By BEN NEARY
NMWF Conservation Director
The Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico is on the list of national refuges and other properties where the Trump Administration is calling for an increase in hunting and fishing opportunities. An official at Bosque del Apache said Wednesday the proposal would have only a minimal effect on the refuge if it’s adopted.
U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt on Wednesday announced the expansion of hunting at 74 refuges totaling 1.4 million acres nationwide. He also announced plans to allow fishing at 15 national fish hatcheries for the first time.
Bernhardt made the announcement at the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, in Ohio. He said President Donald Trump is committed to expanding public access to public lands.
“Hunting and fishing are more than just traditional pastimes as they are also vital to the conservation of our lands and waters, our outdoor recreation economy and our American way of life,” Bernhardt said.
“These refuges and hatcheries provide incredible opportunities for sportsmen and women and their families across the country to pass on a fishing and hunting heritage to future generations and connect with wildlife,” Bernhardt said.
Bernard Lujan, deputy refuge manager at Bosque del Apache, said Wednesday that the proposal calls for extending the hours of upland bird hunting allowed at the refuge from the current period of sunrise until 1 p.m. to sunrise to sundown. He said the refuge would also expand the number of youth turkey tags it offers.
“It’s not going to have that much impact on us because we’re not including any new game for Bosque del Apache, rather all we’re doing is increasing opportunities and extending the hunt hours,” Lujan said.
The typical birdwatcher who comes to the Bosque del Apache to watch the Festival of the Cranes, or otherwise explore the area would likely see no changes, Lujan said.
Waterfowl hunting would remain prohibited within the main refuge under the proposal, Lujan said.
“The only waterfowl hunting that we would possibly be doing in the future is along the river,” Lujan said. “Right now, we do not have waterfowl hunts on the refuge. In the future if we were to open that, it would be something new and something on a trial basis where it would include the river hunting only.”
A lot of the river corridor through the refuge is currently overgrown. If the refuge does allow hunting along the river, Lujan said it would be up to individual hunters to fight their way through the underbrush to get to it.
“We’re not going to make access to the river because that’s not what we do,” he said. “Again, we treat the river corridor as a wilderness, so we’re not going to be putting in blinds, or pits or trails to the river for that purpose.”
Lujan said there will be no changes to big game hunting on the refuge. He said oryx typically don’t cross to the west side of the Rio Grande and said hunting for them will continue to be limited to the east side of the river. He said deer hunting will continue to be limited to wilderness areas only.
Elk hunting on the refuge will remain a collaborative effort between the refuge personnel and the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish to target specific animals that feed on cornfields the refuge maintains to provide food for birds. Lujan said there won’t be a public elk hunt on the refuge.
An Interior Department press release gave the following information about the proposed changes to federal areas in New Mexico:
_ Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge: Expand method of take and hunting hours for existing migratory game bird hunting and existing upland game hunting to further align with state regulations, and expand number of tags for existing youth turkey hunting on 48,044 acres to increase access.
_ New Mexico Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge: Expand the method of take and season date ranges for existing migratory bird hunting and method of take for existing upland game hunting on 1,086 acres to further align with state regulations.
_ Dexter National Fish Hatchery: Formally open to migratory game bird — duck, coot, sandhill crane and dove — and upland game hunting — Eurasian-collared dove and band-tailed pigeon — for the first time on 461 acres.
_ Las Vegas National Wildlife Refuge: Expand the bag limit for existing migratory game bird hunting on 506 acres to further align with the state regulations.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service intends to finalize the proposed changes in time for the upcoming 2019-2020 hunting seasons. The agency will seek comments from the public on the proposed changes for 45 days, beginning with publication in the Federal Register in coming days. An interim copy of the proposed rule is now available.
