Section 1.11. Wildlife management.

  The natural resources board:

(1)  Endorses the concept and principles of professional wildlife management, considers scientific findings to be the primary foundation of sound wildlife management programs, and supports research and surveys necessary to provide the technical information required for effective implementation of this policy.

(2)  Recognizes that effective policy implementation requires the input and support of an informed public; endorses an active program to inform people of wildlife resource issues and alternative solutions; and will make every reasonable effort to obtain broad public input during its decision-making process.

(3)  Recognizes the need to strengthen the educational efforts of the department relating to hunter competence, standards of ethical hunting behavior and respect for landowners rights; educational efforts must also be directed toward nonhunters to improve their knowledge and understanding of wildlife as a renewable natural resource and of hunting as both a method of controlling wildlife populations and as a form of outdoor recreation.

(4)  Endorses the concept of comprehensive wildlife planning whereby actual and potential contributions of all functions of the department toward achievement of common wildlife management goals and objectives are recognized and, where feasible, integrated into operational activities.

(5)  Recognizes that regulation of certain human activities is an integral and necessary part of wildlife management; that a sound legal system which combines equitable laws and judicious law enforcement is essential; and that wildlife law enforcement programs which are commensurate with other management efforts and contribute toward the achievement of common goals and objectives are necessary.

(6)  Endorses the development and adoption of stronger regulatory measures, including more stringent license requirements, to assure an acceptable, minimum standard of hunting performance.

(7)  Supports the maintenance of ecological diversity and health, and will do everything in its power to protect and maintain free-living populations of all species of wildlife currently existing in Wisconsin; extirpated species will be reintroduced whenever feasible ecologically, economically and socially.

(8)  Supports the management of game species and habitat with the objective of increasing or maintaining populations to provide hunting opportunities.

(9)  Supports the regulated use of wildlife for human benefits, including hunting and trapping where legal harvests do not reduce subsequent population levels of these renewable wildlife resources or where population reduction of certain species is a deliberate objective.

(10)  Supports efforts to foster and promote the voluntary conservation of wildlife habitat on private lands and also supports the development and maintenance of cooperative programs for wildlife management and hunting recreation with landowners and operators of private lands.

(11)  Recognizes that private use of Wisconsin's protected wildlife is appropriate provided that use for educational, recreational, scientific or economic purposes does not deleteriously affect native or migratory wildlife and identifies the necessity of establishing and administering licensing or permit systems to insure proper care and handling of protected wildlife when persons are entrusted with their care or use.

(12)  Strongly encourages the use of well trained hunting dogs in the pursuit and retrieval of game; that extensive training and field trial competition provide hunting dogs which are proficient at finding and retrieving more game; and that the department will actively participate in programs which assist and encourage the training of hunting dogs including the designation and management of specific state controlled lands for trials and training provided this use does not conflict with the primary purpose of the property.

History: Cr. Register, April, 1975, No. 232 , eff. 5-1-75; r. and recr. Register, July, 1977, No. 259 , eff. 8-1-77; cr. (11), Register, October, 1982, No. 322 , eff. 11-1-82; cr. (12), Register, April, 1985, No. 352 , eff. 5-1-85.