Daily Archives: December 22, 2016

Wildlife, Parks and Tourism Commission to meet In Emporia

The Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism Commission will conduct a public meeting on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017 in Emporia at the Flint Hills Technical College, 3301 W 18th Ave. The afternoon session will begin at 1 p.m. and recess at 5 p.m. The evening session will convene at 6:30 p.m. The public is invited to attend both sessions and time will be set aside for public comment at the beginning of each for discussion of non-agenda items.

The afternoon session will begin with a report on the agency and state fiscal status and a preview of the 2017 Kansas Legislative Session. The General Discussion portion of the meeting will include the drawing for the Commission Big Game Permits, a Tourism Division update, and discussion on webless migratory bird regulations and waterfowl regulations.

The Workshop Session will include reviews of antelope, elk, public land, deer and big game permanent regulations.

The evening portion of the meeting will convene at 6:30 p.m. for the Public Hearing. Commissioners will hear dates for 2017 Free Park Entrance and Free Fishing Days set by Secretary’s Orders.

If necessary, the commission will reconvene at the same location at 9 a.m., Jan. 6, to complete any unfinished business. Information about the Commission, as well as the Jan. 5 meeting agenda and briefing book, can be downloaded at ksoutdoors.com/KDWPT-Info/Commission/Upcoming-Commission-Meetings.

Live video and audio streaming of the Jan. 5 meeting will be available at ksoutdoors.com. If notified in advance, the department will have an interpreter available for the hearing impaired. To request an interpreter, call the Kansas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing at 1-800-432-0698. Any individual with a disability may request other accommodations by contacting the Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism Commission secretary at (620) 672-5911.

The next Kansas Wildlife, Parks and Tourism commission meeting is scheduled for March 23, 2017, at the Capitol Plaza Hotel Conference Center in Topeka.

Last chance for venison backstraps

Time is running out for Kansas deer hunters. But unfilled 2016 deer permits can still be used to put venison in the freezer this January. On Jan. 1, 2017, all 2016 unfilled deer permits convert to Whitetail Antlerless-Only (WAO) permits; however, unit restrictions listed on the permits are still in effect. Additional WAO permits can still be purchased, and after Dec. 30, hunters are no longer required to possess a permit that allows the taking of an antlered deer to purchase antlerless permits.

In addition to an either-sex permit, hunters may purchase up to five additional WAO permits with unit and public land restrictions. The first WAO permit a hunter purchases is valid statewide (except Unit 18) on private land with landowner permission and on public lands. A hunter can purchase up to four additional WAO permits valid in Units 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10A, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 19 on private land with landowner permission, on Walk-in Hunting Areas, and on Cedar Bluff, Glen Elder, Kanopolis, Kirwin, Lovewell, Norton, Webster and Wilson wildlife areas. Season lengths also vary based on unit location. See your 2016 Kansas Hunting and Furharvesting Regulations Summary, or visit ksoutdoors.com and click “Hunting/Big Game Information/Deer,” for details.

2017 Extended Firearm Season dates, by deer management units, are as follows:

Jan 1-2, 2017 – Units 6, 8, 9, 10, 16, 17

Jan. 1-8, 2017 – Units 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 11, 12, 13, and 14

Jan. 1-15, 2017 – Units 10A, 15, and 19:

No WAO permits are valid in Unit 18 (southwest).

There is also an Extended WAO Archery Season in DMU 19 Jan. 16-31, 2017.