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Fish and Game approves new CWD surveillance hunt in portion of Unit 1

| August 16, 2024 1:00 AM

The Idaho Fish and Game Commission has approved a nine-day chronic wasting disease surveillance hunt in a portion of Unit 1, running Aug. 24 to Sept. 1, according to a press release. 

The goal of the hunt is to collect additional samples to better understand the prevalence and distribution of CWD in the area. This comes as an adult white-tailed doe found dead in July tested positive for CWD about 3 miles from Bonners Ferry, which is the first positive CWD case in North Idaho.

Fish and Game’s goal is to collect 200 CWD test samples from this area with special requirements for hunters who participate, including: 

Tags are valid for either sex, white-tailed deer only. 

  • Tags are available to Idaho residents only.
  • Tags may only be purchased for eligible hunters and their spouse or dependent children on site.
  • Hunters must present a valid Idaho hunting license to purchase a tag. Licenses will not be available for purchase at the tag sale location in Bonners Ferry.
  • Tags will be "extra" tags that do not affect a hunter’s ability to participate in other deer hunts.
  • Hunters must present the head of any harvested deer to a regional office or designated drop-off site in Bonners Ferry within 24 hours of harvest for mandatory CWD testing.

Other hunt details will be provided when a tag is purchased. Fish and Game will contact the hunter if a deer they harvested tests positive for CWD.