PHOENIX — The Arizona Game and Fish Department has scheduled six public forums to meet with constituents about developing the 2017 fall hunt recommendations for deer, bighorn sheep, turkey, javelina, bison, bear, mountain lion, and small game animals.
The department annually makes recommendations to the Arizona Game and Fish Commission regarding the management of game species for the annual hunting and trapping regulations, which establish the seasons, dates, bag limits, open areas, and hunt permit-tag allocations based on the framework of the hunt guidelines set by the commission every two years.
The meetings will be conducted from 6 to 8 p.m. at these Game and Fish regional offices:
Wednesday, Feb. 22: Kingman, 5325 N. Stockton Hill Road
Tuesday, Feb. 28: Flagstaff, 3500 S. Lake Mary Road
Thursday, March 2: Pinetop, 2878 E. White Mountain Blvd.
Thursday, March 2: Mesa, 7200 E. University Drive
Thursday, March 2: Yuma, 9140 E. 28th St.
Monday, March 6: Tucson, 555 N. Greasewood Road
Constituents who are interested in specific game management units within those regions will have the opportunity to discuss management direction.
“The meetings allow sportsmen and other members of the public to stay informed and provide input on the hunt recommendations,” said Amber Munig, big game management supervisor. “We will be discussing the direction for the recommendations based on survey data, harvest rates and the hunt guidelines. We won’t be proposing permit numbers at this point, but we will generally discuss where permit numbers might be headed.”
After the public forums have been completed, the final proposed draft hunt recommendations will be made available for public review at several regional open houses and posted on the department’s website at www.azgfd.gov/huntguidelines in late March.
The final fall hunt recommendations will be presented to the commission for consideration at its April 8 meeting in Phoenix.
To learn more about the hunt recommendations and hunt guidelines processes, visit www.azgfd.gov/huntguidelines.