflies and hummingbirds, ponds and waterways, nest boxes and feeders and more. Each book costs $28 (including tax, postage and handling), and can be ordered at http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/book/