February 5, 2021
Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development Enforcement Update
– – –Continued Enforcement Against Illegal Hunting
Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development advises that conservation officers are continuing enforcement against illegal night hunting and illegal hunting in moose conservation closure areas.
On Nov. 24, 2020, conservation officers were conducting a night hunting enforcement patrol in the Hartney area. Officers observed a vehicle travelling on a provincial road while a spot light was being used from the vehicle into the adjacent fields. Officers were able to get a vehicle description but attempts to stop it were unsuccessful. Further investigation led to two individuals from the community of Canupawaka being charged with night hunting under the Wildlife Act. The driver of the vehicle was also charged with failing to stop under the Highway Traffic Act.
Conservation officers continue to conduct patrols to enforce Manitoba’s new Wildlife Amendment Act (Safe Hunting and Shared Management), resulting in:
• the issuance of 50 Serious Wildlife Offences to 39 individuals,
• warnings issued to 20 individuals for night hunting without a permit or for hunting in a moose conservation closure,
• charges issued to 14 individuals for possessing illegally taken wildlife,
• seizures of 10 vehicles,
• seizures of 20 firearms, and
• Serious wildlife offence restitution orders totalling $29,000.
All fish and wildlife restitution orders handed out from April 1, 2020, total $164,854.
On Oct. 10, 2020, 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.
- 30 -