Commission meeting includes pronghorn report

The Fish and Wildlife Commission will meet tomorrow and Saturday in Olympia. The meeting will take place in Room 172 of the Natural Resources Building, 1111 Washington St. SE, Olympia. The meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. Friday and at 8 a.m. Saturday.

One of the subjects to be discussed will be state rules about wildlife rehabilitators. Fish and Wildlife currently licenses 53 rehabilitators across the state to care for sick, injured and orphaned wild animals. The agency is proposing new rules for those developed in conjunction with a 12-member advisory committee to clarify the department’s rules and make them easier to understand.

Another item on the agenda caught my attention. Fish and Wildlife will brief the commission about pronghorn management in the state. Pronghorn is the correct word to describe what we commonly know at antelope.

Think about this: A hunting season for antelope in Washington State. Realization: but we have a long way to go before this scenario becomes a reality. Apparently, pronghorns have been released on the Colville and Yakama Indian reservations.

Word has reached this desk about these animals traveling off the reservations and onto private lands. They have been seen in various parts of Eastern Washington.

This could be good and/or bad. The good: Great to have pronghorns multiplying and dispersing throughout the land. The bad: Pronghorns will not be welcome if they damage crops or otherwise cause problems.

Stay tuned. This is a developing story. Think positive.

Interesting fact: The expedition of Lewis and Clark identified the pronghorn as a goat. These animals are still called goats by many people from Montana.

The pheasant, quail and partridge seasons continue through Jan. 21.

Duck, coot, snipe and goose seasons end Jan. 27. Remember, goose hunting is allowed only on Saturday, Sunday and Wednesdays during most of the season, but goose hunting is allowed every day from Jan. 21 and Jan. 27. The daily limit for geese is four Canadian, 10 white-fronted and six white-geese. This equates to 20 geese a day, if a hunter was so lucky.