Interesting news coming from Pierre...

GFP Commission Proposal Would Allow for Nest Predator Bounty Program

PIERRE, S.D. – Earlier this week, the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks (GFP) Commission proposed a rule outlining the new Nest Predator Bounty Program as outlined in Governor Noem’s Second Century Initiative.

If approved, the framework for the bounty program would include:

Eligible species: raccoon, striped skunk, opossum, badger or red fox.
Open to South Dakota residents only.
Animals must be harvested in South Dakota by the resident participant.
If under the age of 18 years old, a parent or legal guardian must submit the electronic bounty form on behalf of the youth.
Information on the electronic bounty form must be true and accurate.
These provisions are necessary to allow conservation officers to enforce the bounty program.

The GFP Commission will consider adopting the proposal on April 4-5 at the Outdoor Campus in Rapid City. To comment in person, the public hearing will be held April 4 at 2 p.m. MDT. Individuals can comment online at https://gfp.sd.gov/forms/positions/ or mail them to 523 E. Capitol Ave., Pierre, SD 57501. To be included in the public record and to be considered by the Commission, comments must include a full name and city of residence and meet the submission deadline of 72 hours before the public hearing (not including the day of the public hearing) per HB 1006.


AND

Free live traps

Register online at LiveTrapProgram.sd.gov.

*Each household is allowed up to 5 traps.

GFP will call you after April 1, 2019, to arrange for a date and time to pick up traps.

Pick up your traps.



*The primary season for trapping nest predators (raccoons, striped skunks, badgers, opossums, and red fox) is April 1 – August 31. Even though you can harvest these animals year-round, this time period is when removing nest predators can affect the nest success of pheasants and ducks.

Collect an unlimited amount of tails, turn them in to GFP and get $10 per tail for raccoons, striped skunks, badgers, opossums, and red fox.

Make sure you have a furbearer license if you are trapping outside of the April 1 - August 31 time period and follow all hunting and trapping rules and regulations.

Just got on line and submitted for 5 traps. They will work great around the building site to release all my barn cats. Leg holds will be used in all other places. Might as well get enough tails to pay for all my license fees back from the state.

FYI Possum pups in the pouch will not count the ones out of the pouch will count!

Yep looking to get that license fee back they can keep them cages I have enough of my own!

I have 4 but that is not enough for a 20 acre building site and hay yard. My cats hunt all of it and keep the rat and mice population down.

You guys should be able to make some big $$$ if you can stand the bugs.

i hope it is successful and other states follow suit.

I can cover 20 acres no problem.

This program is pure stupidity, redistribution of public funds to help the already helped farmers and hunting lodges. Real help would be if they focused on habitat.... This will take away incentive for farmers to let trappers come in during fur season, hinder our harvest of fur, create an artificial surplus of live cages, hurting cage makers. Not only to mention unethical destruction of sow's with their young. Killing nursing mothers while their offspring are hidden away, horrible way for young to die. This is going to create night hunting problems with spotlighting. I'm all for predator control and high pheasant numbers but this seems like the wrong way to do it.

For me it is a winning situation , as I am getting paid to trap in the summer by the big hunting lodges and perserves. The only habitat that is in my area owned by hunting lodges and farmers that like to hunt. I would say 1/3 of the farmers in my area are not in the farm program and drain tile every slough, tear out every tree belt so they can farm road ditch to road ditch. On our farm we have a lot of habitat and do have pay hunters it ofsets the acres we lose to habitat. The night hunting is very easy to do with new laws ws we have. If they are spot lighting from the road throw the book at them.

I know a lot of farmers and trap for many of them. But I must trap their ground every year for all animals, not just the ones you can make profit on. You want access to ground it is not that hard to get if get to know people and help them out a little. Don't just show up opening day and ask permission to trap. In my own opinion it will not work as habitat is needed to raise birds. The Raptors do just as much damage the ground living predators. Also we have no control over the weather. I do know in my area there is only a couple of people trapping now where 5 years age trappers where every where.

Are not coyotes predators?Why are they not in the program for $10 a tail?

It sound like the state is putting another 250,000$ into airplane gunning for the coyotes. I am not sure but i think wildlife services has 3 planes. There are also some private pilots licensed to gun, they do quite a number on the coyotes.

South Dakota Game and Fish are already changing the rules. According to what I just read residents will only be allowed to get 3 live traps.

Yes, not surprised by the high influx of demand for free stuff. Just changed this evening.

As of 8 pm they .are out of live traps. Only the first 5500 households got them. We will see how fast that 500,000$ goes on the bounty lasts.

I wonder how much of that will be paid toward road killed coon. Noem’s an idiot. State money to help the pay to play operations.

$80 dollar yotes already have a incentive program for the fur, between the State Trappers, aerial gunning and trapping pressure they are feeling the heat have seen a reduction of numbers this year.

They will jack up the licenses to make up for it is all they need to do! LOL