Updates on Utah's wildlife from the DWR
Each week the DWR publishes interesting and informative stories about Utah's wildlife. If you want these stories delivered to your inbox just as soon as we publish them, please sign up for our weekly email.
Thinking about releasing that pet goldfish into the wild? Don't do it! The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is reminding Utahns that it's both harmful and illegal to dump unwanted pet fish into local ponds or to move fish you've caught from one waterbody to another.
Law enforcement officers and technicians for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and other agencies wound down the summer boating season with a busy Labor Day holiday weekend, working to prevent invasive quagga mussels from spreading to Utah's lakes and reservoirs.
The first case of avian flu in wild birds in Utah was confirmed in April, and now the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has confirmed the virus has spread to wild birds in three additional counties, most likely due to the fall migration.
Autumn brings a lot of beautiful colors to Utah's landscape, and driving to see the leaves change color is a popular activity for many locals. However, trees aren't the only things that turn a brilliant shade of red in the fall — kokanee salmon do as well.
The Utah Wildlife Board approved a fee increase for hunting and fishing licenses and permits — for both residents and non-residents — in an effort to keep up with increased rising costs of operation, and also approved a few additional items during the public meeting on Thursday, Aug. 25.
If you didn't draw out for any of Utah's big game hunts but still want to hunt this fall, you may want to give upland game a try! The majority of the upland game hunts in Utah are open to anyone with a Utah hunting license.
Watch the Utah Wildlife Board meeting live, beginning Thursday, Aug. 25 at 9 a.m. The agenda and meeting materials are available on the public meetings page.
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is proposing changes to fishing regulations across the state, including classifying roundtail chub as a sportfish and establishing fishing regulations for the species. A few other changes are also being recommended, and the DWR is asking for the public's feedback on the proposals.
While boaters should call to schedule a quagga mussel decontamination for their watercraft, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has released a new online dashboard to help the public gauge how busy the state's inspection stations are.
Several years of ongoing drought conditions have impacted mule deer populations across the state. Here are a few things people hunting deer and elk in Utah this fall should know.
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