Submitted by the Province of Manitoba
Manitoba Conservation and Climate advises that conservation officers are continuing enforcement against illegal night hunting and illegal hunting in moose conservation closure areas. On Nov. 17, conservation officers received information from the Turn In Poachers (TIP) line about illegal hunting activity in the Interlake region and were able to respond.
Acting on the tip, conservation officers found two men who had killed two elk on private land in the Broad Valley area. The elk, three rifles and other pieces of hunting equipment were seized by the officers. Two men from Selkirk have been charged with hunting on private land without permission and with possessing illegally taken wildlife, and a restitution notice for $5,000 was issued for illegally killing the elk. The elk will be processed and the meat donated to a food bank.
Later that evening, an aircraft patrol in the Interlake region observed a spotlight shining from a vehicle near Lundar. A man, a woman and a youth were issued appearance notices for night hunting on private land. A 2003 Ford Escape, a rifle, a spotlight, other hunting items and a female white-tailed deer were seized by officers. A restitution notice for $1,500 was issued for the illegally killed deer.
Since Oct. 10, conservation officers have conducted patrols to enforce Manitoba’s new Wildlife Amendment Act (Safe Hunting and Shared Management), resulting in:
• charges or appearance notices to 31 individuals for serious wildlife offences,
• warnings to 19 individuals for night hunting without a permit or for hunting in a moose conservation closure,
• charges to 11 individuals for possessing illegally taken wildlife,
• seizures of eight vehicles,
• seizures of 16 firearms, and
• restitution orders totalling $20,500.
On Oct. 10, the Wildlife Amendment Act (Safe Hunting and Shared Management) took effect with the goal of ensuring a safe hunting environment. Night hunting is now illegal in Manitoba on all private land. The act also allows the establishment of shared management committees, which can be an important tool for improved wildlife conservation, including for moose.
The province has implemented a permit system to allow opportunities for rights-based hunting on some Crown land, with different requirements for northern and southern Manitoba based on extensive Crown-Indigenous consultations that contributed to the development of the legislation.
In northern Manitoba, Indigenous hunters may hunt at night on Crown land and do not need to apply for a permit, though it is subject to a three-kilometre safety buffer around occupied sites and provincial roadways.
In southern Manitoba, night hunting is prohibited except with a permit that allows rights-based hunting on Crown land, subject to terms and conditions establishing where it can be done safely.
Anyone with information on illegal activities is asked to call their local Manitoba Conservation and Climate office or the Turn In Poachers (TIP) line at 1-800-782-0076.
