This is why legislators should not be involved in Fish and Game matters.

[2buffalo]

I’m not against stopping antlerless hunts on a scientific basis. Pushing it through legislation is the same as ballot box biology. Every year the legislature introduces dumb bills, last year it was shoot a wolf and get a moose, goat or sheep tag. They also got lighted nocks through last year. They tried to strip muzzleloader restrictions last year and already have it in the works again this year.
Again let me reiterate, I’m not against closing antlerless hunts. I am against the legislature forcing it.

I have not been to Idaho since 2010 and don't have a dog in this fight. I am just curious if the biologists are saying this is a good idea or a bad idea?

 

[Andrew12gauge]

I have not been to Idaho since 2010 and don't have a dog in this fight. I am just curious if the biologists are saying this is a good idea or a bad idea?

I would say the biologists are in the bad idea camp


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[Customweld]

I’m also curious why or how unit 19 got coat tailed into this bill? You could draw a perimeter around all of the other units and there are no other units inside the perimeter excluded or outside of the perimeter included in the bill except unit 19 so how did that one get thrown into the mix?


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Yeah, 19 is a real head scratcher.

 

[bergie]

Politics and slippery slopes aside, what is the danger of a mule deer doe hunting moratorium?

A specific example is that the data would suggest in unit 39 the deer are pushing on over crowding. So I would say let the commission handle it and not the legislators, as has been started multiple times before and should be repeated every other post until people finally understand.

F&G biologists in Southwest Idaho recently completed mule deer herd composition surveys - here's what they found

Overall, fawn ratios were similar or slightly above the long-term average. The results from Weiser-McCall DAU were noteworthy, where biologists observed the highest fawn:doe ratios dating back to 2011. Biologists observed an uptick in the fawn:doe ratio in the Smoky-Boise DAU.

idfg.idaho.gov

Data should drive decisions, which I think for the most part (outfitter welfare, depredation welfare and landowner tags aside) the commission does a pretty good job at. Legislators don't know their head from their ass so keep them as far away as possible or they will introduce a bill where if you kill a wolf you get a moose/goat/sheep tag.

I think I follow your logic of less doe harvest = more deer, but sometimes thats not always true (is what I gather from the article, I have no degree in wildlife biology so my opinion is worth what you paid for it).

 

[Customweld]

A specific example is that the data would suggest in unit 39 the deer are pushing on over crowding. So I would say let the commission handle it and not the legislators, as has been started multiple times before and should be repeated every other post until people finally understand.

F&G biologists in Southwest Idaho recently completed mule deer herd composition surveys - here's what they found

Overall, fawn ratios were similar or slightly above the long-term average. The results from Weiser-McCall DAU were noteworthy, where biologists observed the highest fawn:doe ratios dating back to 2011. Biologists observed an uptick in the fawn:doe ratio in the Smoky-Boise DAU.

idfg.idaho.gov

Data should drive decisions, which I think for the most part (outfitter welfare, depredation welfare and landowner tags aside) the commission does a pretty good job at. Legislators don't know their head from their ass so keep them as far away as possible or they will introduce a bill where if you kill a wolf you get a moose/goat/sheep tag.

I think I follow your logic of less doe harvest = more deer, but sometimes thats not always true (is what I gather from the article, I have no degree in wildlife biology so my opinion is worth what you paid for it).

Apparently there is a new SB introduced that lets the Governor appoint agency directors rather than the corresponding agency commission. What could go wrong with that?!
https://legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/billbookmark/?yr=2025&bn=S1078

 

[bergie]

Apparently there is a new SB introduced that lets the Governor appoint agency directors rather than the corresponding agency commission. What could go wrong with that?!
https://legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/billbookmark/?yr=2025&bn=S1078

This is honestly less of a concern, I had to look it up but I think the governor appoints the commission, who then appoint the director. So I guess this is skipping a step, but I imagine we end up in about the same place (same director) in both instances. Given the choice though I am all for decoupling power and leaving the system the way it is. I understand the concern though, just look at the shitshow that is the governor appointed Washington game commission.

 

[RAHC]

The ole boys want bucks and lots of them. The state should listen and figure out how to make it happen. Opening up the door on the cow elk would help

 

[idelkslayer]

Why 5 years and not 10, or 2, or any other duration? It is entirely arbitrary and demonstrates exactly why legislators should not be making decisions for game management. Absolutely no thought or long term planning went into this bill. No consideration for possible impacts to depredation complaints or payments. Just dumb.

 

[Dioni A]

Who is the author of this?

 

[Customweld]

Who is the author of this?

I believe it was Josh Tanner

 

[littlebigtine]

Just about every unit is open for antlerless general archery. Unit 39 is open for muzzleloader antlerless on the general tag. There is also a 2,000 tag LE either sex tag valid for 39 and 43. Units 44 and 45 each have a 250 tag antlerless LE hunt. Unit 44 has a 150 tag LE antlerless youth hunt. Youths can wack does in 39 and 43 on the general tag.

There is more. This is just what I can list from the top of my head.

They kill a shitload of does in Idaho.

Fish and Game should be deciding that. Good example is fawn weights in 39 have been steadily dropping which would imply that the habitat those deer are in is near carrying capacity. I would assume that is the driving factor towards keeping the doe hunts in 39 open. 48,49,50 on the other hand doesn’t have that issue so the department is not allowing rifle harvest of does currently. Could you make an argument to delete the archery doe harvest? Sure but that harvest is so small it probably is not the limiting factor for population growth in those units. More likely reasons would be habitat encroachment and vehicle accidents. In 48 alone, as many as 750 reported accidents from 2021-2023 involved deer specifically and that number doesnt include accidents that go unreported. Look at the archery doe harvest across that time span. The legislature should probably be more focused on funding underpasses or overpasses around migration routes, not stepping on F+Gs boots.

 

[gpatton12]

https://legislature.idaho.gov/wp-content/uploads/sessioninfo/2025/legislation/H0196.pdf

On Friday, February 7, a new bill was introduced into the Idaho Legislature which would enact a five-year moratorium on the hunting of mule deer does across much of Idaho. Hunting units impacted include 19, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 52A, 53, 54, 55, 56, and 57.

This legislation crosses a line in our system of wildlife management, setting seasons and overriding the science-based wildlife management system on which our hunting and fishing traditions are based. Season setting is a complicated process that should be managed by Idaho Fish and Game and the Fish and Game Commission - not by elected officials who are subject to political considerations.

The legislation cites reduced populations, low survival rates, and reduced hunter success as the motivation behind the legislation, but provides no detail around these considerations. Biological factors such as these are monitored by biologists and are considered by the Commission, including sportsmen input, during the existing season setting process.

Science-based wildlife management is a central tenant of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. The Idaho Wildlife Federation helped to lead the Citizen’s Initiative of 1938 that created an independent Fish and Game Commission, overwhelmingly supported by Idahoans, in order to ensure that science - rather than politics - would be the guiding light of wildlife management practices. This bill would set us on a slippery slope that would endanger that legacy.

Mule deer doe hunting is already prohibited or largely restricted to youth hunts during general hunting seasons in the impacted units, though more units are open to doe hunting during archery seasons.
Edited to add attachment.

Unreal. Thanks for keeping us up to date on this.

 

[robby denning]

OK, I'm late on HB 128 (the sabot rule) but sent a letter to all 3 of my reps on HB196 (banning antlerless hunts), and the dangers of taking away the decision making power on rule-setting from our F&G and shifiting to legislatures and their constiutuents who think they're the wildlife experts.

Big thanks to @Customweld for walking me through this process. Donation heading to Idaho Wildlife Federation for their work too.