Hunt drawing application period begins on June 26

Utah’s sandhill crane hunt is less than three months away.

The opportunity to apply for a permit is even closer.

Starting June 26, you can apply for a sandhill crane permit at www.wildlife.utah.gov. Paper applications will not be accepted this year.

To be included in the draw for permits, your application must be received through the Web site no later than 11 p.m. on July 10.

If you need help applying online, please call (801) 538-4700 no later than 5 p.m. on July 10.

Sandhill crane hunts will be held in September in Uintah County and three counties in northern Utah.

Taking a bird

Those who draw a permit can expect a good hunt, says Tom Aldrich, migratory game bird coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources.

“About 60 percent of those who draw a permit and go afield to hunt cranes usually end up taking one,” he says.

Aldrich says advanced scouting is the key to finding success. “If you spend time watching sandhill cranes in the mornings and the evenings, when they fly between their roosting and feeding areas, and then get permission from a landowner to set-up in a field where they’re feeding, you’ll usually find success,” he says.

You can also find success pass shooting birds as they fly between roosting and feeding areas.

“Hunting success is pretty consistent from year-to-year,” Aldrich says. “Weather and other factors don’t affect the success rate much.”

Reminder

Aldrich reminds you that some areas in Box Elder and Cache counties are closed to sandhill crane hunting.

In Box Elder County, the western half of the county is closed. The Harold Crane, Public Shooting Grounds and Salt Creek waterfowl management areas, and the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, are also closed to crane hunting.

In Cache County, a 1- by 11-mile area in and around Mendon is closed.

For more information, call the nearest Division of Wildlife Resources office or the DWR’s Salt Lake City office at (801) 538-4700.